Place a House Facing to Be Best Energy Efficient

Here comes the dominicus

In general, ideal orientation ways:

• y'all get the right amount of sun – plenty in winter and in cooler climates
• yous're sheltered from stiff/cold winds simply can take reward of breezes to absurd your dwelling house when it is also warm.

When yous're designing a dwelling or planning renovations, there'll also exist other considerations such as local climate, view, terrain, vegetation, street access and noise. You'll need to balance these against the benefits you can achieve through harnessing the sun's free energy for heating and breezes for cooling.

When should you think nearly orientation?

It'southward important to consider orientation before you lot buy a property (including an apartment or townhouse), or start designing a new abode or renovation.

It's also worth considering orientation for your existing habitation, peculiarly if at that place are small or no windows facing due north, or large areas of glazing facing east, west or s. There may exist unproblematic ways to make the most of the orientation – for example, increasing the size of north-facing windows or swapping the use of existing rooms so that the sunniest rooms become your living areas.

Positioning for sun

The exact amounts and proportions of glazing you choose will vary depending on other considerations such as:

• climate
• the level of insulation in your dwelling house
• the thermal performance of windows and window frames, particularly in existing houses.

Information technology is too worth considering the blazon of glazing alongside the placement and number of windows. For example, if you want south-facing windows to capture the view, consider fewer or smaller picture show windows, that frame the view.

If you are building new, consider upgrading to windows better than double glazing. If you are renovating consider at least double glazing for whatsoever window you supercede. And recollect that frames are just as important as panes. If y'all are selecting your window frames, consider paying a little extra for thermally broken or high performance frames – these will significantly reduce (or possibly even eliminate) window condensation and so you won't accept to wipe downwardly your windows or repaint your window sills equally often.

Architectural trends in residential design since the 1950s have led to larger windows, and more of them. Bigger windows let more rut in during summer, and permit more heat out in winter. You will desire to carefully consider the size and placement of windows – bigger isn't always better.

To make the virtually of the dominicus for warmth and natural light, your home's main living areas (or any rooms you use a lot) should face north. The main glazing in the house, such as windows and glass doors, should too face north. Anywhere betwixt 20°Due west – 30°E of true north is fine.

Position windows to make the most of the sun.

The sun is at its hottest at noon when information technology is at its height. Considering of this, ensure eaves over northern windows are wide enough to keep the lord's day out in summer, but non so wide that they block it from coming in during the winter.

Overheating and glare is condign an increasing problem in New Zealand homes, with the trend towards larger, flooring to ceiling windows.

You lot'll want less glazing facing westward because of the potential for glare and overheating from late afternoon sun – particularly in hot, even so summertime climates, and if you aren't domicile during the day.

E-facing glazing captures morn sun and tin be sized co-ordinate to your preference in summertime for calorie-free, oestrus control and ventilation. Glazing placement needs to be considered advisedly to avert issues with glare on working surfaces – particularly where in that location is an eastward-facing kitchen or report that is used in the morning.

South-facing windows receive minimal sun and should exist relatively small to minimise heat loss but allow for diffused or reflected lite and ventilation.

Ask your designer to run a thermal simulation of your house design and optimise the amount and positioning of glazing. This will help to forestall overheating in summer and reduce heat loss in winter.

Fifty-fifty if your dwelling doesn't face due north, windows tin can be positioned to get northward lord's day.

The sun travels higher in the heaven in summer.

Shading

For existing homes and hot climates, shading is an effective way of keeping homes cool in summer. In the north, this is typically washed through the utilize of eaves, wide enough to keep the summertime sun out of the building to avert overheating.

Overheating is typically at its worst on summer afternoons. Due to the sun'southward lower angle in the westward, eaves are rarely effective at keeping the lord's day out. Here information technology's better to install external shading, such equally retractable awnings, louvre canopies, deciduous trees or vegetated pergolas to help minimise overheating in summer, but let sun in during the winter.

If there is no room for external shading, you could consider putting in windows with a tint or a special coating – but call back these will reduce the heat proceeds in wintertime, just when yous want information technology.

Shadowing from landforms, trees and buildings

When the sunday angle is at its everyman in wintertime, objects to the north can bandage shadows two to 3 times their height. To make the most of the sun, your dwelling house should ideally be positioned as far as possible from neighbouring buildings, terrain or vegetation that might cake north sun.

