From the architect:

Matt Day Architect (formerly Day Bukh Architects) believe that a green home’s success can be determined as a measure of receptiveness and contribution to its local and wider environment. A successful green home harnesses orientation, breezes and rainwater to minimise energy usage within the house. A green home should also aim to contribute to its local environment and community through broader means of sustainable planning including housing density and material resources.

For the Sustainable House Annandale, the intention was to achieve the best possible passive solar house for the site, whilst facilitating a more sustainable lifestyle for the client. The design not only maximises its passive design strategies – including solar design, evaporative cooling, natural ventilation, and insulation – it also employs a number of active strategies, such as LED lighting, energy and water-saving devices, and rainwater collection. All building materials are renewable and have been sustainably sourced.

In addition to the construction of the dwelling, the design sought to increase the density of the site through the addition of a granny flat at the rear of the property. This increased density and ‘shared living’ encourages a sharing of the site, resources and amenities [and creates] awareness of the potential of shared resources. As with any system, to truly understand the benefits of one part, that part must be understood through the sum of its relationship with the other parts. Hence the green interior material and product choices of Sustainable House Annandale can be considered as one part of the holistic design strategy employed by Matt Day Architect.

The house is located in the inner-city suburb of Annandale in Sydney, fortunate enough to be on a large site, and in particular [fortunate to be on] one that is wide. The rear addition involved designing a new open living kitchen area with a connection to the dining area. This new living kitchen room is as wide as is possible to take advantage of the width of the site and let in as much natural light as possible and as much solar penetration in winter.

The large covered outdoor deck is 12 metres wide and nearly 4 metres deep, with inbuilt outdoor BBQ and a sink area. [This aspect of the design] is a response to the possibility in the Sydney climate to be able to be outside most of the year. In-built heaters in the ceiling of the deck increase the amount of time you can spend in this space, and the larger sloped ceiling and highlight glazing allow light to enter the living room despite such a large covered deck in front of it. The granny flat is arranged at the very rear of the property with possible separate access along the side. At this stage, the owners are using the granny flat as a work space. The privacy screens are staggered so that both dwellings can view and access the pool [without looking] into each other.

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