Post by Conrad Kotze

🧱 Grand Designs vs. Reality: What TV Missed at Three Chimneys This morning I stood on site at Three Chimneys in Martinborough with owner Tim Roach. Grand Designs NZ showed the drama. What television missed was far more interesting. Four industry takeaways from the real build: 1. The Vineyard Was Resource Consent The vines were always Tim and Sally's vision — but on this Special Rural zoned site, establishing the vineyard was also a mandatory consent requirement to protect the Martinborough viticultural landscape. 2. Glulam vs Steel — The In-Hindsight Cost Trap Wide-span glulam beams run throughout. Tim's hindsight? He would have used structural steel. Those beams are now entirely hidden behind linings. The premium paid yields zero visual return. 3. The 50-Year Paradox Coming from the UK, Tim critiqued NZ's 50-year structural mandate. Europe builds for 100 years across generations. Our seismic context explains our timber-heavy approach — but the conversation is worth having. 4. The Staircase — The Unofficial Icon of Grand Designs NZ The black ceiling draws you straight to it. Balustrades running floor to ceiling at over 7 metres — the official logo of Grand Designs NZ on television. Custom imported timber would have caused delays so the team used Glulam, stained darker to match the interior. Tim worried it would bow. It held perfectly. Sometimes constraints produce the best outcomes. The cladding is Hermpac Accoya Pine — charred by the Blackwood Project. High performance but not maintenance free. Re-oiling required every two years and ten years thereafter. Credit Where Credit Is Due Grand Designs left the architects completely out of the final edit. This U-shaped inside-out home was led by AJ Royfee with director Nigel Dong providing design governance at DGSE. Tim could not praise their collaboration enough. A camera does not do justice to this build. @AJ Royfee @Nigel Dong #ArchitectureNZ #ArchitecturalTechnology #GrandDesignsNZ #DGSE #ConstructionNZ #WairarapaDesign #OamaruStone #Accoya