Selecting home design for a north facing block

alishine143 · Aug 19, 2014 5:23 pm

asha

Alishine I would definitely flip it so living areas are east facing so they get morning sun rather than arvo sun.

I would also make bed 2 window smaller and perhaps eliminate the wc window altogether to help reduce afternoon heat build up.

good luck

Hi Asha,

Thanks for your reply. ::smile::

Actually my block is north facing but it is more like true north is towards the right of the master bedroom on the floor plan, 15degree offset. See I have redlined the direction here:

uncyspam · Aug 20, 2014 10:02 am

I disagree that a custom house will cost significantly more than a standard design. Often, customizing a standard design will end up costing significantly more than starting from scratch. ive done a quick hack on how i'd do it...

The main thing I'd be looking at (that noone else has mentioned yet) is how to passively cool the house. If you ensure that your design will allow cross ventillation (do you know which way your prevaliling winds are, and can you use them?) or redesign to incorporate stack ventilation.

If you're not prepared to go back to the start, and based on the limitations you have in terms of block width and budget, I'd suggest considering a few other tricks to beat the heat - although none of them will help with heating it during winter.

Brise Soleil and/or deciduous trees will be the main factor in helping shade the western side of your house. Consider how to put a wet garden on your western side - the passive cooling benefits can be considerable.

Tinting and Low-E glass will also make a large difference, as will good wall insulation. Shutters outside the house are another alternative, but obviously they will mean no light at all during the evening. This might not be a problem on bedrooms, more likely to be a problem with living areas.

Consider an intelligent roof ventilation system. There are a couple on the market, but its also possible to build your own relatively cheaply. http://www.odyssey.com.au is what we are installing in our new build

If you haven't already, go buy yourself a subscription to Sanctuary (http://www.ata.org.au) Which includes access to all the back issues of the mag. You will learn more in a short time from reading that than most other sources (in my experience)

uncyspam · Aug 20, 2014 3:38 pm

I've added a Sun movement dial to your plan so you can better envisage where the sun will hit the house.

alishine143 · Aug 20, 2014 6:53 pm

uncyspam

I disagree that a custom house will cost significantly more than a standard design. Often, customizing a standard design will end up costing significantly more than starting from scratch. ive done a quick hack on how i'd do it... http://i1364.photobucket.com/albums/r730/peter_stevenson1/SpamsDesign_zps05ab2bc6.jpg

The main thing I'd be looking at (that noone else has mentioned yet) is how to passively cool the house. If you ensure that your design will allow cross ventillation (do you know which way your prevaliling winds are, and can you use them?) or redesign to incorporate stack ventilation.

If you're not prepared to go back to the start, and based on the limitations you have in terms of block width and budget, I'd suggest considering a few other tricks to beat the heat - although none of them will help with heating it during winter.

Brise Soleil and/or deciduous trees will be the main factor in helping shade the western side of your house. Consider how to put a wet garden on your western side - the passive cooling benefits can be considerable.

Tinting and Low-E glass will also make a large difference, as will good wall insulation. Shutters outside the house are another alternative, but obviously they will mean no light at all during the evening. This might not be a problem on bedrooms, more likely to be a problem with living areas.

Consider an intelligent roof ventilation system. There are a couple on the market, but its also possible to build your own relatively cheaply. http://www.odyssey.com.au is what we are installing in our new build

If you haven't already, go buy yourself a subscription to Sanctuary (http://www.ata.org.au) Which includes access to all the back issues of the mag. You will learn more in a short time from reading that than most other sources (in my experience)

Thanks uncyspam!

Can you tell me the cost for roof ventilation system (odyssey one) and also when you say a wet garden, what exactly is that ::lol::

?

Thanks.

quickdraw · Aug 21, 2014 4:40 pm

I also have a north facing block and went with the 15m Wide Chateau. I think it will work perfect. When I walked into the display home for the first time after looking through hundreds of other displays (most with the same boring layout) I knew this was the home for me.

Currently waiting on final contracts and plans. I have made a few changes over the standard plan. I will start a build thread once it gets started in a few months.

alishine143 · Aug 21, 2014 11:21 pm

quickdraw

I also have a north facing block and went with the 15m Wide Chateau. I think it will work perfect. When I walked into the display home for the first time after looking through hundreds of other displays (most with the same boring layout) I knew this was the home for me.

Currently waiting on final contracts and plans. I have made a few changes over the standard plan. I will start a build thread once it gets started in a few months.

have you posted your design ? i would love to see it . or else would appreciate if you can post the website link for chateau...thanks

Ozlizz · Aug 22, 2014 1:49 am

http://www.synergy.net.au/docs/energy_e ... t_home.pdf

BTW nothing beats a 15KW RC dykin Unit with a 5 KW solar unit