» Lucaston House

House Notes – Lucaston House

This home was designed with modest energy efficiency goals in mind but after construction commenced was transformed following the stringent German Passivhaus guidelines, although not a Certified Passive House the home meets or exceeds the standard in some areas such as superior airtightness (fabric Blower Door test of 0.48 air changes/hour ACH), German Triple glazed timber windows (<U-0.85), Mechanical Ventilation with Heat Recovery (MVHR-PH Certified) and super insulation.

Heat Pump technology for water heating has been adopted because of location, plus large fresh water storage for water harvested on site.

Provisions are in place to convert the building to Net Zero or disconnect completely from the grid.

Features included:

Heat exchange ventilation system
Lightweight construction
Flat and cathedral ceilings
Efficient lighting
Internal – timber framed insulated plasterboard. Exterior- Insulated Rammed Earth
Hot water recirculation in water harvesting

ENERGY AND WATER EFFICIENT FEATURES

- Energy efficiency:
- Efficient lighting
  Draught proofing
  Efficient appliances
  Smart home features
- Passive heating cooling:
- Shading
  Cross ventilation
- Active heating cooling:
- Heat exchange ventilation system
- Water heating:
- Hot water heat pump
- Water harvesting and saving features:
- Above ground storage
  Stormwater management
  Hot water recirculation
  Drip irrigation
- Above ground rainwater storage Type:
- Non-combustible
- Above ground rainwater storage Size
- 90,000L

INSULATION SPECIFICATIONS

- Insulation Type:
- Ceiling
  Internal and external walls
  Floor
- Ceiling Type:
- Flat and cathedral ceilings
- Ceiling Rating:
- R-7.0
- Floor Type:
- Concrete slab on ground
- Floor Rating:
- R-2.5
- Internal / External Walls Type:
- Internal- timber framed insulated plasterboard. Exterior- Insulated Rammed Earth
- Internal / External Walls Rating:
- Internal-R-4.0 & 2.5. Exterior-R-4.0

RENEWABLE ENERGY SPECIFICATIONS

- Energy star rating:
- 8.7 (software could not accurately assess airtightness and triple glazed windows)
- Renewable energy
- Solar PV ready

HOUSE DESIGN SPECIFICATIONS

GARDEN AND WASTE REDUCTION

HEALTHY HOME FEATURES

- Healthy home features
- MVHR system, materials selected to maintain a high level of internal surface temperature to ensure a healthy environment for the occupants.