Behind-the-Scenes: Building A Double Storey Modular Home

Building a new home is a journey that began for our clients with a vision for a modern, spacious two-storey modular home in the ACT. After knocking down the existing house on their site, they unlocked the potential for an incredible new design to come to life on the block!

In this article, we'll guide you through their home-building journey, showcasing how modular construction turned their vision into reality.

Design Concept:

This home is based on our popular 4-bedroom Barwon design, but like many of our projects, the clients requested specific customisations to make it uniquely theirs.

Our flexibility in adapting designs to meet individual needs is a significant advantage of building with Anchor Homes, ensuring every client can create a living space that truly feels like home.

Key changes made for this project included:

• Floorplan: The two ground floor module layouts were swapped to the opposite side. 
• Laundry: We replaced the European-style laundry with a full laundry room, using the original space for additional storage in the theatre room.
• Pantry: The walk-in pantry was enlarged for extra storage space. 
• Timber batten features: By incorporating timber batten screens, we enhanced the home’s exterior with natural texture and warmth. 
• Brick garage: The garage was constructed on-site using recycled bricks from the original house on the block that was knocked-down—a sustainable choice that gave the new home a unique connection to its past. 
  Please note: While we unfortunately cannot incorporate bricks into house modules due to the weight restrictions, which would make transport on trucks and crane installation too heavy, brickwork can be added during the on-site construction phase. 
• Bathroom: The main bathroom was redesigned as a wet-room, combining the shower and bath into one continuous, waterproofed area for a spacious feel.

Colours & Specifications

For the exterior, our clients chose a combination of materials and colors that add visual interest and enhance street appeal:

• Weathertex Weathergroove cladding in the Colorbond colour 'Ironstone'
• Weathtex ExoWall Smooth cladding in the Colorbond colour 'Dune'
• Recycled red brick from the previous home on-site (used for the garage)
• Spotted Gum timber batten screens at the entrance and rear

All external specifications, along with internal colors, fixtures, and fittings, were thoughtfully selected during the pre-construction process in collaboration with our in-house interior designer, ensuring that every choice contributes to a seamless build.

Off-Site Construction

At our Stratford factory in Victoria, we began constructing this double-storey home across four modules—two for the ground floor and two for the first floor. This off-site construction method not only allows us to achieve a higher level of precision and quality control but also ensures that the entire build process is streamlined compared to traditional on-site methods.

Framing Stage

The framing stage kicked off the construction process, beginning with the fabrication of the steel base frame, which provides a strong and durable foundation for the home. 

Our team then constructed the timber wall and roof structures, ensuring that every element was aligned and braced. Once the particle board flooring was installed, the house frame began to take shape, setting the groundwork for the next phase.

Just before we start the lock-up stage on two-storey projects, we crane the first floor above the ground floor to ensure a perfect alignment of the modules. This process is key to maintaining the structural integrity and precision that modular construction is known for.

Lock-Up Stage

Lock-up is an exciting step, as the home's design features begin to stand out, and the vision of the clients starts to come to life. In this stage, the home became weather-tight as the roof, external cladding, windows, and doors were installed. Plumbing and electrical wiring were also laid, preparing for the finishing touches.

Fixing Stage

During the fixing stage, the interior came together as plastering, architraves, skirtings, and cabinetry were installed. Plumbing and electrical fit-offs were completed, ensuring everything was in place before the home was prepped for transport and on-site assembly.

Delivery & Install

Once completed, the four modules were loaded onto trucks at our Stratford factory in Victoria and transported to the site in the Australian Capital Territory.

With the help of a crane, our expert team lifted the modules into place on-site, as all double-storey homes require crane installation. 

One of the standout benefits of modular construction is the speed of installation—this entire home was installed on-site in just one day! This approach minimises long-term noise disruption for neighbours in suburban areas while also ensuring a faster and smoother building experience for our clients.

Discover the installation video below to see how we expertly placed all four modules on-site for this project:

On-Site Works

Once the modules were securely positioned, our team focused on seamlessly joining the sections of the home, constructing the decking areas, adding the final touches to both the interior and exterior, and connecting the home to essential services such as water and electricity.

Also during this stage, the recycled bricks from the original home were used to construct the garage, further enhancing the sustainability of the design.

Handover

Handover day is always a special moment. It marks the completion of a vision and the start of a new chapter for our clients. For this family, seeing their dream home come to life was incredibly rewarding for both them and our team.

Pictured here is our client with our NSW Construction Manager, Ryker, on handover day! We’re proud to have played a part in this journey and look forward to bringing even more clients' visions to life.

Modular Homes Australia

At Anchor Homes, we design and build high-quality modular homes and strive to provide an exceptional customer experience. When building with us, you gain the expertise and support of our experienced team, complete with designers, builders, and project consultants. To simplify the process, we’ve broken it down into the following 10 steps: 

1. Complimentary consultation
2. Project proposal
3. Design and site engineering
4. Council permits 
5. Specification selection and documentation
6. Contract
7. Building permit
8. Construction
9. Delivery and site work
10. Handover

Whether you’re interested in a custom design or our pre-designed homes we are here to help. 

Over To You

At Anchor Homes, we love turning visions into reality. Whether it’s through custom modifications or sustainable design choices, we’re dedicated to creating homes that not only look great but also serve the unique needs of each client.

Ready to start your own modular journey? Get in touch with us today to see how we can bring your dream home to life.