Assignments

Analysis

The next step in this project is to assess the environmental impact of your house and transport situation.  You may use any on-line assessment tool - those currently available include the following:

• Homestar Excel spreadsheet link
• BRANZ (Http://alf.branz.co.nz)
• LEED assessment guide link

You may also like to consider your water/energy use compared to an Auckland or New Zealand average (details available on the internet).

Also you need to produce a scale floor layout of your house and a description of the following points:

• Energy sources.e,g electricity, gas, solid fuel, solar etc.  Please provide a definition for "energy usage".
• Orientation of the house (mark North on the map)
• Location of the key living areas (and indicate which direction they face if not clear)
• Thermal mass details e.g. wall and ceiling construction including insulation (type and location). Please provide definitions for "thermal conductivity" and "thermal resistivity".

Low budget and unlimited budget retrofits

Finally - the up-grade.  You will be required to provide two options for the upgrade of your current living environment.  The first upgrade involves a low budget retrofit (maximum cost $2000) which must be justified in terms of benefit.  Costs must assessed and be realistic; therefore you should provide trade literature to support any estimates.  

The second upgrade is an unlimited budget upgrade in which you must choose and justify improvements to minimise the environmental impact of your house.  Your submission should include a concept plan (which is a basic floor plan with descriptions).

Please do not to forget to include discussion on the key challenges to any retrofit/changes.  For example, adding insulation may not be possible for all types of wall without a considerable reduction in room size or adding a photovoltaic panel to the roof may not be feasible on a particular roof type or orientation.

A list of helpful sites is provided below and will be added to during the course so check regularly.

For information on energy try the following site:

1. Passiv house, New Zealand. http://www.phinz.org.nz/

Due Date: 5th April