Next month, the world’s first completely off-grid solar home will open to the public at Greens Beach. But it’s not the first time Tasmanian buildings have led the way when it comes to environmentalism. Here are five more examples of ingenious architecture and construction techniques, that help save the planet while also being comfortable and easy on the eye.
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Table Cape hemp house
This North-West Coast home was the first in the world to be made out of ‘hempcrete,’ a sustainable building material combining water, hemp aggregate, and a lime-based binder. The product buffers temperature and humidity, prevents damp and mould growth, has excellent insulating and acoustic properties, and is fire-proof, termite-proof and rodent-resistant. Hempcrete is now becoming popular with eco-minded renovators, but Wynyard local Roger Bodley was the first in the world to use it as the basis for his walls, floors, and ceilings, way ahead of the curve in 2010.
RELATED: Table Cape hemp house leads the way
The Trig
Leaving a responsible environmental footprint is becoming more and more important to tourists these days, and they need look no further than the Trig. This 20-hectare Mount Arthur property, close to Lilydale, is run entirely off its own hydroelectricity and solar energy. The building is made out of recycled materials, and the wood, eggs, and vegetables used come from the property itself. Visitors can choose from a variety of walks, meet the farm animals and wildlife, enjoy an outdoor bath, or book a massage through the on-site masseuse.
RELATED: A trip to The Trig on Mount Arthur
Wagonhaus tiny homes
Sisters Katie and Tamika Bell are pioneers of the tiny house movement in Tasmania. They build sustainable, livable homes that take up 2.4 metres by nine metres, or less. Katie studied at the University of Tasmania’s School of Architecture in Launceston, and the pair operate out of the North-West, while still building and sending houses to the mainland. The little buildings are transportable, off-grid, built using responsible materials, and are part of the wider movement of people choosing to live with less.
Justin O’Connor Builders
This construction company specialises in passive houses, which are houses that don’t require heaters or air conditioners thanks to their clever design features. Yes, even in the Tasmanian winter! Passive houses have six key elements: proper insulation, no air leakages letting hot air out of the house, no thermal bridges in the walls that heat can use to travel away from where it’s needed, windows with triple pane glass, orientation around the sun so that it is naturally heated in the winter and shaded in the summer, and a heat recovery ventilation system. Justin O’Connor Builders won the GreenSmart Sustainable Home award at the 2017 HIA-CSR Housing Awards for their passive houses.
Bishopbourne shipping container home
What’s more environmentally friendly than a house that doesn’t require any new materials? Bishopbourne’s Graeme and Fiona Turner found a way to take the ‘reuse’ part of ‘reduce, reuse, recycle’ to the extreme by building their home out of seven old shipping containers in 2012. The idea has taken off around the country since then, with companies now offering luxury homes made out of the reused boxes.
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