How’s the temperature in your home?

TIM BREWSTER

For ski field staff from the northern hemisphere, their first season in a Wanaka rental dwelling designed and built in the 1970’s for summer holidays has created anecdotes in their hundreds over the years.

From sleeping with all their clothes on and having breakfast outside because it's warmer (true), to romantic liaisons based primarily on the presence of central heating at their target partner’s house (true, but not openly admitted).

During one project to insulate a ceiling cavity in a cottage on Hunter Crescent a homeowner was astonished to find the only existing "product” fitted between the rafters was a number of copies of a regional newspapers from 1978 - former All Black Frank Oliver was featured in regard to a disciplinary hearing.

Even for houses built more recently, the national code for insulation is seen as a realistic, practical goal, rather than the very minimum standard it is regarded as by many building professionals.

One option when planning on building is to employ the Homestar rating system which is used by the New Zealand Green Building Council (NZGBC) to measure the heat retention of a dwelling and its energy use, plus other environmental attributes.

A house built to code in New Zealand will achieve three or four stars out of Homestar’s maximum rating of 10.

Homestar level one indicates:

• Very little or no ceiling insulation (<50mm or a weekend edition of the ODT)
• Heat loss via ceiling downlights
• Walls and floors are not insulated
• Single glazed, draughty windows
• Draught problems (via open fireplaces, gaps around doors and floorboards)
• Damp, mouldy and unhealthy living conditions

Sound familiar? If so, you could be spending the winter in a house with temperatures below the World Health Organisation’s (WHO) optimum comfort range.

WHO recommends a room temperature of 18°C and 20°C if children, older people, or people who are unwell live in the home.

But does it really cost that much to build warmer and smarter?

A rating qualification of six to seven, which will halve heating costs while providing a healthy and efficient home, is estimated to cost an additional two percent of the total build budget according to the Homestar website.

A recent build in Christchurch for the country’s first 10 star rated house is estimated to have cost 10 percent more than a house built to the minimum code.

Its power bill? If all goes to plan, zero.

So why aren’t more houses built to those higher, more efficient standards?

One industry source said a major reason could be that the land cost in the Wanaka area compels house builders, especially those building ‘spec’ homes, to keep building costs to a minimum, skimping on hardware, fittings and - evidently - insulation.

PHOTO: Supplied