Resources
UNDERSTANDING PASSIVE HOUSE CALCULATION TOOLS – Part 3
Passive House principles Most of you might already be aware of the Passive House Principles but for a quick recap: Understanding the Passive House Principles Passive House follows FABRIC FIRST DESIGN APPROACH. 1 A continuous Building Envelope without any gaps The...
UNDERSTANDING PASSIVE HOUSE CALCULATION TOOLS – Part 2
WHY IS IT IMPORTANT TO PERFORM CALCULATIONS AT AN EARLY DESIGN STAGE? EVEN FOR SOLAR PASSIVE DESIGN OR LOW ENERGY HOMES? We recommend having preliminary calculations done through the early design stage. To make a first assessment of the energy performance at...
UNDERSTANDING PASSIVE HOUSE CALCULATION TOOLS – Part 1
The passive house calculation is one of the most accurate ways of calculating energy efficiency. The tools used are PHPP (Passive House Planning Package) and Design PH. This allows the user to make informed energy efficiency decisions. Which enable us to choose the...
Meet Mellissa – our senior passive house designer
Meet MelissaSenior DesignerCertified Passive House Designer After receiving her Bachelor of Architecture, Mellissa has spent the last 16 years working for various firms across Queensland and Victoria and we are now fortunate to have Mellissa, and the wealth of...
The 20/20 House Part 27 – Selecting Fixtures, Fittings & Appliances
The Gruen Eco Design blog about how to convert your dream of an energy efficient home into a reality. Selecting Fixtures, Fittings & Appliances As our April construction start date approaches there are still a lot of things we have to select and put into our...
The 20/20 House Part 26 – We are slowly getting there: the 20/21 House
The Gruen Eco Design blog about how to convert your dream of an energy efficient home into a reality. Okay, we have a date!The plan is to start construction in April. Our tenants moved out last month. Services have been disconnected. And we are about to get the...
WANTED: Creative Interior Designer/ Draftsperson To Help Us Design Beautiful Energy Efficient And Sustainable Homes For Future Generations
WANTED: Creative Interior Designer/ Draftsperson To Help Us Design Beautiful Energy Efficient And Sustainable Homes For Future Generations Part-time Are you passionate about energy efficient, sustainable and healthy homes? Does the sound of selecting non tox...
2020: That’s a Wrap
OMG. What a year it has been. I still remember the quarterly planning session with our business coach and mentor in January. All the big hopes and dreams we had for the year and the start of this decade. And then Covid came…. I was just checking the numbers. Here in...
20/20 house – Part 25 Things are moving slowly: the 20/21 House
The Gruen Eco Design blog about how to convert your dream of an energy efficient home into a reality. Things are moving slowly: the 20/21 House What a year it has been. I’m kind of glad we made it into December and have returned to a new “Covid Normal”…. We had some...
Say No to Wedding Cake Designs – Why you should avoid articulation
Why do you want to build an energy efficient and sustainable home? Is it because you want to save on energy bills? Or is your main driver to reduce your carbon footprint and live lightly on this planet? If your aim is to reduce your carbon footprint, while reducing...
HOW LONG WILL IT TAKE TO GET A TOWN PLANNING PERMIT? PART 2
In the last few posts we spoke a bit about the town planning lingo. So, let’s dive deeper. STEP ONETown Planning Application and Initial Assessment. (up to 30 days) The first step in the process is the lodgement of the town planning application. In...
How Long Will It Take To Get A Town Planning Permit? Part 1
Answering the question, “How long will it take to get a Town Planning Permit?” is not an easy thing to do. There are a number of different steps involved, along with many different variables. Every property comes with its own unique set of challenges. Every...
TOWN PLANNING – Key Terms & Town Planning Lingo
I’m starting a little series about town planning. The what, the how, the how long etc. Today we will start with some common terms. Advertising: Community Consultation, this may take the form of letters to your immediate neighbours or the placing of a sign at the front...
SIPS VS Stick Frame
As many of you know. We at Gruen Eco Design are huge fans of SIPs (structural insulated panels) For those of you who haven’t come across this type of construction. These panels are prefabricated. They consist of a FSC certified OSB3 board on either side of a...
What are the best windows when building a passive house?
When I came to Australia in 2007 I was a bit confused about the windows here. I couldn’t quite understand why all the windows were single glazed? And awning windows? Why would you even do such a thing? Back then it was hard and expensive to get your hand on high...
Live In A Passive House Without Being Broke
Our mission at Gruen Eco Design is to make energy efficient homes a staple in the Australian landscape. Everyone should have the right to live in a comfortable house that does not cost the earth! There is the idea that building an energy efficient home or a...
In House Passive House Services
It comes as no surprise that we at Gruen Eco Design love Passive House! Once you look into this way of building energy efficient, comfortable and healthy homes there is no way back anymore. We have been designing and detailing passive houses for a while now. So, our...
Build Architecture Awards 2020: Passive House Designer of the Year
We are so excited to annouce that our Founder and Senior Certified Passive House Design, Simone Schenkel, has been awarded the Passive House Designer of the Year in the Build Architecture Awards 2020. See Below for the full article.