Michael Green

Writer and producer

Windows

In Architecture and building on

Windows might be transparent, but they’re complex. Good windows well placed will help keep your home comfortable all year round. Bad windows in the wrong place will cost you dearly.

In a typical insulated house, they cause more heat gain or loss than any other part of the building fabric. While they’re expensive up front, they’re also an investment in the resale value and day-to-day comfort of your home.

So which windows should you choose? There are hundreds of products and combinations to consider, from the glazing, frames and coatings, to the size, shape and location. The Window Energy Rating Scheme website lists detailed ratings of over 40,000 products.

Two years ago, Alan Kerlin designed his sustainable home in Canberra. Afterwards, he established a consultancy, Solar Flair, to help pass on what he found out. When he was researching windows, he found good advice hard to come by. “It’s a difficult area, but it’s easier if you understand some of the basics behind the science,” he says.

Heat transfers in different ways – for windows, you’ll need to consider conduction and radiation. Conduction refers to the ambient warmth that passes through the glass and the frame. A window’s conduction is measured by its U-value. The lower the U-value, the better its insulating qualities, and the better for your electricity bill.

Radiation, in contrast, refers to heat transferred when sunlight passes through the glass, hits something and warms it up. It is measured by the window’s Solar Heat Gain Coefficient (SHGC); the higher the SHGC, the more radiant heat it lets through.

Passive solar design

Armed with this knowledge, you need to consider the weather where you live and the design of your home. Most Australians live in climates where we want to draw in extra warmth during the cold months and shut it out throughout the hot months. With careful consideration, your windows can help this happen – together other elements of passive solar design, such as shading and orientation.

In Canberra, Kerlin designed his home with a bank of glass to the north – the sun streams in throughout winter, but eaves and shading block the direct rays in summer. Small windows to the south, east and west help reduce the solar access when the sun is low in the sky and passes below the awnings. “But remember: it all depends on where you are living,” he says. “In northern Australia, you never want sun hitting your glass at all.”

Insulating glazing units (IGUs)

No matter your location, there is one constant: double glazing is always preferable to single. For now, nearly every Australian home has single-glazed windows. “They’re like a thermal wound in the building envelope,” says Gary Smith, from the Australian Window Association.

Double and triple glazed windows – known as IGUs – help heal the wound. “Standard double glazing can reduce conducted heat transfer by about half,” Smith says. Triple glazing is common in Europe and North America, but rare here. The window units weigh and cost more, but provide extremely low U-values and excellent sound proofing.

Within an IGU’s frame, the panes of glass are held apart by a spacer. A wider gap gives better insulation – 12 mm is regarded as the best. Likewise, an IGU will prevent even more heat transfer if the cavity is filled with an inert gas, such as argon, rather than air. “With argon, you get about a 15 per cent improvement in U-value,” Smith says.

IGUs also perform strongly in bushfire attack conditions. “Double glazing works really well in the bushfire tests because the insulation barrier stops the radiant heat coming through the glass,” he says. This year, all states and territories will introduce a new standard for windows and doors in bushfire prone areas. So far, few products have been tested to the top levels.

Smith says the extra cost between single and double glazing can be between 50 and 100 per cent, depending on the company and the product. Householders can spend from a few thousand, to tens of thousands of dollars extra. “There’s a huge variance. The best bet is to shop around – there are good deals and really good products out there.”

Glazing

Glass is no longer just plain old glass. It now comes in a dazzling range of coatings and tints that will help keep your energy bills down.

Low emissivity (low-e) glass has a transparent metallic coating that reduces the pane’s U-value. “Low-e glass can significantly reduce the amount of heat that travels through your windows, keeping your house more comfortable in both summer and winter,” says Jamie Rice, vice-president of the Australian Glass and Glazing Association. It can also curtail UV light and reduce fading in furnishings.

Single-glazed low-e coated glass is a good option for people who want a step up from standard glass but can’t stretch their budgets to double glazing. However, it’s far more effective when placed inside an IGU – it can reduce the U-value of a double glazed window by half again.

Tinted glass cuts the heat transmitted into the home from direct sunlight. Available in a range of colours, tints are especially suited to west-facing windows that receive direct, summer afternoon sun. “The problem with standard tints has been that to improve the performance you end up cutting out light,” says Rice. “But there’s now a more sophisticated product, called spectrally selective tinted glass, which significantly increases solar control and only slightly decreases light transmission.”

Low-e coatings and tints can be used in combination. Together, they reduce both the U-value and the SHGC, making for a window that’s ideal for keeping out the heat.

