Category: Podcasts
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Build Aotearoa 7: Changing the Window Industry
Stärke has been in the window industry in New Zealand since the 80s. They were at the forefront of supplying aluminium frames to the building industry but have recently made some big changes. With a focus on building performance, Benjy Simmons describes the new direction of Stärke as a ‘once-in-fifty-year’ change. While the company has…
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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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Build Aotearoa: Physics
Denise Martin has been involved with many of Aotearoa’s Passive House projects. As one of the most experienced blower door testers in the country, she’s been involved with verifying a range of residential and commercial buildings both in New Zealand and Australia. I caught up with Denise to chat about how she got into building…
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Build Aotearoa: Quality and Quantity
One of the biggest local news stories this week was the news itself. I listened to Tova O’Brien’s take on the announcement of the proposed shutdown of NewHub and what it could mean for journalism in New Zealand. As someone familiar with the relatively close-knit journalism community in this country and as someone who went…
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Build Aotearoa: On Safe(ish) Ground
Last week, February 22nd rolled around. This was a significant date in the Cutler-Welsh household thirteen years ago when our house was located close to the Avon River in Christchurch. While it was a life-changing day for us, life has gone on. We ultimately lost our recently renovated home in Richmond as a result of…
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Build Aotearoa 2: Principles and Performance
In March 2023, Homestar trainer, Passive House Designer and Certified Passive House owner, Joseph Lyth published a comparison of Homestar v5, Passive House and MBIE’s proposed Building for Climate Change framework. It’s a useful summary of these main three standards. There are other standards and brands out there, but these are the most relevant for…
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Build Aotearoa
Kia ora whanau. As I draft this episode, there’s a chorus of cicadas outside my window. The sun is shining and there’s a faint breath of a breeze. It seems calm where I live, here in a relatively leafy part of Tāmaki Makaurau. But all is not calm everywhere in Aotearoa today, Waitangi Day 2024.…
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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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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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272: A Passive House in Taupō
In 2007 when Kim Feldborg arrived in New Zealand he was surprised at how cold and inefficient the houses were, despite growing up in much colder European climates. Originally from Denmark, Kim has built houses in Greenland, Norway, Germany and England. He now enjoys life in a Certifed Passive House he built himself in Taupō.…