1637 Tiny & tropical style; eco display homes; green facades; local materials; 8.6 Star apartments; SIPs solar extension; future-proofing; concrete floors guide; Passive House in Wanaka NZ + more OFF-GRID COASTAL LIVING MODULAR & PREFAB INSIDE 30+ High comfort, low bill homes storage & Summer shade planting shelving ideas Affordable & flexible floor plans ISSUE 37 • SUMMER 2016/17 AUD$11.95 • NZ$12.95 SANCTUARYMAGAZINE.ORG.AU A home battery storage system from Enphase WIN Offer open to Australian and New Zealand residents only, details p40 A cut above the rest With an energy rating of 8.2 Stars and annual energy bills of just $500, the first homes built at a new coastal housing estate in Victoria are raising the bar on performance and affordability. WORDS Fiona Negrin PHOTOGRAPHY Warren Reed A FAMILY HOME WITHIN WALKING a project that is state-of-the-art, pulling distance of the beach, with an 8.2-Star together the best sustainable housing energy rating and a build price of $330,000: design and appliances”. The Cutlers display it sounds like a wishlist, not a reality. But home pulls focus on Brendan’s vision, and this house, called Cutlers, is one of 200 functions as an exemplar of mainstream, similar proposed dwellings in a zero-carbon environmentally sustainable design residential development project that’s that’s affordable, cutting-edge and, most breaking rich new ground in Australia. unusually, open for public inspections. The Cape is an ecovillage being built “During the recent Sustainable House Day in the small coastal township of Cape about 350 people came to visit – it was mind Paterson, about 130km south-east of blowing!” says Cutlers builder and Cape Melbourne. Cutlers is a three-bedroom, Paterson local, Tony O’Connell. And no single-storey house created by Beaumont wonder. The opportunity to inspect a house Concepts especially for The Cape, and is the with such strong environmental credentials Wonthaggi designer’s second project in the is not an everyday one. estate. The first stage release of 32 houses Cutlers stays true to first principles of is now open and a display model of Cutlers passive solar design, including northern has been built for prospective buyers to frontages to let in winter sun, and inspect. substantial insulation (including R6.0 in the Brendan Condon, whose background is ceiling) to retain it; windows strategically in sustainable landscaping, is The Cape’s located to channel cooling breezes through developer. His vision – which has been living areas in summer; and thermal mass germinating since 2003 – is “to design to moderate the inside temperature. 46 FEATURE DESIGN ON DISPLAY x With all living spaces located to the north, Cutlers is naturally lit and requires minimal heating and cooling. The cladding is a combination of Weathertex, Colorbond and silvertop ash board and batten features, chosen for their durability and environmental ratings. 47 FEATURE DESIGN ON DISPLAY j The earth blocks for the walls were made Thermal mass is provided through the Cutlers are derived from an estate-wide set on-site using five types of local soils bound concrete slab floor, and also in unique, of sustainable design guidelines, drafted with cement. In addition to providing pressed-earth feature walls in the living and overseen by a design review panel thermal mass benefits, the walls introduce a area. The earth blocks for the walls were with the aim to ‘bake in’ sustainability and striking natural texture and colour made on-site using five types of local integrity to the project. These guidelines complement to the largely light and bright granitic soils bound with cement, and are concerned with house siting and interior. pressed in a hydraulic block press made orientation, architectural style and built by Briagolong Engineering, based on a form, landscaping and sustainability. More machine handmade by long-time ATA specifically, they include restrictions on member (and Brendan’s friend) John house size, a minimum energy rating of 7.5 Hermans. Brendan praises the walls for Stars and requirements for at least 2.5kW their “cheap, environmentally friendly solar PV and 10,000 litres of rainwater thermal mass, with wonderful texture and storage. The entire site is all-electric colour,” while Tony describes them as a real (no gas) and includes charge points for character feature. “One lady came in to talk electric vehicles. The Cape’s ambitious to me about building a house and the whole standards far outpace business-as-usual time we spoke, she sat with her hand on the developments, and Cutlers is its flagship, wall! She’s gone ahead and wants that exact with a 173 square-metre floor size, 8.2 Star colour in her place.” energy rating and 4.5kW PV system. The size, orientation and key specs for ATA’s policy manager Damien Moyse 48 FEATURE DESIGN ON DISPLAY x The fully-electric and practical kitchen in the Cutlers display home is located close to an edible garden to the south, has