 As leading green home builders in NZ, here at Craft Homes we pay close attention to how people are reacting to new eco-friendly initiatives, especially when the government is involved. Over the past few years, several governments around the world have begun taking small steps toward combating climate change by educating the public, but it’s uncommon for government organisations to push for wide-spread systemic change, which is much closer to what’s needed.
Here in New Zealand, however, the Energy Efficiency Conservation Authority (EECA) has rolled out a new program called ‘Gen Less’, represented in its advertising with the ‘<’ symbol. In case you missed it, it made a huge debut during the opening for the Rugby World Cup match between NZ and South Africa.
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The phenomenon of climate change has been on everyone’s lips across the globe for at least the past two decades. With the realisation that the ways that we produce and use energy can be dangerous, many countries are making strides to reduce and turn around the harm and destruction. The introduction of energy rating systems encourages the construction of energy-efficient commercial and residential buildings. This ensures that property buyers are allowed to invest in adequately efficient structures.
Homestar was established specifically for New Zealand homes, and serves as a quality-assurance mark, a bit like the Energy Star rating for appliances. To name just a few benefits, a Homestar rating provides peace of mind that the home will have superior energy-efficiency, ventilation and moisture control compared with a home built to the minimum NZ building code. However, many Kiwis still don’t know what Homestar entails and what changes to what parts of your building can boost its Homestar points.
Do you dream of living in an environmentally friendly home but have decided it’s not a practical option for you – as hiring a Green Building Council house builder is just too expensive? While this might have been true in years gone by, things have changed. If you’re thinking of upgrading your home or building from scratch in 2019, ANZ Bank wants to help you. They’ve created the Healthy Home Loan Package, which is a loan product geared at making environmentally friendly home builds more affordable for the average Kiwi.
Many things can get annoying on a home build. Drilling, hammering and sawing can be noisy, and the waste produced isn’t great either. General practice within the residential building industry is to collect all waste in a skip, which is then sent to landfill. Thankfully, there’s a way you can build that will reduce the amount of waste you generate. Considering that the average home produces over four tonnes of waste, this is no mean feat!
Many residents in Auckland dream of living in an eco home. However, there’s a perception that hiring an NZ Green Building Council house builder and sourcing the materials for such a home is expensive. While this might have been true in the past, a recent offer created by New Zealand’s ANZ bank can help you create the sustainable home of your dreams. They’ve announced the release of a Healthy Home Loan Package, which will offer financial incentives to homeowners who build or upgrade their homes to a higher standard of health, warmth and efficiency.
We recently completed an interior renovation of this grand Remuera villa. One of the concerns of the family who owned the home was that one of their kids suffered from asthma and the home was cold and damp, which was exacerbating the problem.
We worked in partnership with Murray Durbin from Enveloped, a company that specialises in supplying systems and products for high performance homes, as well as renovations like this one. The aim was to work together to make the home healthier and more comfortable by creating a warm, low humidity environment. I recently attended the 5th Passive House conference and trade show in Wellington. The weekend was a chance for Passive Home builders designers, and home-owners to come together for talks and discussions on all things Passive House. The conference left me feeling hopeful that the future is bright for increased building standards in New Zealand. The Passive House Standard is certainly one, already tried and tested, way in which this can be achieved. But what is this type of build all about, and how does this fit in the New Zealand context?   Firstly, thank you to everyone who entered our Christmas giveaway. Unfortunately, there can only be one winner and Alma Hume is the lucky recipient this time. Congratulations Alma!!
Even if you missed out this time around, we would highly recommend this book as a great overview of sustainable building and living in New Zealand with lots of practical tips and tricks. We are feeling very inspired after attending the recent Superhome Movement workshop, the first of its kind in Auckland. The big question asked at this event was “Why?”. Are you interested in building a sustainable home because you have lived overseas and feel disappointed at the standard of homes in NZ? Maybe you are concerned about the environmental impact of a new build process, or the ongoing impact your home has on the environment? Or maybe you are interested in creating a healthier living environment for your family. These questions have driven many of our clients to seek out a “better” way to design and build their new home, or improve the one they already live in.  |
AuthorToby and Cat Tilsley Archives
September 2021
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