Builders & Renovations FAQs
What is a house energy rating?
Go green with sustainable & energy-efficient homes
Did you know your house can be energy-efficient and environmentally friendly? Depending on the building materials, floor plan, orientation and other factors, your house can be highly thermally-efficient and reduce your dependence on heaters and air conditioners.
New homes and house renovation projects need to comply with the National Construction Code energy rating. In Queensland, the residential houses must achieve a 6-star rating and units/complexes need to achieve a 5-star rating.
What is the house's energy rating?
Our appliances have energy ratings but did you know your house can have an energy rating too?
The house energy rating measures the energy efficiency of the house. However, it doesn’t consider the appliances installed in the house like air conditioners, hot water systems, etc, it's more about the design and construction. Nationwide House Energy Rating measures the efficiency of a house based on the shell of the building. It allocates a rating to a house from 0 to 10. So a house with a rating of 0 will require a lot of energy to heat or cool, whereas a house with a rating of 10 will require minimal artificial ways to heat or cool. Using natural materials for building makes the home comfortable, sustainable and eco-friendly.
Your house won’t necessarily look like a spaceship if it gets a 10-star rating but it will be immensely comfortable throughout the year. So even if it is scorching hot outside, you will be protected from feeling the worst of it. Also, you will save on your energy bills as you won’t need to use a heater or aircon as often.
Key considerations when building an environmentally friendly home
Some of the most important features builders consider when building sustainable homes include:
- Using recyclable and sustainable building materials
- Emphasis on building homes with an energy-efficient design
- House orientation, insulation, ventilation, shading for passive heating and cooling
Features of energy-efficient homes
- Living areas and kitchen are oriented towards north
- Bathrooms, garage and rooms with low usage should face west
- Materials used in construction - concrete and bricks are ideal for keeping the house warm in winter, perfect if you live in a cool climate.
- Suitably placed windows let the sunlight in and offer natural ventilation
- Minimum east and west-facing walls or windows
- Insulated walls, roof, rooms and ceilings
- Sealed doors and glazed windows keep the house warm in winters
- Ceiling fans are energy efficient and boost air circulation helping to reduce heating and cooling requirements
- Wide eaves and awnings for shading
- Exterior and Interior Finish - paint on roof and walls (light coloured paints on roof and walls)
- Floor - carpet, timber or tiles
- Smart lighting to turn the lights on and off automatically which helps in saving money on utility bills
- Solar power
- Rainwater harvesting
- Compost toilets
- Using products lik Hemp provides high thermal insulation, negative carbon footprint and higher energy savings.
How are NatHERS ratings assessed?
House Energy Rating Software is used to simulate the house considering the climate, orientation and building materials. It will analyse the energy needed to heat or cool the house on an annual basis. Depending on the results of the software, the star rating is allocated to a building.
A qualified NatHERS assessor will determine the rating of the home. It is an easy process - the assessor will need the architectural drawing of your home in PDF format to calculate the rating.
How to obtain a 6+ Star house energy rating?
To build an environmentally friendly house with a 6+ star rating requires careful planning with the building designer in the initial stages. At Symcorp, we can design and build energy-efficient houses to suit:
- your lifestyle and requirements
- the local climate
- your building site - landscape and orientation
Our team takes a comprehensive approach to building sustainable and eco-friendly homes. Speak to our home building experts today and ask about our energy-efficient green home designs. Call us on 07 5594 1768 or complete our online enquiry form .