Renovating a Protected Building in Luxembourg

An old house is not renovated like a recent one. It has a history, materials, proportions — and often rules that protect it.

Tribe Architects works with owners of old houses and of buildings located in protected areas, in the UNESCO zone or listed, to give them today's comfort without erasing what gives them their value.

 

DEMANDING REGULATIONS

In Luxembourg, a building can be protected at several levels: by the municipality's general development plan (protected sector), by its location in the City of Luxembourg's UNESCO zone or its buffer zone, or by national protection.

Each level has its own requirements for façades, roofs, joinery, materials and volumes. We identify them from the outset, so that the project is designed right — and approved without detours.

 

OUR APPROACH

Understand before drawing — a precise survey, a reading of the building's different periods, identifying what must be preserved, restored or can evolve.

Preserve what matters — façades, masonry, roof structures, old joinery: restore wherever possible, replace like for like where necessary.

Add with precision — an extension, a conservatory or a new storey must converse with the existing building, in a contemporary or a classical idiom.

Make the house comfortable — insulation suited to old walls, heating, light, dry basements, with energy renovation subsidies where they apply.

Work with craftsmen — stonemasons, carpenters, joiners: trades we know and work with.

 

REFERENCE: A HOUSE FROM THREE PERIODS IN PFAFFENTHAL

In Pfaffenthal, in the UNESCO buffer zone, we carried out the heavy renovation of a house combining three construction periods, from around 1700 to the mid-20th century. The basement and façades were rebuilt, and the old conservatory gave way to an orangery in hand-cut insulating masonry, laid like dressed stone.

 

DO YOU OWN AN OLD HOUSE OR A PROTECTED BUILDING? LET'S TALK.

 

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

How do I know whether my house is protected?

Your municipality's general development plan and the national protection lists will tell you. We check this for you at our first conversation.

Can a house in a protected sector be extended?

Often yes, but the extension must respect the character of the place. This is precisely where an architect's work makes the difference.

Can an old house be insulated without damaging it?

Yes, provided the techniques are compatible with old walls and damp is dealt with. Poorly designed insulation can damage sound masonry.

Do you also design contemporary architecture?

Yes. We design both contemporary and classical architecture, always with a global-architecture approach.