Category: Energy
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H1 Again
The government is seeking consultation on insulation standards. Again. We’ve been here before, a couple of times in the last few years. After no significant changes to H1 Energy Efficiency since 2007, major changes to H1 were proposed in 2021. Increasing from three climate zones to six and requiring more insulation and better windows, was…
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273: Our Homes Are Getting Smart
Brad Wills is Director: Strategic Customers & Programs at Schneider Electric. Based in Tennessee, he has three decades of experience with the organisation. We discuss the diverse range of products and services now offered by Schneider as well as the exciting opportunities for smart metering, microgrids, onsite battery storage, home automation and more.
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248: What Does a Passive House have in Common with an F-111?
Scott Stewart used to fly in high performance aircraft. Now he helps designers with the high performance details of Passive House homes.
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244: The Best Type of Builder for Home Performance
Jason Scheurer has always been a business owner and he’s always been motived to learn. Today, he and his wife Penny own and operate Best Techs Contracting where they design, build and remodel with a focus on home performance. I connected with Jason during an online Passive House event recently. In this interview, Jason describes…
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243: Efficient Electric Home
Richard Keech lives in a zero-carbon home in Melbourne. After some time in the Royal Australian Air Force and then as a software engineering and consultant in the private sector, Richard now helps people to understand energy. Specifically, renewable energy and energy efficiency. In 2015, Richard published The Energy Freedom Home, a handbook on “how…
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232: Sustainable Opportunities
VCA Green provides green building consulting and commissioning. Their mission is to help clients achieve sustainability goals along with long-term cost savings. They seek out and provide ‘Sustainable Opportunities’. I spoke with Principal Moe Fakih about where buildings sometimes go wrong and how energy modelling, rating and commissioning can help. Green, but not green enough…
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212: Don’t Build a Garden Shed
Ian Chamberlain has been a builder for nearly 40 years. He first learnt his craft as a cabinet maker and joiner in the UK before going on to gain experience across the construction sector, but nearly always working with wood. He’s been in New Zealand now for over two decades and Chamberlain Homes has made…
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205: From Zero Energy to Revolve Energy
Jo Woods and Shay Brazier have been saving money on power since they moved into their Zero Energy House. At the same time, their home has been drier, healthier and warmer in winter than most New Zealand houses. Seven years on, Shay says there are now even more building products available. Solar panels are much…
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197: Healthiness through Housing
“A lifetime of healthiness achieved through housing” is the mission statement of Phoenix Haus. I’ve interviewed other Passive House builders using prefabrication in the past, such as Collective Carpentry in episode 149. I’m excited by the possibilities of this approach to provide high quality houses and I’m wondering what it would take to get a…
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175: The Headwaters Living Building Challenge
The Headwaters Living Building Challenge The Headwaters in Glenorchy, just 45 minutes drive from Queenstown is a magical place and now home to another Living Building Challenge project. I caught up with lead consultant Tricia Love recently to discuss how she got involved and what The Headwaters is all about. Tricia Love After working on…