When old meets new: a sustainable extension on Shetland’s coast
‘But and ben’ is Scots for ‘two-roomed cottage’, a building typical of rural Scotland that consists of an outer room (the but, traditionally the kitchen) and an inner room (the ben). With only a few small windows, this structure offers excellent protection against the harshest Island weather – but it doesn’t provide the type of light-filled home that’s in demand these days.
Burnside Cottage is one such but-and-ben house. It sits near Shetland’s east coast, in Levenwick. The owners were passionate about retaining the cottage’s original features but, at the same time, wanted a modern, bright and economical home.
The answer came in the form of an extension, which has delivered a light, airy living space that reflects the surrounding seascape and honours the cottage’s traditional past. Using Russwood products helped Adrian Wishart of née gibson Architects – working with Shetland-based builder John Tait – achieve his vision.
Seeking inspiration from the landscape
Burnside Cottage’s all-black extension – occasionally interrupted by a vibrant yellow – was added to the rear of the cottage. This placement helped fulfil one of the owner’s wishes: to create a better link between the house and the garden that slopes up behind the home. Large windows and a sliding door now open onto a sheltered patio there.
The extension echoes the natural gradient of the landscape with a mono-pitched roof, and it is partially concealed by the rising level of the garden. Attention to the angle and pitch of the roof, as well as the simplicity of detailing, means the original cottage remains the most prominent element on the site.
“[The roof] references the distinct slope of the surrounding hillside while also complementing the traditional form and pitch of the cottage,” says Adrian.
Clad in 117mm boards of black-grey coated Thermopine® (RAL7021), the boldness of the extension’s simple yet striking finish sits naturally against the landscape. As it is thermally treated, Thermopine has very low levels of seasonal shrinking and swelling and is free from resin, making it a superb substrate for dark coatings. It matches the hardiness of the building’s surrounding landscape – and the people who inhabit it.
“We wanted cladding with a sharp appearance with distinct shadow lines, hence why we tried the open jointed detail,” says Adrian.
The cladding is in stark contrast to the white stone of the original property and the bright yellow used to highlight key architectural details, including window frames and the door.
“As with most rural locations, earthy or monochromatic colours and shades often work very well,” says Adrian, who wanted the form of the building to speak louder than the colours.
Championing sustainability
Beyond design, the project is also a triumph in sustainability. With the stone walls and timber floor joists of the original house repaired, the builder installed an air-tight timber structural ‘kit’ with the highest-performance mineral wool insulation. This lends longevity to the stonework and stabilises it against high wind pressure, a common occurrence in Shetland.
The property also features triple glazing, underfloor heating via an air-source heat pump, and, of course, our sustainably sourced Thermopine cladding.
“We had to maintain the prominence and appearance of the original cottage, and upgrade the energy efficiency while lowering the project’s carbon footprint,” says Adrian.
A voluntary lifecycle assessment scored the property ‘A’ for Embodied Carbon and ‘B’ for Upfront Carbon, in alignment with the 2030 climate targets of the Low Energy Transformation Initiative (LETI) and the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA).
The clients are delighted with the house, as are we. [Russwood were] readily available to answer queries on specification and fitment. They have a good choice of options as well.
Adrian Wishart, née gibson Architects
A robust product for exposed locations
We gave the Thermopine cladding boards used on Burnside Cottage a Microtex® finish, factory-coated in high-performance Teknos paint. This fibrous surface finish provides optimal performance with coatings: a major consideration given Shetland’s unforgiving weather conditions which often rubs paint off smooth finished timber after only a couple of years.
“We wanted to try the pre-painted product to see whether it gave a longer life,” says Adrian. “Especially in Shetland’s harsh climate where horizontal rain effectively ‘shot blasts’ painted finishes.”
Using our pre-painted Thermopine also fast-tracked the project.
“It allowed a quicker installation time as no painting was required on site, other than on the cut ends,” he says.
L-GoFix® MS/SC9 screws blend effortlessly into the design, keeping the cladding in place. The result: a cosy fortress that can weather all storms.
Since completion four winters ago, the property was shortlisted as a finalist in the AJ Retro Fit & Reuse Awards in London, and the Highlands & Islands Architectural Awards.
Specifier tip: Our in-house factory-controlled coating process uses Teknos paint to achieve an opaque matte black finish (RAL9005, Jet Black or RAL 7021 Black Grey). This high-performance paint ensures a true matte appearance, avoiding the glossiness often seen in black coatings.
Project gallery
Learn more
Thermopine® is an ideal substrate for coating with our range of Teknos paints, Woca oil or SiOO:X coatings.