If you are looking for a department, look for a site that:

• slopes downwardly to the north – this will get more than lord's day than a south-facing slope
• runs n-southward – this allows a house to potentially maximise a northern courtyard or garden, and be further from neighbouring houses, trees or higher footing on that side.

A north-facing department that is very narrow will requite you limited ability to identify living areas and bedrooms along a wide due north wall. Try making the most of morning time or afternoon sun in a number of rooms.

On tight sites, building along the southern purlieus is a good idea if your local quango permits it. Check the Local Councils website for quango contact details

Continue in mind that objects to the n can cast a shadow of two to iii times their elevation in the middle of wintertime – fifty-fifty at noon.

Even if your site isn't ideal for catching the sun (for example because information technology slopes down to the south), it may be possible to maximise the sun'south warmth using north-facing clerestory windows, skylights or position glazing higher in the walls to catch the sun.

Clerestory windows have the added reward over skylights that in summer, when the noon sun is high on the sky they limit the amount of light entering and thus reduce the chance of overheating. Because clerestory windows and skylights are typically out of achieve, they should exist specified with every bit high a thermal resistance as possible to reduce the likelihood of condensation around the frames and on the panes. Condensation runoff can cause significant damage to wall linings, and sitting water tin cause premature degradation of window sills and surrounds.

Passive heating and Passive cooling have more information well-nigh glazing options.

A clerestory window volition bring north dominicus into a south-facing home.

Cooling when yous need it

As well every bit shading, consider having windows located to easily allow cooling summer breezes to ventilate the house. A firm with a narrow footprint has generally shorter air flow paths across the rooms and can therefore benefit more than from natural cantankerous flow ventilation from opening window.

If a house has two or more than storeys yous could allow for fundamental 'stack' ventilation between the floors, which can be farther enhanced through an opening skylight or opening clerestory window.

Passive cooling explains this in more than detail.

Letting in breezes, keeping out wind

From southerly gales to due north-westerly blasts, wind is an issue in many parts of New Zealand. Ideally, you'll orient your domicile in a way that avoids the strongest and coldest winds – just nevertheless allows yous to harness balmy breezes to continue y'all cool in summertime.

You can utilize vegetation, landscape and edifice structures to filter and divert harsh winds. Other features will also assistance, such as well-designed windows.

When yous're thinking about orienting your home to catch summer breezes and avoid colder winds, consider whether:

• there is a prevailing wind direction (vegetation patterns tin can sometimes indicate this, or you can ask the neighbours; coastal breezes are usually from an onshore direction)
• the wind changes with the season (in terms of direction and strength)
• the wind strength or direction changes at dissimilar times of day (for case, in hilly areas absurd breezes often period down valleys in late evening and early morning)
• the site is exposed to wind, and how much (winds are stronger near littoral areas and ridgetops)
• the strength is afflicted past nearby buildings, hills and vegetation (buildings and valleys can funnel winds, which makes them stronger, and hills and vegetation can provide shelter).

Capturing the sun should usually be your start priority, only if current of air exposure is a major business organisation at your site you may choose to identify your firm away from ridges or valley floors that channel the wind. If the site is very windy you may choose a single-storey pattern rather than multiple storeys to reduce the surface expanse exposed to the wind. Including a sheltered courtyard may be a good pick to create a less exposed outdoor space. You tin also constitute hedges to shelter behind.

If on the other hand you want to capture summer breezes you can found hedges or create external feature walls to form a funnel directing the wind to where y'all desire.

Other considerations

Equally well equally dominicus and breezes, you'll as well need to consider:

• how yous will use the site (whatever garden, garage, shed, fencing, etc.)
• views and outlooks (on your holding and wider)
• neighbours
  • for your and their privacy and security
  • don't shade them with your house, fence or trees if you lot can avert it
  • consider neighbourhood dissonance (for example, nearby businesses)
• retain some windows that face up the street for security and community connectedness
• have space to park and plough a vehicle around and adept visibility when leaving the property.

Safety and security includes data about house orientation and street view.

Striking a residuum

Achieving the ideal orientation is about hitting a rest between sun, breeze and these other factors. If you compromise on orientation in order to take advantage of views, you may nonetheless be able to make your dwelling house energy-efficient by using features such as good insulation and well-placed, well-sized windows.

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Source: https://www.smarterhomes.org.nz/smart-guides/siting-and-location/house-orientation/

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