Frames

Most window frames in Australia are made from aluminium. They’re cheap and versatile, but conduct heat very easily, which means they slice the insulating performance by up to 30 per cent. Thermally broken aluminium or composite frames offer better insulation, but they’re much more costly and, for the time being, not widely available.

Timber frames also have significantly lower U-values than aluminium. Edith Paarhammer, from Victorian window manufacturer Paarhammer, argues that although timber is more expensive, it performs better than any other framing material.

She recommends that eco-conscious buyers choose products made from either plantation timber or Forest Stewardship Council certified timber. “It’s also very important that the frames are substantial, not flimsy,” she says. “And make sure they have seals all around, so there are no draughts.”

Another high performing frame is uPVC. Only recently introduced into this country, it has a comparable thermal performance to timber, but is cheaper. Warren Miles from Ecovue says a double glazed uPVC window can cost just 25 per cent more than equivalent single glazed aluminium.

Miles says it’s crucial that buyers look for frames that minimise air leakage. “You need a complete seal between the window and the frame, and also between the frame and the structure of the building. If you can’t achieve that you may as well not worry so much about the glazing.”

Miles says it’s crucial that buyers look for frames that accommodate double glazing while also minimising air leakage. “You need a complete seal between the window and the frame, and also between the frame and the structure of the building. Reducing air infiltration is a significant part of energy efficiency.”

Few businesses are specialist window installers, although some manufacturers can also do the job. You can find them listed on the Australian Window Association website.

Retrofitting

If you’re in an existing house and want to improve your windows, you have several options. The most effective and expensive way is to remove and replace the entire window units. In some systems you can replace the glass alone.

It’s also possible to retrofit double glazing, either with glass secondary window systems or cheaper acrylic panes that attach to your window frame using magnets. Cheaper still (but less effective) is Clear Comfort, a membrane that you tape to the window frame and make taut by shrinking with a hairdryer (a 10-metre kit costs only $180).

Films are an efficient way to cut solar heat gain on existing windows. They range from almost transparent to dark grey and cost between $60 and $100 per square metre, installed. They also come with low-e coatings.

Glossary of terms

U-value: the measure of a window’s heat conduction. High insulating windows have U-values from about 3.5 down to 1.4 (the lower the better).

SHGC: Solar Heat Gain Coefficient. The measure of the heat transmitted through the window when the sun strikes it directly; 0.8 is high, 0.2 is very low.

IGU: Insulating Glazing Unit. Double or triple glazed window systems, which have sealed cavities between the glass layers.

Low-e glass: glass with a low-emissivity, metallic coating that improves its insulating qualities. Some low-e coatings also reduce the SHGC.

Spectrally selective glass: glass that allows lots of light in, while cutting out unwanted UV and solar heat gain.

Read this article in Sanctuary Magazine.

See related article: Window coverings and retrofitted double-glazing

Preserving

In Greener Homes on

Save the sweet summer produce from waste.

Matthew Pember is ready to take over the family sauce-making tradition. Next weekend, his relatives and friends will bring over their tomato crop and renew their annual sugo day. “Making our own tomato sauce has been a tradition ever since I can remember,” he says. “It’s a big event.”

Together with his business partner Fabian Capomolla, Mr Pember runs The Little Veggie Patch Company, which designs and installs and organic backyard vegetable gardens. Both men come from Italian-Australian families. “It’s time for our generation to carry it on, but my Nonna and my parents will be there to lend their expertise.” They’ll convert the season’s ripe tomatoes into sauce that will last through winter, before sitting down to a traditional lunch.

The sauce is simple: boil the tomatoes, remove the skins and seeds (Mr Pember uses a small hand-operated machine), and bottle the pulp. A kilo of tomatoes makes about 750 ml of sauce. “We just add salt and a couple of basil leaves. When you cook the pasta sauce to eat, that’s when you add the oil, garlic and herbs.” The sealed bottles are boiled to stop the sauce fermenting in storage.

“If you look after your plot, this is the most exciting time of year. There’s so much fruit falling off trees – you tend to get a glut of food at the one time, so it’s important to put it to good use,” Mr Pember says.

Even if you’re not a backyard gardener, preserving the summer’s crop brings sweet rewards, according Anna Lohse. She’s the founder of Nanna Technology, a website dedicated to upholding time-honoured skills such as gardening and cooking.

