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Eco-Friendly Home
An example of a sustainable, healthy and environmentally friendly home.
Health & Safety
Environmentally Friendly
Water Efficiency

Walls that breathe

Non-toxic, environmentally-friendly Putz
Technik plaster being applied to the home's exterior |
Most people appreciate the side affects of sitting in a stuffy, airless room.
But many may not realise that 'bad air' also affects buildings. Most conventional homes are made
from products which seal off the interior of the house from the elements.
Unfortunately, a lack of good air circulation makes the inside environment less 'healthy' for its
occupants and causes building problems such as mould, rot and condensation. The team involved in the eco-friendly
home recognised the importance 'good air' plays in a healthy home and decided to build its walls like a 'skin' which
insulates, absorbs and expels toxins.
To achieve this, Hardibacker sheets by James Hardie Building Products were used for exterior cladding. Hardibacker is
made from cellulose fibre, Portland cement and finely ground sand and water. Hardibacker walls were finished with
Putz Technik plaster. This is a 'breathable', pigmented two-coat mineral plaster
system from Germany which uses local bulk ingredients. It has a fibreglass mesh rather than a metal mesh, as would be the
case with a traditional three-coat plaster system. |
Putz Technik plaster is non-toxic and environmentally-safe. Used with Masonry
Water Repellent, this plaster breathes and allows water vapour to move through it.
This stops trapped moisture impacting on other building materials which can deteriorate. At the same time, Putz
Technik plaster and water repellent stops outside water getting into the home. The soffits (the area under the eaves
of the house) were finished with another James Hardie product, Silkline, which offers
slow maintenance in an area that is often difficult to access. A stone veneer made from local
volcanic stone was used on the street elevation of the home. Local stone was selected to reduce transportation costs
and to apply the principles of 'vernacular' building which calls for the use of local
materials and local skills.
Noise Control
The study in the eco-friendly home (situated between the garage and the living room) has become a peaceful and
quiet 'haven' thanks to Winstone Wallboard Limited's Gib Noise Control 'Better' Solution.
This simple and cost-effective solution, one of the levels of Gib Noise Control for
interiors, incorporated best practice design and construction elements and included the installation of: a dual layer of
9.5mm standard Gib plasterboard on each side of the walls with bulk insulation in the
cavity; 12.5mm Standard Gib plasterboard on Gib clips and steel battens in the ceiling; and Gib Soundseal Acoustic
sealant to insulate the study against internal noise transmission.
Health Home Solutions
In keeping with the eco-friendly home's 'healthier house' philosophy, Winstone
Wallboard Limited's Gib Healthy Home 'Better' Solution (one of three performance
levels of Gib Healthy Home Solutions) was utilised throughout the home to control
moisture levels and ventilation, creating a warmer, drier and healthier interior
environment for its inhabitants. Excess moisture entering the home and internal condensation is reduced
by the installation of materials and components that affect insulation, heating,
ventilation and wall and ceiling linings in all areas of the house. These included: Gib DampGard
concrete underlay, Gib Antiblaze GreenWrap and GreenCap (solvent-free, fire retardant building wrap and roofing
underlay), kiln-dried framing timber, vented windows, Gib Aqualine plasterboard for
wall and ceiling linings and floor wastes in wet areas (kitchen/bathrooms etc) and high
performance Gib Ultraline plasterboard for ceiling linings outside wet areas.
Up On The Roof
The roof was constructed from Rosscrete tiles which were supplied by Ross Roofing Limited in
Papakura. Rosscrete tiles are made of sand and cement and meet New Zealand Building
Code standards for use as a suitable roof surface for collecting rainwater. The concrete tiles have very good
thermal resistance. They retain heat and stop condensation forming in the roof. The tiles also fit in with the existing
streetscape and character of the area. To avoid unnecessary wastage, offcuts and broken tiles from the roof were used
to help form the base of the driveway.
Woolblend Insulation
Sheep wool, recycled carpet wool
and regenerated polyester were used to make 'Thermowool' insulation in the eco-friendly home.
Insulation Products Limited's director, Paul Vujcich of Auckland, says wool, regenerated polyester and a
'Iow-melt' polyester fibre were blended together to create a fluffy blanket which forms the
basis of Thermowool. "The material is then baked and the low-melt polyester melts creating millions
of 'spot welds' throughout the insulation which hold it together," he says. "The
process provides an extremely durable product with a 50 year life. We don't have
to use any glue to bind the material, which is great, because glues are usually water soluble and break down over time.
This product is inert and the wool component allows it to breathe." Thermowool is not only a healthy
material but the recycled materials used in its creation have reduced waste. The
polyester used is normally a discarded 'offcut' and the carpet used is recycled.
Thermowool was used in the eco-friendly home's walls and new fleece was used to insulate the ceiling. An 'R' rating
of 2 was achieved in the walls and 3.3 in the ceilings.

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