STANDFAST POINT
Client's brief:
Our client wanted buildings constructed from natural materials – stone and slate - and asked that we use traditional building methods, with no steel or concrete structural elements. They also wanted to create a home that would blend into the landscape and create little visual or environmental impact on the special site where it was built.
Our solution:
We developed Standfast Point with well-respected local architect, Colin Robinson, and with stone masonry expertise from a Scotish consultant. Working with local quarries, we carefully sourced and selected an Antiguan stone that closely matched the colour of the natural peninsula rock. We then carefully nestled the stone buildings into the curves of the landscape, building mock-ups in wood to preview their fit. To complete the project, we sourced Guyana Greenheart hardwood, Yorkstone flooring and Wesmoreland slate roofing.
Built twenty five years ago, this was one of the world's and Antigua's first large properties to be fully off-grid and is still operating today. A stand alone solar power system supplies the house with all its electricity and a rainwater harvesting system provides fresh water, leaving almost no environmental impact.
Technical characteristics:
Construction
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Locally sourced, hand dressed, Antiguan stone, and slate and floor stones imported from the UK
Solar power system
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12 KW solar photovoltaic array located in a hidden area of the site
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100 KWH battery storage system (originally lead/acid but upgraded recently to lithium ion)
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Inverters (16 KW) and other balance of plant
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Diesel generator (used only during rare times of cloudy weather)
Rainwater harvesting
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Slate roofing collects rainwater into perimeter gutters which are piped into storage cisterns
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2 cisterns with capacity of 50,000 gallons
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Pumps and filtration system for distribution
Cooling and heating
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Cooling by natural cross flow ventilation by the ever present trade winds
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Water heating, pool heating and cooking by LPG