Thanks, Maggie, shopping every day at present.

got to love ya Chookie!

Why, did Abbott so order? He has banned wind, so don't eat baked beans.

Regional vernacular architecture.... unique to each place, using local materials, suited to the climate, built to last centuries. I think we could really use that here, you'd be lucky to have a house really last 5years before it needs major renovating and repairing and seriously from top to bottom, east to west, everywhere looks to the same, same houses, same designs regardless of climate.

maggiekn

Just bought a "made in Germany" as promoted by HN oven, knowing anything the Germans make is good quality. When the electrician unpacked it, I saw on the back a label saying made in Turkey. Can anyone tell me when the borders changed?

I used to recommend King furniture, now I'm wondering if they're made in China.

Ah heck Jeanie that would have been when they stopped teaching geography and gave it some fancy new name.........................Oh bother do I sound like my grandparents harking back to the "good old days"? I hope not but I think a little honesty from manufacturers and retailers would go a long way..my parents would not buy German or Japanese .............so I learned to go over things looking for labels and still ask in store, I will buy G&J but am often amazed at just were stuff comes from..it should cost too much to travel that far! what I really want is to buy LOCAL...but made to a high standard and style but heres the issue at an affordable price over to you Australian companies..................

Yes, well, don't hold your breath.

all things come to she that waits.................................things I waited for in my nice Australian home,and have got this time round..... stairs to keep my bum pert, good insulation its cold in tassie, double glassing, solar hot water and power, design for the weather so summer sun doesn't overheat me but winter isn't too bad, things I still want .......the wood stove to heat the hot water tank Europe has been using back-boilers (wetback in Aussie) for years it strikes me as common sense to heat this way but all I managed to get out of the chaps I spoke to was a suggestion about underfloor heating.........I am ashamed to say I gave up, silly me, it is so stupid to have a fire going for 6months of the year hand not get free hot water off it, maybe one day...........other than that I think we tend to grab the best ideas from round the world and put our own stamp on them so well done to us long may we be just that little bit different

I think waiting for Aussie manufacturing to radically increase you might be in your grave.

Perchance to dream.....Yes I know, but I do live in hope and they have got a good ten years to get their act together!

it appears you put way too much stock in what americans have. i find that houzz participants often appear to have way more wealth than the majority of people probably in any country. Last quote I saw, if you add renters and mobile home owners together that was over 30% of Americans. Believe me the majority of us, are buying used and hacking, they come here for the free advice. All the really good ecofriendly stuff costs too much for us to buy. in my town we have to pay an extra fee so the town does not have to partipate in any solar energy promotions.

when i come here I marvel at the incredible things other people in other countries seem to have. but i am beginning to see the light. I think most of us, are close to being in the same boat. No matter what we may have had. And some I wonder if they ever had what they say.

Hmm, food for thought.

Here is food for thought on glazing in Australian. Is double glazing and thermal separation/breaks in the frame relevant . A large project in Melbourne with 3000 m2 of glazing could have saved themselves 65 gigawatts in one year if they installed both double glazing and thermal separation in the frames. That is a hundred average size home with 10 windows. So if you are using a lot of AC using window with low U values could save you a bucket on your power bills #UIWGroup

Great example of falling short, if you can afford to install in the first place....Get a "proper" expert and read a lot!

The payback is two year for the investment. As part of the cost of a whole development they are a small change as compared to reducing energy cost/consumption by 70% of a whole development of 80 apartments or 400 hundred home. That is because we implement a who range of design features not just in the homes but also all the infrastructural that forms part of the developments.

We are using geothermal for low grade heat for heating and cooling with COP 4:1 depending on site location and geographic location and can be higher. A site can have up to 3 mW of PV and with a whole range of other technology coming on board over the next couple of years there is also the possibility of micro grids in the next five years AGL has seen there is a big opportunities in that area and we are discussing with the possibilities of working together in a project

Urban, i must say I understand very little of what you just said and your pic looks like it might be part of a gun, but if it has to do with green, there is so much we don't get told and Maggie, you can read all you want but sometimes you really have to reach outside that box. I had and even have wooden windows in my new house, for 15 years, I have been told i should get new windows, this that and the other. Well I finally said to myself just how bad are wood windows. turns out they have the best ratings, if you make sure they are, help me chook! if they have the insulation (?) around them, which you can do yourself and if you put the storm windows outside of those, well, you pretty much have it made in the shade. Anyone been told that lately? or just buy new windows? the reason noone buys new wood windows is because they cannot afford them.

