Moorooduc 9-star house
Thoughtful design has resulted in a nine-star rating for a newly built home in outer Melbourne.
The house in Moorooduc uses standard design techniques including generous insulation, double glazed timber windows, solar water heater, good orientation on the site and attention to weather-stripping/infiltration and heat recovery ventilation system combined with reverse cycle air conditioner.
The house also features an off-the-shelf heat exchanger that will be used to extract stale air and then recover the heating or cooling energy to either warm or cool incoming fresh air.
At 300m², the house size was slightly larger than the average 250m², but the energy saving aspects has meant that household bills were lower.
For more information, visit the Victorian Building Authority; vba.vic.gov.au
20 Comments
The vba website has nothing on this property. It would be nice to get a little more detail, especially on the heat exchanger, but cant find anything at vba or on the web. Is there somewhere else we can get more info>
Hello Stephen,
The VBA sent us this information in their recent e-newsletter. Perhaps you can contact them directly for more information. This is the email we have; communications@vba.vic.gov.au
Their website is a little tricky to navigate.
Hope that helps.
Kindest,
Build Expo Team
Can suggest air2energy, company sells great heat exchangers, contact Bernard Deshormeaux
Thank you for this Marie.
Kindest,
Build Expo Team
Hi Stephen, check out www.pureecohomes.com.au They were at the HIA greenbuild in August. Your questions should be answered or call them. Unfortunately there is a lot of rubbish out there from so called experts and journos and even traditional builders touting every latest wiz bang green solution.
This heat exchanger your talking about is it HRV an old company from New Zealand originally that takes heat out of roof in summer via vents and takes heat into the house in winter from hot roof. My sister installed it a few years ago and has rarely used ducted heating in winter and has not used air conditioner cause it keeps temperature at 18-20 Degrees all year round. A few people I know have installed it after all other existing heating/cooling systems. All love it and saves heaps of money. Combined with good insulation every where, including between garage and house internalexyernal walls where was not necessary for 5 star rating originally you can keep temp. great all year round. I agree 9 star is achievable with some forward planning. All new buildings should do it as standard.
HRV is a misnomer. If you test the logic of it you will understand that in winter your roof space is not warm. So if you are pumping warm air from the roof how is it being generated to get up there. Is it that you have no insulation in your roof whatsoever? In which case, the best money that you could spend would be to "properly' insulate your roof space so you stop your heat/cool from getting into the roof space. What about in summer - is it cool up there after a hot day. Pop your head in and find out! Then you will not need to put an 'NZ style HRV' in. cause it dont work! A REAL proper Heat Recovery Ventilator (HRV) is one that recovers the heat out of the 'stale' air that it is taking out of a home. This is part of the mechanical ventilation cycle of these units in a properly sealed home...and too much to go into here. Get a hold of this report from the country where this thing originated - * I J Smith, B R Carson and M R Bassett. Is there free heat in the roof spaces of New Zealand houses? Mechanical ventilation systems and heat transfer .Department of Physics, University of Otago, PO Box 56, Dunedin, New Zealand. and here's some feedback from one of the many duped users - "I live in Auckland and can only ever sleep for 8 hours because my HRV thing comes on and wakes me up. For my house – hot in the summer and fridge like in the winter – it is not terribly effective." So dont take my word - Do your OWN research and THINK LOGICALLY.The answer should then become obvious. This thing is rubbish, Cheap Skate has it on this one!
The HRV/ERV installed in this house is a Mitsubishi LOSSNAY Energy Recovery System.
http://www.mitsubishielectric.com.au/2096.htm
The HRV branded fan device that pulls air from a roofspace and pushes it into the home is not suitable for this home as it would unbalance the airtight construction methodolgy.
Any good contacts for who installs the Mitsubishi? Very little on the web for business promoting this product, a lot of European stuff, but very expensive.
ERV/HRV system installs are similar to a ducted heating installation. In the case this home, which was built by Henley Properties, the ERV was installed by their usual HVAC contractor. Dandy Air. Ideal location of the unit and its ducting is within the insulated building envelope. If this is not possible the unit and its ducting should be insulated.
Thanks Adam, that explains a lot. Much appreciated.
Hi, is possible to provide a direct link to the full article
Hi Adam,
This is the full article via the VBA e-Bulletin.
You can now view this e-Bulletin online here: http://us6.campaign-archive2.com/?u=3d68afab163f3754006c33f6d&id=eb47d47f66
For more information, I suggest you email the VBA directly; communications@vba.vic.gov.au
Hope that helps.
Kindest,
Build Expo Team
That's all great, thank you!
This longer article (on Business Spectator website) is about the same house I think and provides more details http://bit.ly/1h1UySP
Fantastic, thanks for sharing Tom.
all sounds good but with most energy saveing devices you pay up front insted of on your bills like with hot water units the cost of the unit out ways the saveing on your bills do your home work pepole ill stay 5 star
The problem there cheap skate is that you are only looking at the raw dollars (and bad maths too, because it DOES add up when done properly), an energy efficient house is also a much more pleasant house to live in, with stable temps, no drafts and less dust and the like blowing around AND you don't have to ruin the environment with 'cheap' electricity or gas as you try to push the temperature in a comfortable range.
A Lot of functions and features on these steam showers, I quite like the radio idea along with the
lighting
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