The National Construction Code (NCC formerly known as the BCA) requires all new residential dwellings in Australia (Except NSW and NT) and all major extensions in the ACT to achieve the set thermal comfort standards in the Deemed to Satisfy solution (DTS) method of compliance, or a minimum of a 6 Star Rating using the Nationwide House Energy Rating Scheme (NatHERS), approved software.
The Deemed to Satisfy path is prescriptive and very strict and no change is allowed to be made regardless of any limitations that your building may have. Glazing requirements under DTS is always the most expensive glazing option. This is due to the fact DTS glazing calculator only looks at glazing as an individual item and doesn’t consider the holistic performance of the entire building.
What are alternatives to DTS?
NCC offers an alternative Energy Compliance method that considers holistic building performance! This, importantly allows us to consider the interaction between all the different parts of the building fabric, and to improve some parts by assigning alternative, lower-cost DTS thermal performance requirements to the rest of the building.
What benefits does an energy rating give me?
When simulating the thermal performance of your dwellings, we will ensure that your energy expenses are reduced and that a healthy living environment is delivered through calculated and accurate methodologies. Doing so can ultimately be cost-effective in the long-term and increase your property value.
What are Star ratings based on?
Ratings are based on things like: building fabric (what your house is made of), insulation, building materials, orientation (what direction it faces), glazing (amount and location of windows) and the house layout.
Designing a new home
Early design advice from someone who is an accredited energy assessor and who works in building design, can have a significant effect on the comfort, affordability and energy use of your house, as design is an integral part of achieving the best standards for thermal comfort. A skilled energy efficiency assessor can show you how to optimise your design in a cost-effective way to achieve your desired rating
The EER process is a value-adding process
For an extra few hundred dollars at the design stage, our clients save thousands over the house’s lifetime. A secure investment in your comfort. Energy-efficient houses are also proven to sell for more as shown by research and will continue to be in demand as energy prices continue to soar.
Designing your home with us
At Ann Kako design we incorporate Energy Efficiency modelling and principals from concept stage of our designs. We strongly believe in designing homes for the future, creating healthy environments and keep the energy prices low in the long run.
We also offer in-home assessments for existing homes and write a report that highlights what potential upgrades that can be made and what savings would result from that. The report offers simple and quick solutions as well as some more complex upgrades that will help drive the energy costs down, giving better visibility to the home owner where they could make long term savings.