Episode Information Ashford: The Water Tower Conversion

Date Published:

09/06/2008

For six years Bruno and Denise Del Tufo stared at the large concrete water tower at the bottom of their garden trying to figure out what to do with it. It's a very rare object – a square water tower on stilts designed by architect Edwin Lutyens, who built it to supply the manor house nearby.

It's not exactly beautiful but Bruno and Denise feel very protective towards it and wanted to make sure that the water tower was used in the right way. When they sold their house, they were worried that someone might knock the tower down, so they decided to try and find a way to live in this huge, concrete monster. They moved into two caravans on site, one for them and one for their four dogs, until the water tower was converted.

The planners were open to persuasion so they approached an architect who came up with a bold, uncompromising extension in metal, glass and concrete. Denise and Bruno were keen to keep the original structure visible so the new house is threaded between the legs of the water tower.

The main living area rises out of the ground on steel stilts, matching the tower's skinny concrete posts. The walls are built out of insulated steel panels, clad in either weathered zinc or patinated copper and there's a glass bubble in the roof to let in extra light. Full height windows can be opened like doors to create the feeling of standing on a balcony.

A new staircase runs through a glass stairwell up the outside of the tower leading to the bedrooms. New windows have been cut into the concrete tower to give fantastic view over the surrounding countryside. The crowning glory is the master bedroom suite at the top of the water tower which will have stunning views in all directions.

Bruno is a teacher and Denise calls herself a 'rag and bone lady' – she runs a second hand furniture business. Together they've furnished the tower in what Bruno calls 'laser clockwork' style; an eclectic mix of high quality old and new materials. The idea is that you shouldn't be able to tell which bits of the house are old and which bits are new so that the water tower retains a sense of mystery about it.

Bruno and Denise had a budget of £250,000 from the sale of their previous house but no contingency. The couple were unable to keep the build on track and to the planned schedule and as a result costs rose significantly in the later stages. But determined to see things through they got a mortgage to complete the build.