Another one is the old wood lathe with plaster over. i even had horse hair plaster. It all has to be torn out and replaced with wall board. If i was upstairs, i heard nothing downstairs. Only problem is you have to make sure that loose bits are insulated. but that is true anywhere. Was looking at houses, 7 year old house over 2000 sq ft. agent say no honey you don't want that, why, because they had 3 big boys, and the stair case has totally separated from the wall. don't know how they are going to fix. yet my 100+ house, the floors barely slanted. not true for all, but obviously not true for all new either. We just don't hear the important stuff.

If reaching outside the boxes whats required then I think you might find I do, as far as local council will allow.............and I count myself lucky to be good at reading. ..I am replacing Aluminium windows which are unbelievably poor! and the remainder of this project are totally new space so I have chosen to invest in german advances.....I have lived with Mahogany window frames, very nice to look at, long lasting but retro fitting double glazing was a total pain, and didn't sort out the issue of snow drifts on the the bedroom floor in winter (back to the drawing board, issue solved eventually) I have also had horsehair plaster and avoided ripping it out I learned to repair it, Given the chance of building either my Georgian Farmhouse or my Elizabethan cottage again I would...BUT I can't afford it very few people could. So I think I will continue to read and try to choose the best of modern affordable to enjoy comfy living.

Really interesting conversation . I looked up the wet back heaters, Maggie.

Having, you called for my help but I'm not sure how. I do have a Peace Bus now (virtually).

I'm a bit confused as well! what do you think about the prospects of wetbacks?

no maggie, i did not say you did not. What i meant was, the experts don't tell you that you have the best windows and just fix them up, they say 100% dump the windows, no one ever talks about wood. so taken at face value, I was trying to figure out over the years how to replace. finally looked up wood, turns out they are the best. it is much like my doctors, Sometimes you have to think past what they all say. Which is difficult when all the authorities are telling you the same thing. do you understand what I am saying. you have to figure out first that you are not getting the whole story from people you should be able to trust.

i only called for your help chook because i was forgetting my words

What is a wet back heater?

Having, I looked it up on google. Maggie, it sounds good but you need recommendations from people who have it.

Havingfun, you expressed yourself rather poorly.but hey I do that all the time ;)

A real expert will give good advise but you should do some research yourself or you will "be sold a pup". I agree if you have or can afford hardwood you will have the best, and if you can modify to double glazing or reglaze with smart glass even better.(bit at a time for budgets) Sadly new hardwood replacements are beyond my budget(i had to put one in my rental so I know!) So I did some looking around and am trying upvc.watch this space. I know that there are a lot of bad people out there who will tell you a load of rubbish to get a sale so Yes I know what you're saying. I never trust anyone hence the reading.

Now to the joys of "wetbacks"

I am in Tassie where wood heaters are the out of town fall back for heating. When I lived in Wales (Georgian farm house solid stone mahogany Windows and lathe and plaster) We had a wood heater that had a boiler built in the back and that heated water which was then sent to the hot water tank, backed up with electric, but in winter when the fire was running no electric costs for hot water! My Dad being a ships engineer also linked in the aga cooker...............but thats another story, the point is and here you will enjoy the story Havingfun, I have failed to find an expert! I had to buy a new wood stove and thought that it would be easy to find a little chap who would know what to buy to link a "wetback" boiler into my solar hot water system thus avoiding the "daily charge" from the electric company. Summer sees the electric switched off from the hot water no need but in winter I need a heat top up so I am stuck paying a daily fee for the hot water metre , it's making me very cross as I know what I want is possible I just cannot work out how! Hey Chookie I am my own recommendation on this as I had it over forty years ago! Lets all harass men until they give us what we want.......HeeHee

I agree on that, grass roots and the other similar mag had all that kind of stuff in them Maggie. Havnt bought one for awhile, but I know they sold back issues, and if you rang their office they could source the correct issue.

