Planning Building and Living the Dream
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Planning, Building and Living the Dream edited by Cathryn Hamilton October 2018 Planning, Building and Living the Dream Owners’ perspectives of building more sustainable homes in South Australia Edited by: Dr Cathryn Hamilton (assisted by Dr Timothy O’Leary) Foreword by: Professor George Zillante 22 October 2018 Planning, Building and Living the Dream edited by Cathryn Hamilton October 2018 Contents Foreword ................................................................................................................................................. 3 Acknowledgements ................................................................................................................................. 4 Introduction ............................................................................................................................................ 6 Cathryn Hamilton and Timothy O’Leary ............................................................................................................ 6 Downsizing, Sustainably and Practically – A New Build ........................................................................ 19 Jacqueline Jepson and John Simpson .............................................................................................................. 19 Owner Builders at Gilberton ................................................................................................................. 37 Cathryn Hamilton ............................................................................................................................................. 37 A Sustainable Renovation in St Peters .................................................................................................. 56 Andrew D Marsh .............................................................................................................................................. 56 And now for something different in St Peters ...................................................................................... 74 Kym and Dorina ............................................................................................................................................... 74 Living in Lochiel Park ............................................................................................................................. 82 Jenny and Bevan .............................................................................................................................................. 82 Addition to house in suburban Adelaide .............................................................................................. 94 Timothy O’Leary ............................................................................................................................................... 94 Suburban Solar Straw Bale Home and Office ..................................................................................... 106 Cathryn Hamilton ........................................................................................................................................... 106 Designed for Cooling – how research informed my decisions............................................................ 111 Martin Belusko ............................................................................................................................................... 111 A Tale of Two Houses – lessons learned ............................................................................................. 123 Andrew Tidswell............................................................................................................................................. 123 A piece of paradise in Blackwood ....................................................................................................... 131 Marianne and John ........................................................................................................................................ 131 Building a 7.5 star rated steel framed house in a suburban subdivision? Is this really possible? ...... 139 David M Whaley ............................................................................................................................................. 139 The Shearing Shed............................................................................................................................... 175 Steve Coombe ................................................................................................................................................ 175 Summary ............................................................................................................................................. 188 Cathryn Hamilton ........................................................................................................................................... 188 Planning, Building and Living the Dream edited by Cathryn Hamilton October 2018 Foreword What an ambitious project that Cathryn Hamilton has embarked on. There are many books dealing with the broad concept of sustainability for housing from many perspectives but very few from the point of view of the owner. South Australia has a proud history of sustainable development, most of which has been driven by individuals who genuinely cared about the state of the environment and wanted to do something about it. This has included individual home owners who wanted to experiment on their own homes through to Architects and Builders who saw the need for sustainability from both a local and global perspective. In this book, Cathryn Hamilton talks about her passion for sustainable housing through the eyes of twelve different owners (with different reasons for building a sustainable house) who have ventured down the sustainable housing road and actually built and now live in sustainable homes. The book highlights the issues confronting people who want to venture down the sustainable housing path; from the initial idea through to working with the designers and Architects, the approval process involving Local councils, the selection of a builder and then the actual construction phase itself through to occupation and the fulfilment or otherwise of the expectation experience. Cathryn herself ventured down this road as an owner builder and learnt very quickly the pitfalls that an inexperienced person can fall into. In many ways, this was a learning experience for Cathryn and others like her who soon found that they had to play a significant role in guiding the actual construction of the work unless of course they were willing to employ an Architect or Builder to carry out the inspections and supervision. In many ways, this book is a series of experiences that can act as lessons for others who are planning to venture down the sustainable housing road. Clearly, there are many issues that need to be faced in the building of a sustainable home but the overriding message from all 12 owners is one of support and overall satisfaction for a job well done and all the owners are, in the main satisfied with the finished product and would do it again. The lessons are invaluable for the architect/designers of the houses, the builders and the owners themselves who after all were the end users of the product. This is a must-read book for all people thinking of designing or building a sustainable house and I strongly recommend it to you. Professor George Zillante Former Head of the School of Architecture and Built Environment, University of Adelaide 3 Planning, Building and Living the Dream edited by Cathryn Hamilton October 2018 Acknowledgements This project combines the efforts of many. It has taken me and others on a journey to places that we did not anticipate and to explore topics we did not think were initially to be included. There are contributions from a dozen home owners, many of whom have penned their own chapters. Each was keen to show others that we can build and live in more sustainable houses. I would like to thank George Zillante for agreeing to write the Foreword. George has amassed a wealth of experience in architecture, planning, building, and building certification and has provided valuable advice relevant to book writing and publishing. Timothy O’Leary has co-written the Introduction chapter and has provided final editing assistance. I have appreciated the support provided by Tim and other colleagues at both the University of South Australia and University of Adelaide. Their encouragement to continue with this project when life and work got in the way was important. I also wish to acknowledge the support of my partner, John Zeppel, who wholeheartedly accompanied me on the journey of building our own sustainable house. We have now opened our house up twice for Sustainable House Day and enjoy sharing our experiences with those who visit. Finally, I am thankful that my path has crossed with the paths of all of the wonderful people who have been so willing to share their experiences with others through this book. We hope you gain some knowledge about the important questions to ask, and get a small insight into the processes that you will encounter should you choose to follow an adventure such as ours. Dr Cathryn Hamilton 22 October 2018 PhD, MUrbRegPlan, GradCertMgt, BAppSc 4 Planning, Building and Living the Dream edited by Cathryn Hamilton October 2018 About the Editors Dr Cathryn Hamilton, has degrees in Science, Management, Urban and Regional Planning and a PhD focusing on the capacity of local government to support community carbon reduction. She