Sustainable Home Builders
What does it mean to be a Sustainable Home Builder?
Sustainable builder, green builder, eco homes, low carbon home, energy-efficient design. We see these words everywhere, and escaping them is almost impossible. Unfortunately, the building industry is saturated with these buzzwords to make it sound like we are all doing the right thing. It has hit a point where it has become so confusing that we no longer understand what these words mean.
Unfortunately, these words are thrown around too much to the point where there is obvious greenwashing. I will put my hand up and say this was us when we were in the infant stages of our business ten years ago. We did not understand these words but knew we wanted to improve. It has led to a point where a large amount of misinformation regarding sustainability is being given to the general population, creating so much confusion.
Actions should speak a thousand times more than a word or a logo from an association saying you did a green building two-hour course or saying, "hey we used recycled bricks"!So, what does sustainability mean to us?
Well, it's very very simple.
If it doesn't last, it doesn't matter.
Period.
There is nothing more unsustainable than having to build a home twice. That's twice the effort, twice the carbon emissions, and twice the environmental impact. To avoid this, we must start by building our homes to last not one or two generations but by three to five generations. Those homes that last should be able to be tested in 50 years and have the same results as they did the day they were completed.
So what does it mean to us, and what do we think a home must incorporate to be truly sustainable?
A sustainable home must -
Draw on building science to tell us how to construct our homes.
Be designed to account for the ongoing energy consumption and energy source.
Be a healthy place to live and not have any adverse effects on the occupants of the home.
Limit the negative impact on external systems and environments.
Be resilient and be able to perform at a high level for multiple generations.
Take into account the cycle of demolition now and in the future.
Now, these topics can be pretty broad but we believe these are the foundations which we must start. These are the minimum standards we must begin to follow. These are not interchangeable either; you can't have just one of these criteria and dismiss the other five. It needs to be treated like an all-or-nothing approach!
So what does the word sustainability not mean? These are common junk phrases we commonly see, which can easily confuse the average person into thinking someone follows sustainable practices.
Just because you put solar panels on your house doesn't mean your home is sustainable.
Saying "we recycle our waste" isn't enough. Let's face it, our recycling program in Australia is truly broken. It's almost impossible to recycle anything anymore!
We have a 6-star home (now 7-star) - sorry, but that's just a code-built home these days!
We used timber as it's sustainable - yes, that's great, but if you need to pull that one out, odds say that most likely you have not worried about other important aspects in the build to make it "sustainable."
We used passive solar design principles - look, I am just going to say that's an architect or designer doing their job correctly!
You can use the most suitable products, but if you have a steel frame or you're using gas as an energy source, your home ain't green!
Carland Constructions knows it's not perfect, and we have plenty of room to grow and improve. We are the first to admit that our onsite recycling processes need to improve, and it is. We can use many excuses like we don't have the space onsite, or it's too hard, but that's an easy out, and us making excuses.
We are proud to be a member of the Australian Passivhaus Association and were lucky enough to speak at the 2023 Australian Passivehaus Conference in Sydney
Carland Constructions wants to be proactive in ensuring houses are built to the highest environmental standard. In 2019, Carland Constructions Director Matthew Carland undertook studies with the internationally recognised Passive House Association. After a week of intense training and exams, he is a registered Passive House Tradesperson, specialising in building envelopes and building services.'
We are proud to be a Melbourne Passive House Builder and take a lot of pride in lifting the standards of the building industry and creating what we believe is a truly sustainable home.
It is important to continue to improve the way that we build. The building industry is responsible for 39% of all global carbon emissions. The way we currently operate our homes (ie heating and cooling, lighting etc.) contributes to 28% with the remaining 11% coming from embodied carbon emissions associated with materials and construction processes. The average renovation contributes 15t of CO2 per project (compared to 50t of CO2 per new build).
The good news is that we are taking steps to reduce our carbon footprint by offsetting your build.
Since we build more than just the average home, Carland Constructions will purchase carbon offsets that will work towards making your renovation or new build carbon positive. We have partnered with Fifteen Trees for a few years now, who are planting trees to restore our forests and protect our climate. This will provide our future generations with a chance to have a greener future. We know there is a lot of
We believe that your home should work for you and be designed in a way that not only looks great but reduces its environmental and social impacts. As a result, these homes provide healthier living conditions, reduce your overall running costs and are better for the earth!
Facts about our buildings
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Say No to Gas
We have not had any gas on our projects since 2019 - we make sure gas is deleted and look to electrify our projects
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High Performance
We have delivered on 5 High Performance projects that meet our strict criteria for sustainable buildings
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Certfied Passivehaus'
We have completed three projects that are passive house certified