It was in Orford, on Chemin de la Belette, that Claude Auclair chose to buy rocky land in 2003 to build an atypical residence, the result of patient historical research.
“Over time, we have realized that the most resistant buildings on the planet are cathedrals,” he explains. Indeed, the structural principle of these buildings multiplies the reinforcement points in an X rather than at the four corners as is the case with traditional buildings, which ensures that these places of worship are very solid.
Another attraction of this architecture: its octagonal shape and its high ceilings provide a feeling of serenity and comfort, while freeing up space. Here, the wooden structure majestically frames the panorama of Bowker Lake.
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Aerial view of the house
Mr. Auclair’s project was born from his weariness of office work. “I had a software development business and I wanted to do something outside, moving at my own pace, without the pressure because I was alone. Despite everything, I underestimated the time needed! »
The first year, the owner drew his plans, then he cut the pine necessary for its construction in anticipation of the long drying time of the wood. The second year he poured the foundation. “It was complicated because I wanted it to be on rock and it took me a year just to remove all the earth and then make the foundation; it is made of reinforced concrete and will therefore last hundreds of years,” continues the man for whom the notion of sustainability is fundamental.
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Claude Auclair built this extraordinary house for 20 years!
We often talk about sustainable development by asking us not to travel, not to eat beef, but sustainable development also means doing things so that they last a long time.
Claude Auclair, owner
“However, today’s houses must be majorly renovated after 30 years,” he continues. I wanted to build one that would never have problems with solidity, structure or insulation. »
An old-fashioned technique
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The structural elements are held together according to an ancestral Japanese system.
For two years, Claude Auclair stayed in a motorhome on his land seven days a week in the summer, then went to the South in the winter, where he worked remotely for his company. “The third year, I started cutting the beams, tenons and mortises and invited friends to assemble it all by hand. I was in pretty good shape at that time since I was lifting a 24 x 8 x 8 foot piece all by myself! I worked very hard,” he emphasizes, adding that it was also essential for him to use only noble and local materials.
“There is no plastic, no gypsum, no screws to hold the beams. » Indeed, the pine structural elements are held together according to a very resistant Japanese system designed from pieces of wood which cross the beams. All the wood comes from a mill established in the region; only the slate that covers the roof comes from New England, because that of Quebec is too fragile to cover a roof.
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On the ground floor, a large open living area lets in light.
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One of the bedrooms upstairs
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The bathroom, contemporary
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The dining room opens onto the kitchen.
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The window frames are made of wood on the inside, then aluminum on the outside.
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The wood stove is enough to heat the whole house.
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A solarium has been fitted out and includes a spa.
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PHOTO FRANÇOIS ROY, THE PRESS
There is no gypsum in the house, as evidenced by the doors and partitions on the top floor, made of metal.
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Wooden and metal partitions
The envelope is then opened and the owner organizes a temporary bathroom and kitchen on the ground floor to be able to live full time in the house. “I had my wood stove, which was enough to heat the whole house, even if I installed electric heating in the floor. It was already very comfortable,” he says.
The development continued, wooden or metal partitions were erected on the upper floors, but after 10 years of work, Claude Auclair fell ill and had to put his work on hold for a few years. He resumed activity in 2018, creating four bedrooms and a bathroom on the second and third levels, as well as a real kitchen and a real bathroom on the ground floor to replace the makeshift rooms created at the start of the project.
Every detail has been thought of and the builder claims to have multiplied the building code standards by 10 to 20 so that the house passes the time without moving.
The owner converted the huge garage into a multifunctional space, which currently serves as an office and laundry room, created a solarium, and more recently, a walkway leading to a covered observation point, where he likes to sit and read. Here, as on each floor, the view is permanently clear over the lake, because the residence overlooks the trees, all of which have been carefully preserved. The durability of the elements is at the heart of the philosophy of this man, whose house will undoubtedly shelter many generations over the centuries.