Energy Ratings – 5Stars4U

Energy ratings measure the heating and cooling loads of a home.

From these figures a Star rating is awarded to the house.

The Star Rating gives an indication of what the Performance and Energy Efficiency is likely to be.

All new homes now need an Energy Rating as a part of the Building Approval Process. The minimum rating required for building approval purposes is 6 Stars. This was increased from a minimum of 5 Stars, in WA, on the 1st of May 2012. There are two ways that a house can achieve a 6 Star Rating. The first is by using Passive Solar Design Principles. Using passive solar design features in the house design can achieve a 6 Star house with out any extra cost over that required to build a 5 Star house. The Second way to achieve a 6 star house is to use Low Energy design. This is a house that uses materials in its construction that make it more energy efficient than it would otherwise have been. This is a more expensive approach to use so when we are doing a rating on a house here at 6 Star Solutions we will look at the effect of the cheaper options first before we consider the more expensive item such as double glazing. See 6 Star Ratings for more information on how to achieve a 6 Star Rating for your house design.

A New service is now available for builders that would like to know how their designs rate in up to 8 orientations in all of Perth’s 4 Climate zones.