Our library has them (sm country town.)

too late for me for now, bought a cooker style, but the old one needs replacing so maybe in a year or so..............................

Think you mentioned this on one of my solar threads?

I did not know you had solar threads. Is not a wetback a form of heatpump? Mom hates, in FL can not get water cool enough.

i know everything is like poplights, which i like during storms. Everyone had them 10 years ago, now it is like what? or What do you mean you don't want cool pics on them? You wait for price to come down or to actually need an item and then it is gone. such a bummer.

Wetbacks predate heat pumps by a million years. I am with your Mum who wants air blowing at you all day.........................................if it gets too hot I just put my wash clothes in the fridge.and you may need to explain what a pop light is ;) though I suspect I am far too old to be interested in owning one

no, between the heat and humidity, you want the air blowing all day, just it over heats the water. Hmm a pop light, came out about 20 years ago. Plastic, flat underneath, dome top. to turn on press on the top or face. you could hang them on walls, lay on the table etc. When big storms-hurricanes come, everybody goes and gets lantern and flashlight batteries, c/d etc, These run on dbl a so there is always lots of batteries available, they are fairly bright and used to just carry them around in baskets and leave some in every room. At a $1 a piece, they were easy, safe and convenient. i was not arguing age of a wetback, just confirming what it is?

I was just being naughty! A wetback is basically a boiler built into the back of your fire which can run radiators or put hot water into your hot water tank, so you probably don't need them but for us in colder climates they could pay a big part in cutting our electricity bills as we need to heat for several month of the year and living in rural Tasmania that heating is done by a wood burning stove. Pop lights sound like fun but I think I will stick with my battery operated candles the light so much kinder to the skin.................;)

Hi, citizen! Can you open the message function on your home page as Louise has some names for you.

Hi Chookie, have done but nothing there yet?

is awright! it gets cold here in winter too, and I have 2 fireplaces, and i could then redo my water heat? The house came with a dbl boiler, but it leaked all over the basement. so we put in a regular hot water heater. Have been using fireplace, heating blankets and space heaters for 4 years. I only use poplights in emergencies. so if you find a wetback instructions, would be super interested. As always every dime helps.

HI it's Lisa here from Provincial Plants and Landscapes. Please check out our profile

Residential - Merimbula · More Info

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A few interesting points have been made here. My comments:

Eaves: eaves today are a fashion accessory.

1. Older houses had timber fascias and gal gutters, both of which corroded eventually and the edge of the roof literally fell apart. Better to do that 300mm from your wall, than just on top of it. These days we have very good fascia gutter systems.

2. Modern styles often don't look good with eaves, especially on smaller houses.

3. Eaves offer no environmental or efficiency advantage unless you have 2.4 ceilings and butt the windows right up to the level of the eave (Yuck!) in which case, the eaves offer some shelter to the top part of the window.

4. Eaves add about $2000-4000 to the cost of building a home, because you're building a roof bigger than the house.

Building methods: Big timbers and stone are often more used in American feature houses. This is way more expensive than quick'n'easy things like Modwood, thin boards, or timber-look metal (compared to big authentic timber) and stone facing such as stacked and ledge stone (compared to hand laid stone walls). Are you prepared to pay $800,000 for a high quality home with expensive, labour-intensive building methods when you could get a similar size house for $400,000 with common materials? Most Australians aren't. Yes, it's a shame.

Then, of course, we have people who cry at the thought of cutting down a tree, so it's very difficult nowadays to source any real authentic timbers in structural or substantial sizes and quantities.
Efficiency: energy ratings today (six stars minimum) are very comprehensive. It's possible to fine tune your energy rating by selecting the windows that would benefit most from being double glazed, for example - standard energy rating software does the sums for you. Also, many big houses would be forced to have double glazing to meet a 6 star rating.

Double glazing is very common these days and the cost has come down. My house cost would have cost $8000 in single glazed windows; I paid $10,500 for double glazed (including 3 sliding patio doors, all double glazed). :-)

If anyone is to blame for Australian houses not being well built, it's Simonds and Metricon, that churn out increasingly crappy houses every day, and keep market expectation of housing costs at rock bottom.