a large pantry for food storage and water-efficient fittings. j The bedrooms and living spaces are naturally lit, with all but one bedroom oriented to the north. “It’s an amalgamation of small incremental change that goes into making it a much better product,” says the builder. did energy modelling for The Cape and his reserved for revegetated parklands, food “up in arms when we first heard about findings indicate that Cutlers’ operational gardens and walking and cycling paths. the proposed Cape development. The costs could be as low as $500 a year. “This Brendan sees urban food production as developer [Brendan Condon] got wind of compares to a typical Victorian house’s having both social and environmental our opposition and came down to talk to us annual energy costs of between $2000 and benefits, providing opportunities for people about his proposal. I was part of the lynch $3000 a year, according to the Australian to “socialise, exercise and reduce the cost mob prepared to string him up but within Bureau of Statistics,” he said. of living”, and to “turn green waste into about three minutes he had me on side.” Such low running costs are due in valuable compost and food”. The communal Today, Tad is passionate and articulate part to the house’s passive solar design, food gardens, of which a quarter are already about The Cape project, ticking off its focus which retains a comfortable indoor built, incorporate rainwater collection on “sustainable housing, mass take-up temperature year-round with little need and an innovative underground watering of PV, reclaiming remnant heathland, for active heating or cooling. Playing a system, locally produced compost, in-house good building design with passive solar crucial supporting role to the design are seed propagation and ergonomic raised principles, community gardens harnessed the house’s, energy-efficient appliances. wicking beds. Brendan estimates that these to water tanks, walking tracks and open These include a Daikin Ururu Sarara 7-star gardens when fully completed will produce spaces,” all of which he sees as “a better way split system in the living area, a Sanden hot $130,000 worth of food annually. than the business-as-usual, cookie-cutter water heat pump, LED lighting throughout Tad Hendry has bought into The approach to the built environment.” Tad the house and water-saving taps, showers, Cape and plans to build a house of his adds: “If you’re going to have a housing toilets and dishwasher. own design. He says the close-knit development in your town, this is the way Over half the land area at The Cape is Cape Paterson community was initially to go. It makes good economic sense and in 49 FEATURE DESIGN ON DISPLAY x Large communal food gardens are already in place and providing fresh food for visitors and residents in the neighbouring estate. The garden is expected to produce over $130,000 of food each year when fully constructed. my point of view it’s going to enhance the local community.” Builder Tony O’Connell says his working practices have changed significantly since he started working at The Cape. “I look at a product now not only from a price point of view,” he says, “but also for its potential for ongoing health problems, and where it has been sourced from.” At Cutlers, he’s used low-formaldehyde E0 board for architraves, skirtings and cabinetry, zero- VOC paints for internal walls and ceilings, FSC-certified timber for the wall frames and GECA-certified plasterboard with recycled content. Waste concrete went into a washdown pit so that reusable materials could be recovered. “There aren’t a lot of big ticket things, it’s an amalgamation of small, incremental change that goes into making it a much better product,” he says modestly. When asked to list a star feature of Cutlers, he doesn’t hesitate. “When you walk into a FLOOR PLAN house that’s been closed up for a couple of days in winter and you don’t need to put a 14 heater on, then it sinks in that this system works if you get it right,” he says. “We’re a 13 long way towards getting it right.” Over the past 15 years, integrating 1 sustainability into domestic builds has 11 become more affordable, thanks to a 1 2 combination of improved efficiencies and 7 9 lower upfront costs. “In 2003 we thought we’d need to subsidise The Cape to get it over the line,” Brendan reflects. “But since 10 15 3 then conventional and sustainable practice 8 5 6 4 have passed each other like ships in the 12 1 night, with sustainable homes offering lower running costs, higher comfort levels 13 16 and carbon neutral living.” Cutlers is hopefully a sign of an industry 1 7 13 at a turning point: moving away from a Bedroom Study Deck/outdoor living 2 8 14 legacy of poorly constructed and socially Living Toilet BBQ bench 3 9 15 isolated housing estates, towards the best Dining Ensuite Storage 4 10 16 in sustainable design and people-centred LEGEND Kitchen Garage Food garden 5 11 residential developments.