Episode Information Trade Secrets Medway

Date Published:

16/06/2008

This week's project is about as wacky as they come. It is surprising that Chris and Sze are not the first people to attempt a self-build from scrap materials. Inspiration came from recycled community centres, cheap but chic London pads, and even another houseboat made from junk. Crucially, all these buildings are eco-friendly and all were cheap to build, providing perfect models for this Grand Design.

It's a sign of the times that buildings made from reclaimed materials are becoming more common. Given the scale of some of these inspirational projects, this week's grand design looks remarkably feasible. Take Brighton's Earth Ship Community Centre, a building made almost entirely from old tyres and earth.

By employing these materials in a certain way, a building has been created that is highly insulated and very energy efficient. Of course, this is a quality that is absolutely integral to Chris' vision of a self-sufficient family home. If this type of project can succeed on such a grandiose scale then there is no reason why Chris and Sze can't construct a three bedroom family home from recycled materials.

A driving factor behind the Medway barge concept is the high cost of property in London. However, the couple were influenced by an inexpensive dockland development in the city that converts old ship storage containers into affordable living quarters. Aside from the nautical theme, Container City shares other common elements with the Medway eco-barge. The units are completely reused, having been welded together from material that would otherwise be decaying and going to waste. This is the very ethos that inspired Chris to take on such an individual project, and his results are in keeping with the low cost and regeneration of materials that originally spurred this unique city development.

The biggest source of inspiration for Chris and Sze was most likely Hamish McKensie's barge. Built totally from scrap and situated just fifty miles from Medway, Hamish's boat has provided him with a green home for the last twenty years. The shell is a reclaimed bus, and the structure includes pieces of cars and boats, a washing machine, a fruit machine, and even the post box is made from a microwave.

It is hard to believe that such an unusual Grand Design has a predecessor, but if Chris and Sze can come close to emulating Hamish's success, they might just be able to see their haphazard plan through and finish up with their dream of a recycled, self-sufficient eco-barge.