Contemporary beach side design: how to get it right

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A pair of townhouses in the picturesque coastal destination of Safety Beach, on the Mornington Peninsula, showcase a contemporary, beachy design that’s built to last.

Completed in 2015 by new building and development company One Project, these dwellings have been built from materials that create a modern beach-chic façade that also delivers an effortless holiday lifestyle.

Frank Aprile, Partner at One Project, says, “being surrounded by stretches of water, yachts and boats, it’s just so peaceful. The last thing you’d want to do when you’re here is building maintenance.”

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Achieve the right look with lightweight, low-maintenance materials

Frank has a strong appreciation for materials and techniques that create a high-quality finish that’s not labour-intensive. This makes life easier for his team and delivers a finished result that’s in demand.

When it came to sourcing an alternative to the timber he had in mind for the upper deck, Frank didn’t need to look far for the right solution. From years of experience working with timber for outdoor structures, Frank knows just how much preparation and maintenance is involved in getting, and keeping, a wooden deck looking at its best.

“There’s all the sanding, staining and varnishing you have
to do,” says Frank. “It takes a long time and no matter how careful and thorough you are, it can still be hard to get a good finish. Now that I’ve worked with HardieDeck, I’ll nevergo back to timber. I wish I’d used it when I built decksfor my own home.”

“The installation of the upper deck went like a dream,” says Frank. “Dahlsens and James Hardie both said it would be easy to install, but once we got started, it was amazing. The size of the board and the layout works perfectly within the space and the off-cuts were barely 100mm. The finish looks so good, really classy, so there was no doubt we’d be using it again for the second deck.”

Service and support

The easy process of installing HardieDeck for the first time was made even more straightforward thanks to the outstanding support delivered by the James Hardie team and Dahlsens.

Working with Frank face-to-face and sharing their knowledge and experience, the after-sales service offered by James Hardie took the risk out of trying something completely new.

“When you get new materials delivered and you just don’t know where to start, it’s a bit overwhelming,” says Frank. “We had the people from Dahlsens down here with us almost every day, talking us through it. And it wasn’t just the local support that helped us. Andrew Healey from James Hardie came to see us on-site too and made it so easy to get to grips with the product in no time.”

Keen to learn more about HardieDeck timber-look decking? Get in touch with Dahlsens to see how you can make this product work for you and your clients.