Kurrajong Hill 2019

House Notes – Kurrajong Hill

Our two-storey home, with 50km of views over National Parks to the South East Ranges, took four years to build to 2010. The strawbale walls rendered internally with clay and finished with clay paints have been very successful. With external render of lime/sand and a durable mineral paint finish, the walls are hygroscopic, giving a comfortable atmosphere and balanced humidity.

The rammed-earth components add to the thermal mass to help keep temperatures stable. More thermal mass is provided by the masonry heater, a great addition and far superior to any other form of wood heater. The masonry heater provides all the pleasures of wood burning but eliminates the downside. It keeps the air and environment clean both inside and outside the home, uses less wood and requires little labour.
We built a sun room on the north side, which adds warmth in winter and insulates the house in summer. Passive features also include under-floor ventilation in summer.

We were familiar with the disciplines of using solar power, but our 4KW, 1200 amp-hour 48-volt system enables us to use electrical appliances freely through most of the year; only mid-winter requiring us to be more frugal. Nevertheless, we need a backup generator for times of gloomy weather.

We cook on a wood-fired Rayburn, but also use gas for convenience. Our masonry heater has an oven which offers an extra dimension to our cooking. The Rayburn augments the evacuated tube solar hot water heater in winter.

We installed a Clivus Multrum for the composting toilets, which have given a huge saving in water, all of which comes from the roofs of house and sheds into nine plastic tanks of 250000 litre total capacity. Greywater is recycled into growing areas and the compost feeds the garden.

We are still developing our gardens, and have completed an orchard/chook yard, soft-fruit enclosure and a pond. We are constructing a terraced vegetable garden near the house, where we also continue ornamental planting of both natives and exotics. We have chosen fire retardent plants where possible and have an ember barrier planting to aid in case of bushfire.

We have opened our home for Sustainable House Day since 2012 and are pleased to meet our visitors and discuss what works for us.

For directions to get to this home from Princes Highway, please see this map to Kurrajong Hill.

Sustainability Features

Years Open
2015
2017
2018
2019
ENERGY AND WATER EFFICIENT FEATURES
    • Energy efficiency:
    • Efficient lighting
      Efficient appliances
    • Passive heating cooling:
    • Cross ventilation
      Passive solar designed home
      Shading
      Thermal mass

    • Passive heating cooling:
    • Venting to under floor for summer cooling.
    • Active heating cooling:
    • Wood-fired Masonry Heater
    • Water heating:
    • Solar hot water (evacuated tube)
      Wood fire wetback
    • Water harvesting and saving features:
    • Above ground rainwater storage
      Grey water system
      Drip irrigation
    • Average water consumption per day:
    • 140L
    • Above ground rainwater storage Type:
    • Plastic tanks
    • Above ground rainwater storage Size
    • 250000 litres
    • Storage connected to
    • Garden
      Toilet
      Laundry
      Whole house
    • Energy Efficient Lighting
    • LED lights throughout
      Natural daylight
    • Window Protection:
    • Blinds
      Pelmets
SUSTAINABLE & RECYCLED MATERIALS
    • Sustainable materials:
    • Strawbales, home-sourced timber, clay render, local stone. Minimised use of heavy machinery. Much lifting by chain hoists to eliminate crane hire.
    • Recycled and reused materials:
    • Rocks/stone
      Timber
      Tyres
INSULATION SPECIFICATIONS
    • Insulation Type:
    • Ceiling
      External walls
      Floor
    • Ceiling Type:
    • Ritek composite roofing
    • Ceiling Rating:
    • R3.0
    • Floor Type:
    • Hardwood on joists and bearers
    • External Walls Type:
    • Straw (stawbale walls)
RENEWABLE ENERGY SPECIFICATIONS
    • All-Electric Home?
    • No
    • Energy star rating:
    • 5 Stars
    • Renewable energy used:
    • Energy storage/battery
      Solar PV off-grid
    • Size of PV system:
    • 4kW
HOUSE DESIGN SPECIFICATIONS
    • House Size
    • 250m2
    • BAL Rating
    • BAL – 12.5: Ember attack with heat up to 12.5kW/m2
    • Roof
    • Insulated panel (sandwich panels)
    • Wall Materials
    • Rammed earth
      Strawbale
    • Window and Door Types
    • Awning
      Double glazing
      Low-e, films
      Sliding windows/doors
    • Universal design accessability
    • Disability access
    • Universal Design Features
    • 80cm minimum door opening width
      Hobless showers
      Lever handles for doors (no knobs)
      Rocker style light switches
      Shower head on rail for various heights
      Slip resistant flooring
      Space around toilets for ease of access in wheelchairs
    • Number of bedrooms
    • 3
    • Number of bathrooms
    • 3
GARDEN AND WASTE REDUCTION
    • Garden / Outdoors
    • Garden pond to collect stormwater. Terracing to utilise slope.
    • Garden / Outdoors
    • Chickens
      Composting
      Drip irrigation
      Edible garden
      Native plants

    • Waste Reduction Practices:
    • Compost all food scraps
      Recycle
      Repair
HEALTHY HOME FEATURES
    • Healthy home features
    • Cross flow ventilation
      Lime render/wash
      Low VOC paints/sealer/varnish
      Natural light and ventilation
      Natural oil sealer/finishes
      No carpets
      Wax based sealer/finish

    • Healthy Home
    • Masonry heater to eliminate internal smoke and dust. Clay render to balance humidity.
Location
Dignams Creek NSW 2546
    • Housing Type:
    • Standalone House
    • Project Type:
    • Continual Improvement
    • Builder
    • Owner
    • Designer
    • Owner

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