“My garden isn’t well-established yet, so I go to the market and buy cheap fruit and veg in bulk,” she says. “[Recently] I bought boxes of tomatoes, plums, peaches and apricots, and went crazy.” She finished with a battery of bottled fruit, chutneys and jams.

There are many ways to keep your crops, from freezing, bottling and drying, to pickling, salting and juicing. Ms Lohse says first time preservers can’t go wrong with jam. “People think jam is hard, but it’s actually really simple and delicious – it’s basically equal quantities of sugar and fruit. Cook it together until the sugar is dissolved and it gets to a runny, jammy consistency.”

When bottling, you have to be careful with hygiene. One technique is to wash your jars and dry them in a low oven, while bringing the lids to boil in a pot of water. “The rule is to put a hot liquid into hot jars and seal with a hot lid,” she says. “There are all sorts of different ways to do it, but that one is easy and has always worked for me.”

Ms Lohse says preserving means she can eat seasonal fruit and vegetables, but not forgo the best flavours. “In winter I miss some of the produce you can get in summer, so it’s very exciting to open up a jar of peaches in the middle of winter and make a delicious pie or tart.”

She also makes her jams and chutneys for the pure pleasure of taking time over her food. “Preserving is a way for me to slow down and enjoy the produce, and also enjoy a slower life.”

Indoor air quality

In Greener Homes on

Clear air takes care, especially if you’re building.

Most people think of their homes as havens, but the air quality inside can be far worse than outside, even in a busy city.

Marianne Baker, president of the Australian Society of Building Biologists, says a number of factors diminish air quality, including dust and mould. In recent years, people have also become more aware – and wary – of products containing Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs), chemicals containing carbon that slowly ‘offgas’ into the air.

Although few VOCs have been studied in detail, a number of health effects are known. “The symptoms vary from person to person, but can include headaches, tiredness, or irritation of eyes, nose and throat,” Ms Baker says.

Even so, they’re ubiquitous in our household products, construction materials and furnishings. Unless you take special care, VOCs will emerge from your new carpet, paint, cupboards, varnish, adhesives and synthetic fabrics, as well as from day-to-day cleaning and pest control products, air fresheners and deodorants.

Construction products offgas the most when they are new. For this reason, the decisions you make when you build or renovate are crucial, because you’re installing scores of products all at once.

Low- or no-VOC products are available, including natural paints, sealants and finishes, and natural-fibre floor coverings (such as sisal or jute). Ecospecifier, an eco-friendly product database, is a great place to research what’s on offer. “Seek advice about healthy building materials,” Ms Baker suggests, “and make sure the design allows for excellent cross-flow ventilation.”

Good ventilation is essential for good indoor air quality. “If the air is stagnant, chemicals released from the building materials will accumulate inside,” Ms Baker says.

Jo Immig is an environmental scientist and the coordinator of the National Toxics Network. She says parents should be especially wary of the products they use around the house. “Children are at far greater risk of exposure to any chemicals because their body is developing. They breathe more air per body-kilogram than adults.”

She says most of us can dramatically improve our air quality by adopting a handful of different habits, as well as by improving ventilation. “I encourage people to switch from petrochemical-based, heavily perfumed cleaning products to plant-based, low-toxic cleaning products.” Similarly, she recommends against buying plug-in or aerosol air fresheners.

And if you’ve got pest trouble, try to target the cause of the problem. “For example, with cockroaches, seal up cracks and crevices, rather than getting a pest control company to come once a year and spray the place with chemicals,” Ms Immig says.

Unflued gas heaters are also a health hazard. When gas is burnt it releases nitrogen dioxide, which contributes to chronic respiratory disease. “Any indoor gas appliance that is not properly vented is potentially a big contributor to indoor pollution,” Ms Immig says.

Her other simple suggestions include coughing up for a vacuum with high filter efficiency (HEPA filter) and removing your shoes at the door. Particles of heavy metals, such as lead, cling to the soles of our shoes – so at the least, be sure to place doormats at every entry.

Indoor plants can also help you breathe easy. “Plants have a lot to offer,” Ms Immig says, “not just their potential for cleaning the air, but for the overall feeling of wellbeing in the home.”

For more information, visit safersolutions.org.au

Low-energy lighting

In Greener Homes on

The federal government’s phase-out of standard incandescent light globes has already begun. Since November last year, Australian shops have only been allowed to sell their pre-existing stock. But we don’t need to be scared of the dark – there are eco-friendly options to brighten our homes and save us money.

