Sanctuary Issue 41
Issue highlights
- Renovations & additions special 9 remarkable renos with low-bills for life
- Downsize by design
- Architectural holiday stays
- Summer shading ideas
- 8.4 Star smart home retrofit
- SIPs tips (structural insulated panels)
- Focus on furnishings: best green furniture options
- Cool basement benefits
- Design Workshop: modular mountain magic
- Go up in style
- Energy finance: when the Stars align
- Upcycled warehouse
- Good orientation on any site
- Purr-fect design – sustainability and cat confinement
- Tiny site, big plans
Issue contents
Renovation special
The makings of a sustainable reno
Our top eight design considerations.
Going up in the world
Careful retrofitting of the original house results in a net-zero energy, 7.9 Star home for a Melbourne family.
Renovation automation
Equipped with automation tools that blend passive and active heating and cooling systems, an Adelaide cottage is future-ready.
Tasmanian twist
Good design, and a European-style thermal fit-out, turns the prospects around for a freezing Hobart bungalow.
Upcycled warehouse
After a long and industrious life, a Richmond warehouse is lovingly converted into an efficient modern home.
Bucking the trend
Architect Kurt Crisp creates a light-filled, passive solar home from a tiny house on an almost impossibly shaped block.
Downsize by design
Downsizing can be an emotional experience, but the move can be made easier when the new home is refurbished to last a lifetime.
Seismic shift
With coloured glass and reef views, an Auckland renovation and addition takes seismic resilience to the next level.
Pigeon pair
Two similar yet different Melbourne extensions show how clever design thinking can make the most of any orientation.
Keep your cool with external shading
Anna Cumming looks at the options for keeping the sun off your windows and heat out of your home this summer.
Composite benefits: When are SIPs the right choice?
Many households factor construction time and expected energy bills into their project bottom line. Can structural insulated panels (SIPs) reduce both?
Financial ‘sweet spot’: When the Stars align
When do investments in green home improvements achieve a financial return? Three home efficiency experts find out.
Modular mountain magic
Architect Rowan Brown offers some advice and pros and cons for using shipping containers to build a remote modular mountain retreat.
Purr-fect design
Cats are a major threat to wildlife, but what design solutions are out there for keeping roaming moggies at home? Veterinarian Joanna Griffith investigates.
Sustainable architectural stays
Make your next getaway a stay in an eco home and pick up valuable ideas for your own green renovation or build. We ask Verity Campbell to check the holiday listings.
Sustainable House Day wrap up
Almost 30,000 visits to 206 houses across Australia made 2017’s event the most successful Sustainable House Day to date. We check in on some homeowners to see how their day went.