Clay brick in three places

Anja Engelshove: The front of the house faces the street on the south and is the representative side from which you enter the building. Behind the house, there is a patch of forest with some old trees. Therefore, the idea was for the façade to make a strong visual impression and for the building materials to provide long service life and low maintenance despite the proximity to the forest and humidity. From the very start, these aspects dictated that we would use bricks for all three purposes. 

Anja Engelshove: We are very fond of façade bricks, and in our planning, we often rely on clay bricks as building material, for façades as well as on the roof and for garden paths and paving. Bricks are a sustainable natural product which remains beautiful for a long time. They do not change shape or colour. They are UV-resistant, and they are stable and extremely durable. When building walls, they offer heat insulation and ensure a good interior climate; on the façade and for paving, they provide aesthetic advantages since they can be used to create a uniform image. We designed the entryway in dark clay, which is reflected in the façade, but at the same time, the façade also distinguishes itself through contrast. Laying the bricks in different ways offers another opportunity to play with different looks.

Anja Engelshove: The family wanted to build a barrier-free house for the next stage of their lives, one which can later be used as a residence for older people and provide space for children and guests. The upper stories can be converted into a separate residential unit later on, for example. The customer also had very clear ideas with regard to the selection of the material and the colour concept. The request was for a very classic, calm façade which incorporated colour play and thus was also interesting. That's why we selected bricks as the material for the façade.

Jochen Engelshove: Shortly before we started planning, we were at the construction trade show Batibouw in Brussels, where the new Terca Eco-brick® was presented. We liked the product very well even at the trade show: On the one hand, these bricks are sustainable due to their low mass, for a narrower brick means less energy during firing, less clay, and lower resource costs. On the other hand, we also gained space thanks to the narrower size. We were convinced of the advantages and wanted to try out the Terca Eco-brick® right away. In the meantime, we've been using this sustainable product in many projects.
 
Anja Engelshove: The emphasis on the size was not as important for the project in Hasbergen since the construction site allowed a flexible building size. Of course, it was still an advantage in the planning and resulted in a few square meters of additional living space. The decisive aspects for selection of the façade brick were the look and the variety of colours available in this product line. The mixture of brown, natural-coloured, and somewhat earthy tones, as well as the classic red appealed to us a great deal.