Set on the water’s edge at the end of Roseneath Peninsula in Dunedin with panoramic views to the southwest across the inner Otago harbour is the Eel House. Home to Norman Evans and Sharon Chappelow, the Eel House was a challenging project set at a challenging site, however, the results of this uniquely shaped home were worth the hard work.

The design brief of the Eel House called for a clean, low profile to minimise visual disruption of the landscape while maximising weather tightness and installation flexibility. The brief also included a request for the home to “not have any straight lines” while still supporting Norman and Sharon’s expansive everyday use. The site, however, being set across the inner Otago harbour, the site came with numerous constraints. These included consent requirements and visual character, along with excavation limitations, site access and the range of extreme Otago climatic conditions.

When it came down to choosing the best roofing profile to meet both the design and climatic criteria, Eurotray® Roll Cap was the pick of the crop. Eurotray® Roll Cap not only offers clean lines and an attractive robust look, but it’s also suited to New Zealand’s most challenging weather. Offering clean lines with no visible fixings, Eurotray® Roll Cap is fixed over plywood on purlins, using a hidden fastener system. The result is long, uninterrupted lines with wide flat sections fully supported by the plywood substrate. As the Eurotray® lines radiate around the home’s curves, its elegant organic design is accentuated in an ever-changing display of subtle light and shadow.

The Eel House’s roof was expertly installed by Craig Maley, from RoofingSmiths Dunedin, who has been installing Dimond® roofs for more than 30 years. He enjoys working with Eurotray® and regards it as the ‘Rolls Royce’ of roofing.

“The material chosen for the Eurotray® Roll Cap on this project was ColorCote® AlumiGard™, a highly durable aluminium-based product ideal for harsh coastal conditions,” he explains. “It’s also more malleable than steel, so you can do more with it, which made it easier to create the unique curves and radial sections,” says Craig.

“Eurotray® can be installed in all wind zones. You simply decrease the spacing between the hidden fastening clips to achieve the highest wind rating,” explains Craig. “When it comes to weather tightness, the lack of external fastenings and the full-length raised caps that seal the tray sections together create a system that’s hard to beat.”

To further enhance the form and function of the Eel House, locally sourced, simple, robust materials were combined to balance economy, architecture and sustainability. The home’s construction uses standard details, such as an insulated ground concrete slab and 140 light timber with integral steel frames where required. The organic double curvature was created through a series of simple, curved walls with truncated radial roof planes at the ends of the ‘eel’. The selection of Eurotray® Roll Cap roofing beautifully accommodates the roof’s unique radial design features, pulling the project together so that the Eel House fits seamlessly with its coastal surroundings.