Creating a Zero Emissions Home – resources from ZEB
Did you know that 12% of Australia’s total greenhouse gas emissions come from energy-use in residential homes? Contributing to this are over 8 million homes built before the introduction of building energy standards.
Even homes built since the 1990s, often have inadequate thermal performance and inefficient appliances, making them hot in summer, cold in winter and expensive to run.
Creating comfortable, energy efficient homes is such a big topic that’s it’s easy to get lost in the mass of information available: books, websites, Facebook groups, etc. And information is coming to you on every imaginable topic: energy efficient appliances, solar, hot water, lighting, through to assessing thermal performance and solar passive design. That’s when it can get overwhelming….
Where do I start? 🤷♂️ ….
What actions will make a difference? ….
What specific improvements does my home need, and at what cost?
One great place to start is right here! Since its inception,Zero Emissions Byron has been collating resources to support households on their personal journeys towards zero emissions at home.
So here’s some of the highlights, with links to resources contained in ZEB’s extensive web directory.
GREAT RESOURCES on the ZEB Website:
- the Buildings & Energy page: a broad overview with links to videos that ZEB has produced on energy efficient and flood resiliant homes, plus short stories from real people on their zero emissions journeys at home.
- Practice Energy Efficiency – tips & tricks: a more detailed look at a big range of tips to reduce your home’s energy consumption and carbon footprint.
- Short video on retrofitting a project home for energy independence
- Info sheet on designing a sustainable home (click to open fully):
- ZEB Business Directory: linking you to local and state resources to support you on your journey, with sections for Energy and Buildings.
- News & Blog articles relating specifically to buildings and energy.
Getting Professional Advice
Engaging a Home Energy Consultant can help to take guess work out of improving your home’s energy efficiency. They can conduct a tailored home energy assessment to pinpoint which actions will give you the best ‘bang for buck’ in terms of saving energy, and the carbon emissions and costs that go with it. Conveniently, Zero Emissions Byron also has a professional Home Energy Advisor on its Board – Seb Crangle – who is available for customised home consultations, should you want further guidance. He is accredited as an energy assessor with the Residential Scorecard program (for existing homes) and is currently studying to become a Thermal Performance Assessor (new builds). He can also provide more casual advice with a home visit, or energy usage analsysis.
Seb’s webite also has a range of great resources for creating low energy, low carbon homes, including action lists and e books for download. Check it out here: www.homeenergyadvisor.com.au
We hope you’ve enjoyed this collection of carbon-busting resources from Zero Emissions Byron. If you have enquiries, ZEB is here to help. Please feel to reach out to us at email: zeb@zerobyron.org
