Page 24 - InnoRenew CoE International Conference 2021, Healthy and Sustainable Renovation with Renewable Materials
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healthy advances in Australian building regulations
Mark A. Dewsbury 1, Shruti Nath 1, Toba Olaoye 1, Hartwig Kunzel 2
1. School of Architecture and Design, University of Tasmania, Locked bag 1323, Launceston, Tasmania, Australia, 7250,
mark.dewsbury@utas.edu.au
2. Fraunhofer Institute of Building Physics, Fraunhoferstr. 10, 83626 Valley, Germany, hartwig.kuenzel@ibp.fraunhofer.de
Housing in Australia is mostly low rise, detached dwellings, with a timber-framed structure (Nolan and
Dewsbury, 2006). Due to Australia’s generally temperate climates, national building regulations requiring
the insulation of houses was not introduced until 2003. The primary focus of these new regulations was
to reduce greenhouse gas emissions that are associated with energy used to heat and/or cool houses
(ABCB, 2003). Since 2003, there have been three significant enhancements to the energy efficiency
requirements requiring greater levels of envelope insulation and air-tightness (Ambrose, et al, 2013;
Ambrose and Syme, 2015). The Australian regulations have included the establishment of the Nationwide
House Energy Rating Scheme, (NatHERS), which initially set the bar at 4 Stars in 2003, followed by 5
Stars and 6 Stars. It is planned that the national residential energy efficiency building regulations will
advance to 7 Stars in 2022. However, the singular focus on reducing greenhouse gas emissions, without
due consideration of hygrothermal design principles has created an influx of housing constructed in the
last fifteen years that has shown unwanted surface condensation, interstitial condensation and mould
growth (Dewsbury and Law, 2016; Law and Dewsbury, 2018; Nath et al., 2019). The team at the University
of Tasmania has explored steady-state, hybrid and transient hygrothermal simulation methods, settling
on the transient WUFI suite of hygrothermal simulation tools in 2018. One of the key challenges facing
the national building regulatory framework is the diversity of hot-humid climates to cool-temperate
climates that span between the northern and southern reaches of the continent. Attempting to have all
jurisdictions agree on the need for regulatory development poses significant challenges for forward-
thinking manufacturers, researchers and regulators. This paper will report on the Australian experience to
date, current areas of research focus at the University of Tasmania and plans for ongoing improvements
to bio-hygrothermal simulation and national regulatory improvement.
Keywords: condensation, mould, hygrothermal, bio-hygrothermal, energy efficiency, timber-framed
construction
References
Nolan, G. and M. Dewsbury, Improving the thermal performance of light weight timber construction: a review of
approaches and impediments relevant to six test buildings, in Australian and New Zealand Architectural Science
Association (ANZAScA), Annual Conference, V.S.T.W. Susan Shannon, Editor. 2006, The School of Architecture,
Landscape Architecture and Urban Design, The University of Adelaide: Adelaide. p. 17 - 25.
ABCB, The Building Code of Australia: 1996 Amendment 12. 2003, Australian Building Codes Board.
Ambrose, M., et al., The evaluation of the 5-star energy efficiency standard for residential buildings, CSIRO, Editor.
2013: Canberra.
Ambrose, M. and M. Syme, House energy efficiency inspections project: final report. 2015, CSIRO: Canberra.
Dewsbury, M., et al., Scoping study of condensation in residential buildings: final report. 2016, Australian Building
Codes Board.
Dewsbury, M. and T. Law. Recent increases in the occurrence of condensation and mould within new Tasmanian
housing. in 50th International Conference of the Architectural Science Association 2016. 2016. Adelaide.
Law, T. and M. Dewsbury, The Unintended Consequence of Building Sustainably in Australia, in Sustainable
Development Research in the Asia-Pacific Region: Education, Cities, Infrastructure and Buildings, W.F.a.J.R.a.U.
Iyer-Raniga, Editor. 2018, Springer International Publishing: Switzerland. p. 525-547.
Nath, S., M. Dewsbury, and J. Douwes, Has a singular focus of building regulations created unhealthy homes?
