Archiblox Modular Home Reviews - The Urban Stories Archiblox Modular Home Reviews - The Urban Stories

Want to know all about what it’s like to design, build and live in an architecturally designed, Archiblox prefabricated home? Follow the journey of 2 of our favourite inner city projects, and see what our clients had to say about their experience with our service from design through to delivery.

The brief from this young, creative family was to design a spacious and modern home, which connected to it’s urban context and opened up wholeheartedly to the Collingwood neighbourhood. It was important the home maximised it’s internal space while retaining a small footprint on the tight, narrow site of just 140m2, with 3 metre wide frontage to the north.

The clients wanted to have highly designed aesthetic, including contemporary finishes and a prefabricated dwelling that had an abundance of natural light and ventilation. The layout needed to comprise of 2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, laundry, kitchen, butlers pantry, dining and two living areas whilst not only maintaining but increasing the size of front garden area and parking access. This clever home needed to tick all the boxes and beyond.

The finished home exhibits a modern, beautifully designed and a light filled family home. The façade of the house features a dark grey metallic Alutile with blackbutt timber. By implementing the principles of passive design, the home not only relies less on the use of mechanical heating and cooling but also creates an extension of the internal space which maximizes the indoor rooms.

The open plan living/dining/kitchen area is opened up to the front yard and is orientated north inviting the winter sun to light and heat up the room and also to allow natural ventilation to cool the room during summer months. The living area also extends to another small courtyard on the west, which allows the interior to feel more adjustable and spacious depending on the occupants needs. The western courtyard is designed to allow more light to enter the space and also functions as a vertical garden fence for herbs or plants for aesthetics.

The ‘Richmond Extension’ provided a contemporary addition to a beautiful existing Edwardian house in the Melbourne suburb of Richmond. The home-owners, a young family of four, were looking to expand their home with further bedrooms and living spaces. Aside from increasing the size of the existing abode, the clients were also conscious of including appropriate weather insulation, high-quality materials and energy-efficient appliances throughout the home.

The clients, who lived in inner-city Melbourne and had 2 children under the age of 5 at the time, required a process which had fewer disruptions and time required away from their home. It was important that the build wasn’t intrusive on neighbouring properties, or created traffic congestion on the narrow street. Therefore, a prefabricated solution built off-site and installed in a single day, suited the clients perfectly.

The modern extension comprises of 3 modules, with existing house facade maintained, along with the two front rooms and hallway. The ground floor modules provide a spacious, open-plan, kitchen, living and dining area, with study nook and large walk-in-pantry built seamlessly into the kitchen joinery. A laundry, powder-room, and ensuite were also included on this ground level.

Sliding doors open the kitchen and living up to the outdoor area, allowing an abundance of sunlight to enter these northern living areas. The transition between the spaces makes outdoor entertaining effortless and provides efficiency in the ability to cool the space in the summer months.

The upstairs module, which includes two bedrooms and a bathroom, is tucked behind the roofline of the existing house, maintaining a discreet profile when viewed from the street.