The 'Green' Family Home. Connecting you to a more sustainable future

Transcription

1 Case Study Domestic The 'Green' Family Home Connecting you to a more sustainable future

2 Case Study / The 'Green' Family Home pg 2 Seeing is believing The Green Family Home Imagine if you could find an affordable family home in inner Melbourne that was close to public transport, schools and shops, that didn't cost a fortune to build and had low running costs. Well, architect Vivian Faithfull and a team of committed tradespeople have built a 180m 2 two-storey home (160m 2 residence plus 25m 2 garage) that sits on a 228m 2 backyard sub-division in the inner west suburb of Seddon all on a very strict budget. What s more, the family s investment in sustainable building products, clever design, solar energy, rainwater tanks, a water recycling system, and energyefficient appliances have ensured the home will remain affordable throughout its lifetime. Many of us may picture this type of home being located in rural and regional areas of Victoria on large acreages with mud bricks, rough hewn timbers, sweeping verandahs and an owner with deep pockets. But seeing is believing when you set eyes on the Faithfull s home. This modernlooking house home to Viv, his wife Anna and two young daughters defies the odds by delivering a virtual carbon neutral dwelling. Owner/builder Viv says: A key motivation for us was to utilise sustainable design and technologies on a small plot for a medium-size family with a low impact on the environment while retaining a simple contemporary design aesthetic. The house was designed to be adaptable to the changing needs of a family.

3 Case Study / The 'Green' Family Home pg 3 Viv explains that the house achieves its energy efficiencies and sustainability through many features, including: thermal design (it s super insulated utilising a deeper wall thickness to pack more insulation than the standard 90mm cavity); passive solar access (skylights) and design that includes a solar-heated concrete slab floor and large north-facing double glazed windows and doors; ceiling fans that cycle captured heat down through a central void; cross ventilation to capture cool air in summer; energy-saving lighting and appliances including an induction stove top; 2kW grid-connected solar generation system; recycled water systems utilising reed beds and UV filters; toxin-free paints and oils; solar hot water and space heating; an attractive rooftop garden terrace that has the dual purpose of an outdoor space and delivers cool air to the house. Future landscaping will include vegetable gardens and green walls. EcoSmart Electricians-accredited contractor Luke Adams, from Adams Eco Electrics, has worked on the project for the past 18 months. I had a dual role, confides Luke. Part of the work I did was hands-on, the other part was as a consultant to Viv and Anna and included advice to other green tradespeople working on the project; solar power requirements to allow the home to function properly; the type of solar hot water system they would need, the space heater, the water recycling system, rainwater pumps, the type of lights to install, the use and positioning of ceiling fans, even economical appliances for the kitchen. Interestingly, some of my work focused on how to reduce the unnecessary lighting in this house, as it uses natural lighting so well. I haven t installed any halogen downlights, which are very popular with home-owners, but don t have a high level of energy efficiency. The home has only 600W total lighting and its PV (solar) power system, combined with its solar hot water system, solar-powered thermal in-floor heating and no air conditioning means it is carbon neutral, says Luke. Viv says Luke s help in achieving his objectives was vital. Luke played an influential role in the lighting layout and control planning - this was particularly useful given that the spaces were designed to adapt in function, says Viv. Luke's knowledge of fittings, particularly technological advances and new products entering the market, how they impact on the running costs and the daily effect of the solar PV system was valuable.

4 Case Study / The 'Green' Family Home pg 4 The lighting system was designed to be kept to a minimum by using natural light in the house. Luke adds: We ve used only lamps and fittings that are readily available. This will ensure we re not paying a premium for new technologies that have not been tried and tested in the market. LED lighting has been kept to a minimum, only being used for outdoors. Nevertheless, says Luke, we have made provision for installing LED lighting in the future, expecting that improved price and function of the products will make them more competitive. They are excellent power-savers but are not a universal replacement for existing lights just yet. As they become cheaper and better we expect the home will take advantage of their very low power consumption. A notable omission within the house is that the family room has no ceiling light or even provision for a light fitting. Instead, it is serviced by three reading lamps (which are controlled via a wall switch with a dimmer). A skylight and ample windows at the other end of the room provide natural light. There s plenty of light in that room during the day without the need for overhead lighting and at night the family wants to use it as a reading room/ bedroom (hence the three lamps) or just kick back with low level lighting. Background Viv says that he carefully chose the house location because of its great transport links including proximity to a train station, bus lines and bike paths into the city. This meant easy access to work in the city and to family and friends in the south east of Melbourne - it also has a great local village. The subdivided plot situated on a back laneway provided the opportunity to design and build something unique. The laneway provides a more active