There are two main kinds of low-energy lighting technology to choose from: fluorescent lamps – both old-style tubes and newer compact fluoros (CFLs) – and Light Emitting Diodes (LEDs).

David Baggs, technical director of Ecospecifier (an eco product database) says that when choosing lights, it’s wise to remember both colour and brightness.

Most people prefer the yellowish glow given off by incandescent globes. “To get a light that has the warmth we’re comfortable with, ask for ‘warm white’ CFLs or LEDs,” Baggs says. To be absolutely sure, check the colour temperature (measured in ‘Kelvin’). Warm white comes in at about 2700 K, whereas a cool fluorescent tube glows bluer, at about 5000 K.

Next, if you want to know how brightly your new energy-smart globe will shine, compare the power of the light (measured in ‘lumens’) against similar incandescent bulbs. “Any good lighting shop or online retailer will have that information,” Baggs says.

The quality of both CFLs and LEDs is improving rapidly, but each is better suited to particular applications.

General lighting

According to John Knox, from the Alternative Technology Association’s webshop, CFLs are perfect for general room lighting. With a quick online search, you’ll find them available in a pleasing range of shapes, from spirals and sticks, to more elegant globes. They even come in petite candle-shaped sizes that slot into unusual places such as rangehoods or chandeliers.

Good quality household CFLs cost between $5 and $15. You can also buy dimmable versions for about $30 each, but don’t fret about the extra dollars – with a lamp life up to eight times longer than an incandescent bulb, they’ll save you money before long. Knox recommends bigger name brands. “They’re generally higher quality, last longer and won’t flicker,” he says.

Until now LEDs have not been bright enough for general lighting use, but Knox is optimistic that the situation will change in months, rather than years. “The technology is coming along in leaps and bounds,” he says.

Task lighting

Halogen downlights are the most common and energy-sapping task lighting in Australian homes. “The easiest solution is to replace them with one low-energy bulb in the centre of the room,” suggests Mick Harris from Enviroshop.

If you want to keep your downlights but cut their energy consumption, the most straight-forward option is to install high-efficiency halogens, such as the Philips Masterline ES or the Osram IRC Energy Saver, at a cost of about $10 each. “They last two-and-a-half times longer than a standard halogen and use 30 per cent less energy,” Harris says.

Alternatively, you can buy LED downlights for between $40 and $60 each. The up-front cost is high, but with a lifetime of up to 50,000 hours, they’ll almost never need to be replaced. Harris says that while LEDs aren’t yet as bright as halogens, they do suit lounge areas, hallways or toilets, and can be purchased together with a driver that makes them dimmable. “Wander through your house and see which lights are brighter than you need. They’re good spots for LED bulbs.”

CFLs are also available as downlights ($10 to $15 each), but to make them work, you’ll need to get an electrician to replace the fitting. Enviroshop sells slightly larger downlight fittings that suit standard-sized (including dimmable) CFLs. “That way, you get the best of both worlds,” Harris says. “It will give you as much brightness as you want, with a cheap, energy efficient globe.”

All CFLs contain a small amount of mercury, so they’re hazardous if broken or left in landfill. See the federal environment department’s website for more information on how to recycle or dispose of them safely. 

See this article in Sanctuary Magazine.

Meet your neighbours

In Environment, The Age on

From backstreets to the big end of town, there’s reason for neighbours to become good friends.

Last year, my neighbour and I leafleted houses in the streets nearby. We proposed something unusual. On our flyer, we wrote, “…we’d like to set up a system to share some of our resources and build a friendly local community”, and then we promised all manner of neighbourly fun, including street parties, movie nights, swap meets and veggie sharing.

And now, our block in Carlton moonlights as a ‘sharehood’.

The Sharehood is a social networking website that shows you everyone with a profile who lives within 400 metres of you. It includes lists of things to borrow and lend and a forum for upcoming events. The first one was set up in Northcote in 2008, but it works no matter where in the world you live.

The Sharehood’s creator, website developer Theo Kitchener, says connecting online can help meeting face-to-face. “It’s all about encouraging neighbours to get to know each other in real life – all kinds of good things can come from that.”

So, aside from a sensible impulse to borrow a circular saw rather than shell out for one of my own, what’s behind my wish to know my neighbours?

Associate professor Kathleen Hulse, from Swinburne University’s Institute for Social Research, says knowing our neighbours not only makes us feel safer, but also meets our deep need for a sense of place. “Being connected locally is strongly associated with a sense of belonging, and we all need to belong somewhere. It’s a profound thing – that is what a home is about.”

