Category: Materials
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Build Aotearoa 6: Framology
More is not always better, especially regarding the amount of timber in the frame of a house. The more timber there is, the less space there is for insulation. The way this is measured is called timber fraction. Most homes in Aotearoa are designed using the assumption that timber will make up around 14% –…
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274: Doing Windows Well
There are not many new ideas in the building industry. The basic concepts have been around for a while. ‘High-performance’ products and design details that might be described as ‘innovative’ here in New Zealand are likely to be standard practice somewhere else. With building experience in Europe and Scandanavia Richard Eden is well placed to…
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263: Building with Hemp
Hemp is an extremely versatile material. It may have a complicated recent history due to medicinal and other uses, but the benefits of industrial hemp have been known for a long time. Jo Say, co-founder of the Hemp Building Association New Zealand explains why it’s a great time to start rediscovering some of the many…
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259: Building Better Homes
Simon Cator is passionate about helping people to build better homes. Prior to becoming Regional Sales Manager for the Upper North Island at Pro Clima NZ, he worked for New Zealand’s online architectural products library – EBOSS and HRV before that. In this introductory episode, I spoke with Simon about the diversity of his role…
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245: Your Surroundings are Everything
Michelle Rohrer-Lauer is an interior designer and business owner with nearly four decades of experience. She works with discerning clients out of her studio in Chicago, but her approach to sustainable design is applicable everywhere. Check out Michelle’s work at Michelle’s Interiors.
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237: Smart Exteriors
Steven Glaze is an expert in the exterior home remodelling industry and specializes in siding and gutter protection systems. He started in the business working as an assistant at his father’s roofing company at the age of 16 and was estimating projects and managing crews by the time he was 18 years old. Today, Steve serves…
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228: The Shape of Sustainable Architecture
Architects shape the places where they work. Good Architects are also shaped themselves by their surrounding environment. For Chaney & Norman Architects, responding respectively to the natural environment of Central Otago is fundamental to their work. Living and working in Wanaka, Beth Chaney is very conscious of being part of a place that most people…
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225: Good Wood
After studying Japanese and international business, Daniel Gudsell’s plan was to go to Japan and sell New Zealand produced milk, but he ended up selling wood in the South Pacific, an enterprise that led to the creation of Abodo Wood. In places like Samoa, Vanuatu and Tonga Daniel witnessed the increasing demand for building timber.…
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204: Making Hardwood Flooring Easy
John Dupra is changing the way people select and buy hardwood flooring. His story about the creation of Revel Woods offers some valuable ideas about how others might bring the building industry into the age of e-commerce. What can we learn about Revel Wood’s approach to making a technical buying decision, easy? How could you…
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173: Using WUFI® to Keep Buildings Dry and Healthy
Jesse Clarke is concerned with how to keep buildings dry so that they remain healthy, durable and energy efficient. Jesse is the Building Science Manager for Pro Clima Australia and Pro Clima NZ. He’s also an experienced advocate of WUFI® software. If you don’t put the building products together properly, then you don’t manage the…