Durban North Coast Beach Shack - Sustainable Construction Case Study
The site is located within a highly environmentally sensitive zone, just 30 m from the beach. There were overarching environmental considerations during the planning and construction phases, in addition to the design, building typography, and system/materials selection being of prime importance to a humid subtropical climate.

Challenges:
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Independent consultants performed an EIA. It included struct assessments of how the property design and building could impact the land and cause minimal disruption.
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The house sits on concrete stilts on a floating slab 1.8 m above ground level. This facilitates airflow for mass cooling in summer.
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The building footprint was minimised to have the least impact on the site. The second floor cantilevers the smaller first floor, which is raised off the ground
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Water usage during the build was kept to a minimum due to the shuttering of the concrete with no mixing required on site and the usage of lightweight dry construction materials from Saint-Gobain.
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Rainwater is harvested into two tanks under the house, further supporting low water consumption.
See the PDF for more.
Weber Tylon® Products and Systems :
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Anchoring of lightweight concrete blocks off the slab and columns is by Weber Tylon® Multi Fix tile adhesive.
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Weber Tylon® Plaskey and Key It was used to benefit long-term health through superior waterproofing properties for the bathrooms and showers, ensuring resistance to mold growth.
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Weber Tylon® Porcelain S was used to fix the floor tiles with Weber Tylon® Bonding-It, providing a stronger bond for the large format tiles. Grouting was done using Weber Tylon® All Purpose Grout.
Key Achievements
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Indoor environments perform better for acoustic and thermal comfort while promoting required passive fire safety.
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Aesthetically pleasing spaces.
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Wall-mounted fixtures properly fixed to the walls: “We absolutely do believe that the right
choices were made as we considered every detail of the interior layout of wall fixtures and applications”.