5 Case Study / The 'Green' Family Home pg 5 and safe street community, particularly for kids. We liked the dynamic and multicultural nature of the western suburbs, having returned to Melbourne from living and working overseas for many years. Luke and Viv had met originally, along with a small group of contractors in the building and construction industry, while working together on a project where they designed a bushfire home as part of an RMIT design competition. Our team was shortlisted for our design against some pretty stiff opposition, so Viv encouraged us to join forces again to help him with this project, says Luke. Work on the Seddon home began in February 2009, when Viv designed the structure and submitted plans to the local Council. The Council s approval process was straightforward after one neighbouring project broke new ground with the planners and pushed the boundaries of street set backs, two-storey design, lane way access, etc. However, our design was tailored to minimise any potential issues with Council in order to expedite the planning process, confides Viv. I did curb my enthusiasm in certain areas, he confesses, either because I thought Council might have a bit of an issue with it, or our budget just wouldn t stretch that far. Do your research Viv says his choice of sustainable building materials was researched mainly on the Internet but found it frustrating that little was available in Australia and how unwilling some suppliers were to order in any materials that were non-standard. Nevertheless, the Faithfulls persisted and got what they wanted. When it came to energy and water savings, Viv and Anna haven t sacrificed quality over price for various reasons.

6 Case Study / The 'Green' Family Home pg 6 We wanted to ensure that the house would be as inexpensive as possible to run now and in the future, which makes living here affordable. That is important to us, as we are raising a young family. Natural light = Energy savings Viv designed the home to maximise the available natural light via expansive north-facing glazing (on the ground and upper floors). These windows provide light right into the centre of the house, including the stairwell and void. The compactness of the house means that all areas are well served all day by flanking skylights and glazing. Flanking skylights provide light to areas usually poorly lit, such as wardrobes, bathrooms and the garage. The skylight that extends the length of the master bedroom within the walk-in robe and into the ensuite bathroom is a standout feature. Anna says on most mornings there s no need to turn on a light to get dressed (and natural light also helps with clothing selection). The skylight in the ensuite is also another energy-saver and provides additional natural light. Luke points out that most of the artificial interior lighting is provided by strategically-placed low energy-consuming eight watt (8W) compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs). The lights project horizontally in some places against white painted walls to reflect more light, says Luke. Often light can be lost when projected downwards, so this installation makes the most of low wattage lighting. Grey water usage Viv says the grey water recycling system provides the family with more water than it can use in the house and requires no intervention to operate. The cleanliness of the clothing washed in the laundry has been unaffected by using recycled water rather than tap water and the in-house finishing UV filter provides continuous feedback on water quality. The reed bed, which provides 90 percent of the water treatment, once fully established will also provide green screening as part of the front fence and garden. We are also monitoring our water meter to establish overall water savings, he adds.

7 Case Study / The 'Green' Family Home pg 7 Rooftop garden To complete the green picture, Viv has installed a green terrace. We had intended to provide a green roof over the entire house, however, given planning uncertainties at the time, due to accessibility and privacy issues with a green roof, we opted to only build a green terrace (which is screened from neighbouring gardens). The green terrace extends the outdoor/garden area by 80 percent (the back garden being 35m 2 ) and improves the surrounding microclimate, cooling the air coming into the house in the summer, he says. Naturally, the garden is watered from the rainwater tanks. Holistic approach to a happy home Viv and Anna attest that the house functions incredibly well in summer and winter - with minimum effort and energy the house is suitably cooled and warmed, flooded with light in winter and easily shaded in summer. The adaptability of the design enables the house to suit our changing needs, says Viv. For instance, recently we swapped the children's upstairs sleeping and play areas with the downstairs lounge areas for the period while we are night-feeding our small baby.

8 Case Study / The 'Green' Family Home pg 8 The rooms facilitated this swap beautifully. The large sliding doors throughout the house enable areas to be sectioned for varying uses. The open plan design has enhanced the way in which the family interacts, in particular, the stairwell has become an area of play and the void enables communication between the central kitchen and the upstairs living areas, including the green terrace. The master bedroom provides privacy from the open plan of the house. Cost, water and energy savings At this point Viv says it s still too early to provide a full sense of savings - water savings are estimated to be 80 percent of typical family consumption. In comparison to our former rental property, electricity bills have reduced by approximately 20 percent though the current systems are significantly more sophisticated. Luke adds: So far everyone is extremely happy with the results, although the home is still a bit of a work in progress. Future Viv anticipates that LEDs will replace all CFL fittings currently used. Lamps and task lighting in the kitchen will be replaced with appropriate fittings. Floor finishes will be upgraded and plasterboard ceilings upstairs will be replaced with oiled white ply (as per the walls) to complete the finish. Northern shading will be incorporated into the landscaping. As this is not likely to be our residence for the rest of our lives, its resale ability is important to us. That s why we ve chosen the sustainable building products very carefully. We believe that homes like this will be well sought after before too long. Viv says, as an architect, he has a desire to work on sustainably-efficient urban residential projects. DEFINITIONS Ecosmart Electrician: An EcoSmart Electrician is a licensed electrical contractor that has certification and accreditation in energy efficiency. These electricians have been professionally trained in energy efficient products, technologies and installations to assist you to save energy and money.