Double Glazing in Canberra Sustainable House

Double Glazing Stars in Canberra Home

Double Glazing featured in one of the stars of Sustainable House Day in Canberra– the Blue House.

Presented by the ATA (Alternative Technology Association), the 2017 Sustainable House Day opened over 200 homes to the public, and attracted over 24,000 visitors nationwide. On show were homes that showed how sustainablility, liveability and economy can work hand-in-hand.

The Blue House has been called ‘a home with heart’. It features an effective passive solar design, salvaged and recycled materials, an innovative whole-block water harvesting system, and, of course, double glazing. This little owner-built home provides a comfortable base for the young Canberra family of Shelley and Luke Dickerson.

The two-storey house contains three bedrooms and a studio, plus a split-level kitchen, dining and living area. In keeping with passive design principles,, it’s aligned so that all main rooms have a north window, and a big deck provides a good connection to the garden. Double glazing, good cross ventilation, a concrete slab for thermal mass, a heat pump hot water system and 3 kW of solar PV all assist with the all-electric house’s thermal performance and energy efficiency.

Learn more about the Blue House in Canberra. Learn more about double glazing in Canberra,

Categories : Energy Efficiency Sound Insulation Thermal Insulation
Posted on : September 25, 2017

Double Glazing Stars On Sustainable House Day

Double Glazing Is Standard On Sustainable House Day

For many years, Solar House Day was an annual event run by the Australian Solar Energy Society. Homes around Australia opened to the public to display the latest in solar passive house design, sustainable building practices and materials, solar hot water and double glazing. There were even some glimpses of a brave new world, as some homes showed off solar panels! Although times have changed, the principles of good, sustainable home design remain much the same.

In recent years, Solar House Day has evolved to the more inclusive name of Sustainable House Day, and is now operated by the Alternative Technology Association nation-wide. I’m proud to have been heavily involved in both of the organisations, and in the Days, as a Sponsor, as a Committee Member, and as a volunteer helping show off the homes. In 2016 17,287 people visited 154 homes around the country.

This year, 2017, Sustainable House Day is being celebrated on Sunday September 17th. A likely record number of homes will be open, to show interested members of the public how good design and good materials can produce a home that is good to look at, comfortable to live in, and economical to heat and cool. There will be 20 homes open in Canberra and the Region alone. Of course, you’ll probably find double glazing in every one of them. For these homes, double glazing isn’t an exotic choice, it’s just a given, a commonsense standard inclusion.

Visiting homes on Sustainable House Day is free, so why not check out homes on display near you? You could pick up some great ideas to improve your current home, or one you hope to build.

Categories : Energy Efficiency
Posted on : September 10, 2017

Double Glazing Popular In Tasmanian Energy Scheme

Double Glazing Popular in Tasmanian Energy Efficiency Scheme

Tasmanians who want double glazing are flocking to a new Tasmanian Government Scheme which makes interest-free loans available for the purchase of energy-saving products. These include heat pumps, solar panels, solar hot water double glazing, home insulation, block out blinds and curtains, and double glazing. The Scheme has also been supported by Sustainable Living Tasmania, the TCCI, the Small Business Council of Tasmania, the Property Council and the Tasmanian Renewable Energy Alliance.

The Scheme is proving very popular. According to the Minister for Energy, Matthew Groom, “the people have spoken on the Government’s energy efficiency loans scheme, with a massive influx of applications from households and businesses.”

The $10 million TEELS scheme announced in last year’s state budget, and was only recently opened for applications. The applications have flooded in. In the first two weeks, there have been over 1300 applications, worth $10,200,000. As only $10,000,000 was allocated to the scheme over two years, NOW would be a good time for anyone wanting to apply, to get in.

Already over 300 applications have come from Hobart and the rest of Tasmania for loans to buy double glazing. As usual in these schemes, there doesn’t appear to be any control over where customers source their products (think of the Federal Insulation fiasco). Customers should only buy quality products from reputable, well-established retailers. See our Hobart Double Glazing page for some useful information.

Learn more about the Scheme here, and make an Application here. Good luck!

Categories : Energy Efficiency Government Policy Sound Insulation Thermal Insulation
Posted on : May 23, 2017

NZ Support for Double Glazing

NZ Labour Promises $1.2billion for Double Glazing & Warm Homes

Double glazing has hit the headlines in New Zealand. Gearing up for the coming election, the New Zealand Labour Party has announced a policy to make $1.2billion available to make 600,000 Kiwi homes “warm and dry”.

Homeowners will be able to claim up to $2000 per home, which can be used to subsidise the double-glazing of windows, insulation, or a heating system.

The program will run for 10 years, and will be available to 600,000 homes at a cost of $1.2billion – which is the exact same figure the Party estimates will come in from closing a tax loophole that favours property investors.

That ‘loophole’ is a familiar one to Australians. It’s Negative gearing. So has NZ Labour got it right? Will cutting out Negative Gearing help improve housing affordability, by removing subsidies for investors vs first home buyers? Will spending the money on double glazing, insulation and more efficient heating systems help 600,000 households enjoy a more comfortable life? Needless to say, more energy efficient homes also reduce the national and personal carbon footprint, and cut the household energy bills.

Scott Morrison and his Coalition Government could do much worse than support measures to increase the uptake of double glazing. Geneva didn’t muck around- they mandated double glazing!

Categories : Energy Efficiency Government Policy Thermal Insulation
Posted on : May 17, 2017

2016 Hottest Year On Record

Why Double Glazing? 2016 Was The Hottest Year On Record!

Using double glazing to help cool your home is becoming more valuable by the year.

2016 is now officially the world’s hottest year on record. Just ask NASA and NOAA. It beat the previous record, which was set in 2015. Which beat the previous record, set in 2014. See a pattern here?

It’s a sobering thought, but anyone under the age of forty has never lived in a year that was not above the average temperature experienced over the whole of the 20th. Century.

As our summer temperatures get progressively hotter, it has a direct effect on our homes.

Hotter temperatures make us more uncomfortable.
Hotter temperatures mean that we use our air conditioning more, driving up our electricity bills- at a time when our tariffs are at a record high level, too.
The extra hours that your aircon runs, and extra on/off cycling, cuts down the life of your system, and increases the need for maintenance/servicing.

Fitting double glazed windows and doors to your home helps cut down the amount of heat entering in summer. If you also specify uPVC frames, you’ll get the very best combination of high thermal insulation, high acoustic insulation, and a long, maintenance-free lifetime.

Categories : Climate Change Energy Efficiency Thermal Insulation uPVC
Posted on : January 19, 2017