Teal House 2025

Teal House

We decided to retire to Green Head, a small coastal village in Western Australia. Green Head offers the peace and tranquility we desire, with many recreational opportunities in the ocean and surrounding National Parks.

We wanted a house that would be resilient to the harsh coastal environment, summer heat waves, and bushfires, as well as being suitable for ageing in place. We also wanted it to be low maintenance and easy to clean.

A sustainable house was important to us, for reducing our impact on the natural environment, as well as making us less reliant on increasingly expensive and unreliable government services, such as power, water and internet.

Designing the house was a collaborative effort which took two years. We conducted research on modern building methods, as well as looking at the local weather across the seasons. We joined the Home Method, an online course, which provided a wealth of information. We used the government website, Your Home. We consulted with two different architects, including a specialist in PassivHaus design. Our builder, Eco Homes Group, added the final touches to our plans to include PassivHaus details, such as the slab-edge insulation, ventilated cavities and mechanical heat recovery ventilation. All our hard work paid off when we got a 9.2 star energy efficiency rating for our design.

We have now lived in our house for 10 months, experiencing three seasons. We love the look and feel of the house. The thermal efficiency is excellent. Our home is a safe haven from the harsh environment, whether it is from heat waves, bushfires or winter storms. The double glazed windows not only provide thermal efficiency, they also shut out almost all exterior noise, sealing out dust, salt and insects. The design suits our lifestyle perfectly, everything is exactly where we want it.