Well, Ollie, you are not alone there. Here in the USA at least a third of our residents are living in trailers, which actually can be made nicer than some of the ranchers they stick people in. i remember a macmansion in a new section of one town. I asked my realtor why it was going for about $40,000. It was less 5 years old. My realtor said that was too much money, they had big teen boys, and they're going up and down stairs had caused the stairs to separate from the house, along with much other damage, which had nothing to do with misbehavior. Just general usage by large boys. The house sold new for $200,000. That is a crying shame, no?

Wow - that's terrible.

Please all vote AND comment on this new Yearbook poll

https://www.houzz.com.au/discussions/high-school-image-poll-for-yearbook-dsvw-vd~3435868

I feel a lot of what is built in Australia, and possibly in most countries, is motivated by the $$$ and the short term gains, unfortunately. Rather than thinking long term and building what is really suitable, although this seems to be changing slowly, more so for people who build with the intent to stay in the home for longer. The developers usually seem to have a problem with thinking "past their pockets"!

I grew up in a bland 1950s hot box so when I left home, I rented heritage apartments, houses etc. They might have been shabby but they were beautiful properties which are desired now. Australians have built high quality residences throughout the 20th century but it all went down the drain mid-century. In terms of liveability rather than just aesthetics, the best of these old places was 1930s apartment and my current Federation era home. We can learn from our own past, which adapted the best of European design. This is not a new idea!

I'm amazed that this discussion has carried forward for nearly two years! In that time I have moved to another coastal area (cooler climate and better proximity to children) and this time found most of the discussion still rings true. Finding another home here was an incredibly frustrating journey made all the worse by a mad investor rush in the area just when we arrived to start our home search.

That search took the best part of six months and in the end there would only be three or four houses to choose from in any week. Result? A rushed purchase, a desperately inadequate building inspection and failure on my part to notice poor bathroom tiling, shortage of closet and storage pace, just how small the lounge room really was, and etc. I disappointed myself because I had let the pressures beat me and now we are trying to resolve all of these issues in a home designed and built by one of this states most respected project home builders 25 years ago.

Having now studied the floor plan with more care I realise it was put together (designed) in modular fashion - most bedrooms have similar dimensions and the living areas are all approximately the same size as if the designer simply juggled three boxes of one size and four of another size and then worked out traffic flow. Then he must have thrown them all in the air to see how they would land and that was design number two! And etc and so on.

This house aside, we looked at a great many during the six months because we had to broaden our search above and below budget trying to find something. There were massive termite problems, leaky roofs, asbestos galore, gazzumping at every turn, almost all but the most expensive properties suffered at least one substantial fail for the most basic of needs and to top it off the best home in our price range just happened to be built on flood prone land - approved by council who put the flood signs up less than five years earlier.

We live and learn. Then there were the real estate agents, but that would take another two years and I doubt the internet has enough free page space available!!! OK, I hear you, they're not ALL bad...

Things I've had in other countries that I miss in oz:

insulation and thermal comfort (Europe)

lots of storage space (USA)

cosy high-tech bathrooms, including deep heated baths (Japan)

thermostatic taps in bathrooms (Europe and Japan)

handwashing facilities in separate toilets (Japan)

compact well designed rooms rather than throwing it all together in big spaces (Europe)

simple homely kitchens (France) rather than 'stunning' big empty kitchens

bidets (Middle East, Asia and Southern Europe)

beautiful use of timber (New Zealand)

Cattie, I love kitchens that look lived in, smaller separate rooms I just don't get cavernous rooms and operating rooms..I mean sterile kitchens..it is not a home, idont feel I want to do brain surgery on my kitchen bench.

We do not have basements not because councils won't let us dig below a meter, but because building sub-floor spaces can cost up to three times as much as above the ground construction. Building a basement requires a lot of site work, and taking extra care about the waterproofing (our water table is too high) and ventilation, and that is not cheap. These costs will increase even further if you’re retrofitting an older home, rather than building a new structure. Read more