Home Style Green

This week I'm discussing skylights and roof windows. They're great for both light and ventilation, but what should you look out for?

A building surveyor is trained to investigate potential issues and provide a prioritised list of maintenance for a building. When looking to buy a property, don't take the real estate agent's word for it. Find your own, reputable building surveyor to get an honest assessment of the building. You'll still need to make the decision yourself whether or not to buy, but at least you'll be more informed when you make that decision.

The building code is the worst house you're legally allowed to build, yet it's often treated as the target.

In this episode, I walk through some building envelope basics and discuss where I think you should invest the most to improve the health and comfort of your new home.

http://homestylegreen.com/166

I usually interview designers and builders about what's going on overseas, with a focus on what the New Zealand industry could learn. In this episode, I speak with Damon Gray and Andrew Chapman of NZ Builders. They've turned this idea on it's head and have taken some NZ techniques to British Columbia, with some stunning results.

http://nzbuilders.com http://homestylegreen.com/165

I love it when I find new companies that are looking at the design and building process a bit differently and who want to provide healthy, energy efficient homes. That's what Nook is all about. I caught up with their designer, Warren Clarke recently and asked him why he does what he does.

http://nook.nz http://homestylegreen.com/164

Walls (and roofs and floors) of buildings have become complicated. As we've increased the level of insulation, we've created some new problems, like condensation. This has been aggravated by the addition of layers into the wall that reduce air movement. So how do you create a wall that keeps you warm but will also stay dry? I spoke to Jon Davies from Pro Clima to get some facts about airtightness.

http://proclima.com http://proclima.co.nz http://proclima.com.au http://homestylegreen.com/163

When I first saw the LUNOS is didn't really believe it was a true heat recovery ventilation system, so I sought out some answers.

Wayne Delport is Sales and Technical Manager at The Heating Company International.

http://bit.ly/HSGLunos http://homestylegreen.com/162

Imagine having a Fitbit for your home and being able to see, in real time, how it's performing. You could also be notified of any hazards like high levels of CO2 and VOCs as they occur - before you start to get a headache or start having respiratory problems.

This week I speak with Dustin Jefferson Onghanseng, a cofounder of uHoo, an exciting new product that could be the Fitbit for your home.

http://uhooair.com/ http://homestylegreen.com/161

A first step in making a home healthier is to understand and quantify what might be making it unhealthy. Through her website, Caroline Blazovsky has made it very easy for homeowners to test indoor air quality and test for mould.

http://www.healthyhomeexpert.com/ http://homestylegreen.com/160

Darryl Sang is one of only a few Certified Passive House Designers in Auckland. We discuss why he went through this gruelling training and why more of his clients are demanding Passive House standards.

http://homestylegreen.com159 http://sangarchitects.com/