Smith Lake Barn Residence

Our Client desired a vacation home on Smith Lake in north Alabama to be designed uniquely to their stage of life. Needing space for grown children to visit periodically, the house serves mainly as a frequent weekend getaway for the couple, especially being only forty-five minutes from their home in Birmingham. It is also spacious and flexible enough to accommodate sleeping ten to twelve people.

By positioning the house just above the Alabama Power Company’s high water control line for the lake, the design allows for the living experiences to occur at the water’s edge.

The arrangement of the house and guest house maximizes views to the main water channel by providing a cozy courtyard living space and by creating an opening between the two buildings that offer welcoming views of the water upon arrival.

The large screened porch cantilevers over the lake and has an operable screened barn door to allow the Owner to jump 15 feet below into the lake.

Our Client, who works in orthopedics, was motivated to expose the “bones” and structure of the house frame to be visible from the inside. His research located two antique (1800’s) barn structures from New England to serve as the structural system for both buildings. Crisp finish materials complement the structures’ aged timbers so that there is no illusion about the original elements and that which is added to the antique structure.

The orientation of house captures the consistent breezes flowing through the house; a crow’s nest windows open up to create a chimney effect, venting warmer air out of the house. Passive cooling along with radiant floor heating offer comfortable use of the home year-round with minimal energy usage. Abundant windows all along the lake side provide down-river views to be enjoyed from nearly ever space in the house.