Sustainable source

21 September, 2021

A three-bedroom, two bathroom property in Tooting with off street parking and a separate garage may sound attractive, but it barely scratches the surface of what is a fabulous story. The property, on Robinson Road, is a single storey eco-house that has sustainability at its core. As owner Robin Charlesworth says, this is a “mini Grand Designs” project if there ever was one.

While many of us were wallowing in lockdown after lockdown in 2020, Charlesworth and his wife got to work building a home that complemented their shared interest in the environment. “Built from super thick structural insulated panels for all round superior thermal insulation and taped with special air tight tape, the property is both incredibly well insulated and air tight,” Charlesworth explains. “All windows and doors are triple glazed and made with thick timber frames to ensure no thermal bridging occurs. Being air tight, the property requires mechanical ventilation, which is provided by way of a mechanical ventilation with heat recovery system that filters the air as it comes in as well as dealing with all shower and cooking extraction.

The underfloor heating and hot water are provided by a 300 per cent ecient 4Kw air source heat pump, meaning zero carbon emissions. The heat pump is registered for MCS and provides an income of £340pa. On the roof, 3.2Kw of solar panels sit amongst a two-foot tall native wildflower meadow that pollinators love, while the solar power system provides more power over the course of the year than the property consumes.” What's more, the home is certified carbon neutral too. The details are impressive, but the green elements to the home shouldn’t be the only selling point.

The living spaces are generous in size, and the kitchen/living/dining room is a stand out with its huge open layout, benefitting from 4m wide sliding doors, a 5x1m roof window as well as oak parquet floor. The kitchen, too, is entirely bespoke, with built in birch ply bench seating and cabinetry.

Go through the living space and you come to a family bathroom with a separate shower and a bath, a master bedroom with en-suite, a generous double bedroom, plus a large single bedroom with its own courtyard.

As befits a home with the environment at its heart, outdoor space is also key to what the property offers. “There is also a walled garden and patio area,” Charlesworth adds, “as well as an overflowing cottage garden style pathway leading from the garage at the front of the house to the back.

The property has a shou sugi ban (charred cedar Yakisugi from Japan) clad garage, complete with sedum green roof, and an EO electric car charging point.” Whoever ends up purchasing this property will own a home with the future in mind.

As Antony May, Sales Branch Director at KFH Tooting, concludes: “‘This is a truly amazing and unique home, it is unlike any I have seen in my career. We are incredibly excited to be working on the sale of such a beautiful, innovative and eco-friendly property.”