At the Rural Building Company we understand and embrace the need for environmentally responsible housing.

The use of energy in the house is the largest source of greenhouse gas emissions from Australian households. The average household's energy use is responsible for about eight tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO2), the main greenhouse gas, per year. Many of these emissions can be abated through more efficient use of energy in our homes.

That's why we have adopted the HIA GreenSmart program and its philosophy of affordable, 'green', and clever housing for the 21st century.

You'll find all Rural Building Company homes now incorporate a range of 'green' design and product initiatives, from energy efficient roofing design to AAA-rated water saving plumbing. We are constantly on the lookout for other ways in which we can add other environmental initiatives, such as 'grey water' usage, water storage and energy sustainability options.

The GreenSmart Package

This is Rural Building Company's essential requirements to ensure that we have some influence in improving our children’s and their children’s future. We feel so strongly about this should you not take our advice or choose not to utlise our package we will ask you to sign a letter absolving us from influencing the negative decision, otherwise we will not be interested in building a home for you.


Passive Design and Orientation

Passive solar design is about keeping summer sun out and letting winter sun in. With that in mind our designers will take into consideration everything from the orientation of daytime living areas and the amount of glass usage on northern facades, to shading and thermal mass for storing heat. Ventilation is also another major consideration and the placement of windows and doors can greatly enhance the summer ambience of your home. This needs to be explored once we have your home located on your block of land, as it needs to consider the orientation related to the direction of summer breezes and physical and topographical obstructions.


Roof and Wall Insulation

Insulation acts as a barrier to heat flow and is essential to keep your home warm in winter and cooler in summer. We insulate the ceiling of your Rural Building Company home with low allergen insulation bats for year round comfort, cutting cooling and heating bills by up to half. This, in turn, will reduce greenhouse omissions. Dependent of the home design it may also contain reflective insulation to stop short wave radiation from entering your home through the walls.


E-vent

The temperature in your roof can reach up to 100C in summer. E-vent is a very efficient, natural ventilation system for homes with metal roofing. By extracting hot air from the roof’s base it reduces the amount of energy (and money) you use for cooling your home by increasing the effectiveness of the insulation. This in turn reduces the amount of harmful greenhouse gas omissions produced.


AAA Rated Water Saving Devices

Reducing water consumption in the home is imperative. An easy way to decrease water and energy bills is by installing AAA rated shower heads and plumbing fittings, this gives you a high quality shower while using up to 20L less of precious water from each shower. We also include water efficient appliances to help save water and money.


Gas Boosted Solar Heating

In a climate like ours it makes sense to make the most of free solar energy. A Gas Boosted Solar hot water system gives you the best of both worlds: free energy from the sun for 80% of your hot water needs with lowest cost booster solar hot water system tank on your roof. It also takes the advantages of the government’s incentives to reduce power consumption and the most energy efficient boosting resource.