A research project conducted by the Queensland University of Technology (QUT) is examining the potential for an Australian developed building system—Bondor’s InsulLiving homes, to deliver housing that is among the world’s best when it comes to energy saving capabilities.
Germany currently leads the world for industry standards on air tightness in residential homes, which translates to a number of energy saving and structural benefits.
As part of the second stage of QUT’s research project reviewing energy efficiency performance of Bondor’s InsulLiving homes across Australia, DTC Family Builders’ home in Broadford, Victoria, has met the same high standards as Germany.
The study is part of a project where Bondor, Australia’s leader in thermal and architectural building solutions, is working with QUT to install research equipment into five InsulLiving homes. The properties are located in Broadford, Victoria; Toowoomba, Queensland; MountGambier, South Australia; Bibra Lake, Western Australia and Broadmeadow, New South Wales.
Stage one of the project began in July 2014 with the aim to develop an Innovations Adoption Toolkit to assist the industry to deliver energy efficiency homes, while selling homeowners the benefits of sustainable housing. The second stage began in July 2015 with QUT’s research team visiting each of the InsulLiving homes, conducting tests on air tightness and undertaking thermal imaging to monitor whether heat was transferred into or out of the houses through Bondor’s materials.
In September, this study on air tightness began in Broadford, with initial results released in mid-October, placing the home among the world’s best.
QUT’s Dr Wendy Miller said a well-sealed home held many benefits including increased levels of comfort, improved energy efficiency, reduced heating and cooling costs, enhanced life and reduced maintenance on building materials.
“The home built by DTC Family Builders is in line with German standards as a naturally ventilated home, which represent the highest international standards at this time,” she said.
Additional ‘house performance’ areas will be tested, with the QUT team installing Home Energy Management systems (HEMs) in each house. The systems measure each of the electrical circuits of the homes, as well as internal temperature and humidity with data collected across two years.
Dr Miller said the HEMs equipment would provide insight into the proportion of electricity used for water heating, air conditioning, cooking and lighting.
“Data will be sent to a cloud server, where both the occupants and the researchers can view how the house is per Sensors placed in each home’s living room or main bedroom will record temperatures to analyse the comfort level with and without heating and cooling devices," she said.
Dr Miller said the overall outcome of the study would verify the performance of the houses, comparing the designed expected performance with the actual performance as constructed and occupied.
“The results will encourage the housing industry to implement innovative practices that have environmental and economic advantages,” Dr Miller said.
“In turn, we hope to remove some of the reticence of the housing industry in its take up of new and innovative materials or practices.”
QUT and Bondor’s partnership began in 2009 when Bondor started building an InsulLiving prototype home in Burpengary, north Brisbane. Completed in 2011, the home earned an as-designed energy rating of eight stars and, following a year-long independent study by QUT into energy consumption, achieved an incredible ‘real life’ energy rating of 9.5 stars.
A family of four who road-tested the Burpengary house spent an average of just 44 cents a day on heating and cooling.
The five InsulLiving homes participating in this current study incorporate some of the same principles as the first, including an InsulWall structural insulated wall system with SolarSpan's all-in-one insulated roof and ceiling system.
Bondor’s technology provides superior insulation performance in sync with the modern homeowner’s need for efficient use of energy, resulting in reduced bills. Paul Adams, Bondor’s national product manager – InsulLiving and SolarSpan, said the company’s long-term partnership with Dr Miller and QUT was an excellent way to continually review the benefits of the InsulLiving® building system and construction methods promoting sustainable living.
“Anything which works towards a more streamlined and widespread approach to sustainable living is something we are very enthusiastic about,” he said.
“We look forward to receiving positive results from this study to further inform the community and the industry of InsulLiving’s benefits, backed by independent QUT analysis.”
The research project ends in 2017, with progress and outputs viewable online as they become available on www.housinginnovationstudy.org.au.