Austin Maynard Architects (formerly Andrew Maynard Architects) of Australia have recently completed a green renovation, turning an existing and outdated house into a modern and sustainable home. The so-called Mills, the toy management house, is fun to look at and to live in, especially with all the sustainable features it boasts of.
The home’s rather quirky name comes from the fact that the architects wanted to design a parent-friendly home when it comes to having to clean up kids’ toys. To achieve this, they raised a part of the floor and made this area one giant toy box, saving the parents the need to pick up each toy when cleaning. Now they can just sweep the toys into the cleverly place storage space.
The home was also designed to do away with traditional separation of indoor and outdoor spaces, which is especially evident on the ground floor. This area features an open plan living and dining area, with the kitchen taking up the space where the corridor once was. There is also a well lit working area with a view of the backyard.
The upstairs features a master bedroom with a sliding door, which increases the usable space, and the kids’ bedrooms. There is also a bathroom with a custom-made fiberglass bath made by the firm.
The whole home was refitted with large windows, which let in plenty of natural daylight and aid ventilation, while at the same time reducing heat sink and heat transfer. The front-facing façade of the home resembles that of a normal terraced house, while at the back, they installed a white perforated metal façade, which works to offset the sun’s glare.
The home is also equipped with a large rainwater catchment system. The water collected in this way is used for flushing the toilets, and irrigating the garden. The home also features high-performance insulation, and is fitted with a rooftop mounted solar panel array, which takes care of a good portion of the home’s energy needs.
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