He tāngata, he tāngata, he tāngata

The people, the people, the people

Our homes significantly influence our health and wellbeing and this can be in a positive or negative way. People often spend 80% to 90% of the time in their home. Especially older people and the very young. Therefore it is important the home provides the best possible living environment, so it protects and nurtures the body and mind; a place where a family can live salubriously, and flourish and be successful. To achieve this, a home should be well designed and built to stand strong, be resilient, durable, efficient in size and cost, while being kind to both its family and environment.

There must be due consideration of the land we live in too; he whenua!

In our opinion a Healthy Home is characterised by HEROES

● HEALTHY – Promoting optimal health and wellbeing through its design, resilience, and efficiency.

● EFFICIENT – Size and space, affordable and energy positive for the life of the building.

● RESILIENT – Resilient enough to withstand earthquakes and climatic conditions. Durable to stand the test of time.

● ON PURPOSE – Designed specifically with Heroes in mind and fit for purpose.

● ENVIRONMENTAL – Socially, economically, and environmentally sustainable to build and run. Considerate of Climate Change.

● SUSTAINABLE – Meeting our own needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.

Even if you don’t follow this entire guide, please at least consider these four simple steps to improving the health and welfare of your family when designing your new home.

1. Prioritise design and make sure you engage with the right experts. Have a design workshop with your full project team as soon as you are able to ensure that everyone involved fully understands why you want to build a healthy home.

2. Upgrade your windows to low E glass with thermally broken or non conductive frames and installed within the thermal envelope in line with the insulation. This will reduce heat loss by up to 50% compared with standard double glazing and minimise the risk of condensation.

3. Make your home as airtight as you can to reduce the initial cost of installing heating and ongoing running costs.

4. Install an appropriate ventilation system to reduce humidity and increase comfort health and durability.

Build Tight and Ventilate Right