According to Gilbert Rochecouste, from placemaking consultants Village Well, there’s been renewed interest in “caring for place”. Governments, councils and property developers are all aiming to strengthen local communities. “People are changing their priorities,” he says. “We’re seeing that with developers building ‘neighbourliness capital’ into projects.”

Mr Rochecouste points to Delfin’s Laurimar estate, past Epping in Melbourne’s north, which includes a town centre lined with local stores within walking distance of all the homes. “People meet in main streets, that’s where the heart is,” he says.

Also at Laurimar, a community worker is employed to organise activities. “In greenfields developments like that one, we’re starting to see place managers who coordinate community gardens, events and food swaps,” Mr Rochecouste says. “To build citizenship you’ve got to invest in it.”

The trend isn’t limited to the urban fringe. Sue West from the McCaughey Centre at the University of Melbourne says that over the last decade, state and local governments have supported more and more initiatives to build community resilience. Now, about eight in ten local councils say they fund projects of that kind, be they community gardens, local action plans or activities to bring different cultures together.

“There’s been growing interest in programs that involve communities in getting to know each other,” Ms West says. “The research was showing that a country or a community can be doing really well economically, but people’s wellbeing is beyond just money and the economic measures. It’s about the connections people have with each other.”

Ms West coordinates Community Indicators Victoria, a set of measures gauging social, economic, environmental, democratic and cultural wellbeing in local council areas. “Feeling connected to neighbours does contribute to wellbeing. It can be really important in difficult times, like the one we’ve just been through with the financial crisis, and the ones we continue to go through because of climate change and drought,” Ms West says.

Improved neighbourliness also goes hand-in-hand with environmental gains. As well as The Sharehood, there are a large number eco-friendly neighbourhood groups across our suburbs, such as Sustainability Street (a group training program in eco-living) and community gardens. There were 75 community gardens in Melbourne at last count, in 2006, and interest has been flourishing since then.

Transition Towns is another grassroots eco-development movement. The people in each location determine what they’ll do, but generally speaking, the goal is to live better with less – to re-make your area into a food producing, low-energy, low-emission, tight-knit community. It was founded in England in late 2006 and there are already over similar 250 initiatives worldwide. In Australia, 27 groups have officially signed on and dozens more are joining up, including seven in suburban Melbourne.

Razia Ross is convenor of Transition Town Boroondara, which traverses inner-eastern suburbs from Kew East to Ashburton. She says the threats posed by climate change and peak oil will change our relationships with people nearby. “It seems to me that we really need our neighbours in a way we didn’t before.” For now, her group is scheming for community gardens, orchards and guerrilla gardening.

The good news, according to housing researcher Dr Hulse, is that we have a strong base of neighbourliness to build on. “I think that the connections in suburbs are underestimated. Special initiatives like community gardens are important, but they wouldn’t work if there wasn’t already a fabric there,” she says.

It’s true in my block. At our sharehood events, long-term residents pass on local folklore to newcomers – yarning, for example, about the old Maltese man who built a boat in his backyard (too big for the yard, it jutted over the footpath) then set sail for Malta. It’s all part of the sharing.

A new nature strip

Depending on how you look at it, Gilbert Rochecouste and his partner Amadis Lacheta have either taken their work home, or their home to work. They run Village Well, a placemaking consultancy that works on relocalisation and civic renewal.

And on the nature strip outside their house in North Coburg, they’ve planted a community herb garden and installed a seat, among other things. “The old ladies who get off the bus pause and sit down and we’ve gotten to know them,” Mr Rochecouste says. “They’re so appreciative – sometimes they drop over pickles.”

He says neighbourliness turns a street into a meeting place. “There are eyes on the street. It helps breaks down the fear culture – you feel comfortable to knock on someone’s door and meet together. And it’s much more fun.”

Read this article on the Age website.

Village Well’s 10 ways to be neighbourly:

1.     Say hello to your neighbours when you pass.

2.     Organise a potluck lunch, dinner or picnic and invite people in your street.

3.     Plant a community herb garden on your nature strip

4.     Organise a neighbourhood swap – share and exchange clothes, garden produce, plants, books or skills.

5.     Organise a neighbourhood ‘salon’ – share music, food, poetry or stories.

6.     Install a seat on your nature strip for neighbours to sit and chat.

7.     Organise a yearly street party.

8.     Do some street beautification or community art.

9.     Create a community garden or green area.

10.  Put a free table on your nature strip and give away food, books, furniture and bric-a-brac.