In a massively ambitious renovation, a British man has transformed an abandoned water tower from the 1940s into a unique luxury home worth millions.
The concrete water tower, which was built in the 1940s, is situated at Clovelly Cross, about 15 minutes from the port town of Bideford in southwest England. It was decommissioned in 2009, HGTV reported, and spent a decade sinking into a state of disrepair before Rob Hunt came along in 2019, sold his house, and borrowed money from his parents to buy it.
Rob Hunt on the abandoned water tower before it was renovated. (Courtesy of Rob Hunt)Hunt, who is a Devon local and has worked in the filtration industry, spent two years living in a caravan on-site to help transform the water tower into a luxury home. During this period, Hunt—who found the eye-catching property through Zoopla—worked in all kinds of weather alongside architects, structural engineers, and a close friend who works in construction to realize his dream three-bedroom, two-bathroom family home, describing the project as “a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.”
“I haven’t done anything like this before,” Hunt told The Sun. “I used to have a couple of rentals and have done the odd house renovation … I always wanted to do something different, it was just pot luck it was within 20 miles [32 kilometers] of me and with the scope to do something really special.”
(Courtesy of Rob Hunt)
During the transformation of the abandoned tower. (Courtesy of Rob Hunt)The tower, which is made from 10-inch- (25-centimeter-) thick reinforced concrete, once held up to 264,000 gallons (approx. 1 million liters) of drinking water, with access to the main tank via a ladder on the ground floor. This was the only floor of the tower that had windows. Hunt’s renovation involved punching out 16 holes for windows with balconies in the main body of the building to allow for an epic panoramic view across the two stories.
He insulated the roof and modernized the exterior of the concrete tower with black cladding. A curved oak staircase connects the floors inside the circular building, with curved walls and skirting throughout to complement the tower’s round shape.
“The black cladding on the outside, the white render on the bottom, the layout inside, the windows, and other things were all my ideas,” he told Insider.”There was an architect involved, but they just drew up 90 percent, 95 percent of what I envisaged.”
Rob Hunt working on the construction. (Courtesy of Rob Hunt)After traversing the ground floor entrance hall, on the middle floor, you’ll find a bathroom and three bedrooms, including a massive master suite and a room for Hunt’s daughter, Olivia. The top floor houses an open-plan living room and kitchen with a skylight, and fixtures that fit the curved walls.
The top of the water tower’s hollow concrete shaft, where the top of the ladder once emerged, has been repurposed as a unique base for a dining room table. Hunt kept the original ladder intact as a memento, and the hollow shaft allows light from above into the ground floor bathroom.
(Courtesy of Rob Hunt)The spacious, minimalistic interior of the tower features tiled floors, exposed brickwork, oversized furniture, and monochromatic accents. “As you can tell, the theme is black,” Hunt said, describing the bathroom with a double shower and a spectacular outlook. “Where else can you get away with a black en suite if you haven’t got windows and views like that?”
(Courtesy of Rob Hunt)
The master bedroom of the transformed abandoned water tower. (Courtesy of Rob Hunt)The stellar project didn’t come without challenges.
In one instance, a major near-miss occurred when Hunt, who sold his house and quit his factory job six months into the renovation, narrowly escaped being hit by a large pane of glass falling from the main bathroom window.
The master en suite (Courtesy of Rob Hunt)Hunt estimates he spent £750,000 (approx. $927,000) on the renovation in total, including £150,000 (approx. $185,000) for the tower itself according to property records. When the renovation was completed in May 2022, he moved in with his family.
Hunt had the finished home valued by three separate real estate agents, who have priced the property at around £2 million (approx. $2.47 million). He told The Epoch Times: “It will actually be going up for sale later this summer, once all works have been completed.”
The open-plan living and dining space. (Courtesy of Rob Hunt)
A bird’s eye view of the water tower after its transformation. (Courtesy of Rob Hunt)Share your stories with us at emg.inspired@epochtimes.com, and continue to get your daily dose of inspiration by signing up for the Inspired newsletter at TheEpochTimes.com/newsletter