Potential to save millions

Press, 1 July 1985, Page 12

Potential to save millions

Efficient use of the sun’s energy could save New Zealand millions of dollars each year in heating costs, according to a solar energy expert, Mr David Breuer. The key is in new building designs or adapting existing buildings to use efficiently and conserve the sun’s energy — heat themselves in winter but stay cool in summer.

The tantalising savings in costs, reduction in conventional fuel consumption, and increased home comfort, has caught the imagination of the Ministry of Energy.

Mr Breuer is director of an Auckland company, Pacific Energy Design, which is working in tandem with the Ministry’s Conservation Directorate to develop a national “energy-efficient buildings” programme.

He is in Christchurch to promote energy-efficient building design, and his main target is builders.

An important facet of energy-efficient design is the use of passive solar energy.

Although such energy has been about as long as the sun, only recently has it been considered seriously as an alternative form of heating for houses.

Interest in the use of the sun’s energy was sparked in the United States in the mid-1970s by the oil crisis, said Mr Breuer.

The use of passive solar energy to heat buildings had become increasingly popular in Europe and Australia, too.

New Zealand had lagged slightly behind the overseas trend, largely because it had not been able to afford the initial research into solar energy use, said Mr Breuer.

The Ministry of Energy began taking an active interest in developing the use of such energy in New Zealand houses about two years ago.

The Government recognises that energy-efficient houses were inevitable, said Mr Breuer. He is convinced that energy-efficient building techniques will become mandatory soon, through building regulations. The design of passive solar homes is based on one of nature’s simplest laws — the radiation of heat, the conduction of heat through different materials, and the convection movement of heated air. To make the most of these elements the building designs promoted by the Ministry of Energy include increased insulation in walls and ceilings, careful design and use of windows, drapes, and double glazing, and the use of heavy construction materials within the building to store heat.

The basic principle is to store the sun’s energy by day for use during the night. The Ministry’s programme was still at the “nuts and bolts” stage, said Mr Breuer. The foundations had been laid, however, for what could bring a dramatic change in home energy use and eventually in en-

ergy savings of about $260 million a year. The “nuts and bolts” include construction of 20 demonstration houses with consequent monitoring (including some in Christ-

church), the completion of a design manual for architects, the development of a market forecasting system so the Government can develop its strategies to promote the programme, and a study of the technical and economic performance of energy-efficient and passive solar residences.

The programme is expected to take off with the commitment of the Ministry early next year. Initial emphasis will be on the design of new houses, followed by the adaptation of existing houses so that they too make more efficient use of solar energy.

Already response from the building industry had been good, said Mr Breuer. About 90 builders, including some big firms, had incorporated or shown interest in

incorporating energy-effi-cient techniques in their building designs. Results so far indicated savings for all owners of energy-efficient houses, the greatest savings being made the further south the property lay. The size of the savings was proportionate to the climate of the region, said Mr Breuer.

Christchurch was an ideal city for energy-efficient buildings. As well as having lots of sun it was very cold, providing the potential for great savings. Building designs varied from the conventional to the highly innovative. Increased costs could vary from as little as a few dollars to a few thousand depending on choices made during the design stage.