Home Energy Standards Can Really Save You

At Garth Chapman, we consider carefully all the important design and inclusion attributes of each home to maximise the energy efficiency and minimise the energy costs over the life of the home. Our homes are designed so that our clients are able to adapt to their indoor living areas with little use of heating and cooling appliances.

Choosing or building an energy efficient home can substantially reduce your running costs without reducing the comfort or visual appeal of your home. Over the years, you can save thousands on your utility bills by ensuring your home energy efficient.

Here are the first five things we think about when making a new home a little greener:

1. Orientation

Reduce exposure to the sun with northern orientation of living rooms. We traditionally think about building orientation to maximise street appeal, but it is becoming more important to facing a new home to minimise energy costs. The ideal orientation for living areas is within the range 15ºW-20ºE of true or ‘solar’ north.  This will give you relief from the sun in the summer.

2. Insulation

Insulation will help reduce the amount of heat entering your home in Summer and trap the warmth in Winter. It will make your home a lot more comfortable and far more energy efficient. Install a whirlybird on the roof if you want to further reduce the heat in your ceiling.

3. Water efficiency

There are numerous ways to improve your water efficiency. This includes landscaping with water wise plant and turf species, mulches, soil conditioners and sensored irrigation systems. It is also highly beneficial to install hot water recirculation systems, rainwater tanks and choose appliances with a high Water Efficiency Labelling and Standards (WELS) rating.

4. Energy Efficient Lighting

Light fittings should be compact fluorescent lamps or LEDS.

5. Window treatments

There are many ways that you can reduce heat loss in Winter and heat gain in the Summer by treating your windows. This can include creating shading with wider awnings, installing blinds, draperies, high-reflective films, insulated panels, mesh window screens and shutters. To find out more: Energy-Efficient Window Treatments.

To find out more about Garth Chapmans Energy Efficient Homes and more tips on how you can reduce your energy consumption visit: Traditional Queenslanders.