Sustainability
Insulation Basics – Double Glazing
Large single glazed windows are one of the biggest reasons for heat loss in a modern house. It is also a major source of heat coming into the house in summer. So what can you do?……………here is a comparison between…
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Insulation Basics – Vapor Barriers
When you are thinking about installing insulation you also need to think about Vapour Barriers. Although I frequently saw mention of vapor barriers in books and articles it was a long time before I understood why there were needed……………. Here…
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West, or East, Facing Windows
Well the first rule is to avoid West, or East, facing windows . . . or at least keep them as small as possible….and here is why: Summer West windows get direct sunlight from mid-afternoon to late in the evening…
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Rooms over Garage
Will your new house have a bedroom above the garage? If so you should check what the builder specifies in the way of Insulation between the garage and the room floor. Although regulations quite often specify insulation on external walls…
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Microclimate, And Why It’s Important To Your New House
A microclimate is a local atmospheric zone where the climate differs from the surrounding area. The term can refer to areas as small as a few square feet (for example a garden bed) or as large as many square miles….
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What Size Rainwater Tank 3
Other postshave explained how to calculate: How much rain you can collect and How to work out how much water you will need to last for a month without rain. From your calculations find out the month of lowest average…
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What Size Rainwater Tanks Do You Need – 2
How Do You Plan To Use The Water? The most common uses for rainwater are for toilet flushing, garden watering and car washing. Toilet Flushing Basically a new duel flush Australian toilet will use 6 L for it’s main flush…
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What Size Rainwater Tanks Do You Need – 1
With sustainability being a majot topic you may be thinking about a rainwater tank. . . but what size of tank do you need? The bigger tank you get the cheaper the cost of storage per kilolitre (1,000L or 1kL)…
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Shading Northern Windows
In a post about Passive Solar I talked about shading North facing windows. That doesn’t mean installing roller shutters, or blinds that pull down over the window. Shutters and blinds tend to make the rooms very gloomy and depressing, and…
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Winter Sun
If you are going to get as much winter sun inside your house you want to minimise shading. That could be from neighbour’s houses or even and boundary fences/hedges. Here is how to check………………….. Ideally you should be aiming for…
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