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GreenSmart Professionals are designers, builders and tradespeople who are:
- skilled in environmental building skills
- nationally accredited
- committed to the GreenSmart code of practice
They focus on 3 key elements that make a difference – energy efficiency, waste management and prevention of pollution from the building site during construction.
Dean and Jan, principals of Cavalier Homes Adelaide, are both trained GreenSmart Professionals. Underpinning this is Dean's B.Sc (with majors in physics and maths) and his considerable physics teaching experience. All of this provides Cavalier Homes Adelaide with the skills and experience necessary to build a really sustainable home.
The secret is careful planning and design. It may well look like any other good quality home, but once you live in it you will feel the difference. A GreenSmart home is designed to make the most of the climate, keep you comfortably warm in winter and cool in summer. It will be a home that provides a very pleasant living environment and one that is also environmentally friendly. As such sustainable living is more than a possibility.
The basic principles of energy efficient design are to achieve the right balance between:
- maximizing heat gain in winter,
- minimizing heat loss in winter
- minimizing heat gain in summer
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for the climatic region where the home is to be built.
This is achieved by:
- using mass for thermal storage
- insulating to minimise heat loss in winter, and heat gain in summer
- locating windows and/or sliding doors in a north facing direction so as to get the greatest benefit from the sun in winter,
- shading all north facing glass in summer,
- minimizing east and west facing glass, and for these small areas having them fully shaded externally in summer
- reducing south facing windows to cut back on excessive heat loss in winter
- locating opening windows or sliding doors to allow cross ventilation to provide cooling effects in summer.
Efficient use of water is also a major consideration. Attention should be given to the choice of washing machine, dishwasher, toilet suites and showerheads. For outdoor areas consideration should be given to creating sustainable landscapes and proper methods for garden irrigation should be taken into account. It may be worthwhile inquiring as to whether grey water storage or use, and/or reed beds are allowable in your area.
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“A sustainable landscape is a healthy and resilient landscape that will endure over the long term without the need for high input of scarce resources such as water. The natural functions and processes of the landscape are able to maintain themselves into the future. Our South Australian urban landscapes are sustainable when they are in harmony with local environmental conditions.”
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The home will be affordable, comfortable, energy efficient, water efficient, and a quality product. Any house incorporating these principles will lead the way in GreenSmart design and construction. Every step forward is a gain for you as an individual as well as being a benefit to the community as a whole.
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