Architectural Science Review, 2019.
INNORENEW COE INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE 2021
24
Mark A. Dewsbury 1, Shruti Nath 1, Toba Olaoye 1, Hartwig Kunzel 2
1. School of Architecture and Design, University of Tasmania, Locked bag 1323, Launceston, Tasmania, Australia, 7250,
mark.dewsbury@utas.edu.au
2. Fraunhofer Institute of Building Physics, Fraunhoferstr. 10, 83626 Valley, Germany, hartwig.kuenzel@ibp.fraunhofer.de
Housing in Australia is mostly low rise, detached dwellings, with a timber-framed structure (Nolan and
Dewsbury, 2006). Due to Australia’s generally temperate climates, national building regulations requiring
the insulation of houses was not introduced until 2003. The primary focus of these new regulations was
to reduce greenhouse gas emissions that are associated with energy used to heat and/or cool houses
(ABCB, 2003). Since 2003, there have been three significant enhancements to the energy efficiency
requirements requiring greater levels of envelope insulation and air-tightness (Ambrose, et al, 2013;
Ambrose and Syme, 2015). The Australian regulations have included the establishment of the Nationwide
House Energy Rating Scheme, (NatHERS), which initially set the bar at 4 Stars in 2003, followed by 5
Stars and 6 Stars. It is planned that the national residential energy efficiency building regulations will
advance to 7 Stars in 2022. However, the singular focus on reducing greenhouse gas emissions, without
due consideration of hygrothermal design principles has created an influx of housing constructed in the
last fifteen years that has shown unwanted surface condensation, interstitial condensation and mould
growth (Dewsbury and Law, 2016; Law and Dewsbury, 2018; Nath et al., 2019). The team at the University
of Tasmania has explored steady-state, hybrid and transient hygrothermal simulation methods, settling
on the transient WUFI suite of hygrothermal simulation tools in 2018. One of the key challenges facing
the national building regulatory framework is the diversity of hot-humid climates to cool-temperate
climates that span between the northern and southern reaches of the continent. Attempting to have all
jurisdictions agree on the need for regulatory development poses significant challenges for forward-
thinking manufacturers, researchers and regulators. This paper will report on the Australian experience to
date, current areas of research focus at the University of Tasmania and plans for ongoing improvements
to bio-hygrothermal simulation and national regulatory improvement.
Keywords: condensation, mould, hygrothermal, bio-hygrothermal, energy efficiency, timber-framed
construction
References
Nolan, G. and M. Dewsbury, Improving the thermal performance of light weight timber construction: a review of
approaches and impediments relevant to six test buildings, in Australian and New Zealand Architectural Science
Association (ANZAScA), Annual Conference, V.S.T.W. Susan Shannon, Editor. 2006, The School of Architecture,
Landscape Architecture and Urban Design, The University of Adelaide: Adelaide. p. 17 - 25.
ABCB, The Building Code of Australia: 1996 Amendment 12. 2003, Australian Building Codes Board.
Ambrose, M., et al., The evaluation of the 5-star energy efficiency standard for residential buildings, CSIRO, Editor.
2013: Canberra.
Ambrose, M. and M. Syme, House energy efficiency inspections project: final report. 2015, CSIRO: Canberra.
Dewsbury, M., et al., Scoping study of condensation in residential buildings: final report. 2016, Australian Building
Codes Board.
Dewsbury, M. and T. Law. Recent increases in the occurrence of condensation and mould within new Tasmanian
housing. in 50th International Conference of the Architectural Science Association 2016. 2016. Adelaide.
Law, T. and M. Dewsbury, The Unintended Consequence of Building Sustainably in Australia, in Sustainable
Development Research in the Asia-Pacific Region: Education, Cities, Infrastructure and Buildings, W.F.a.J.R.a.U.
Iyer-Raniga, Editor. 2018, Springer International Publishing: Switzerland. p. 525-547.
Nath, S., M. Dewsbury, and J. Douwes, Has a singular focus of building regulations created unhealthy homes?
Architectural Science Review, 2019.
INNORENEW COE INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE 2021
24
