Have you ever been curious about retrofitting your home or getting an energy assessment? This home is a perfect example of a home before retrofits and the array of interventions highlighted by an energy assessment. At this home you will be able to learn about the possibilities in retrofitting and how an energy assessment can assist you on your journey. 

We fell in love with the location and were lucky enough to buy the only house we could afford on the street. We love the outlook and the home’s quirks and the completely unique vibe. We plan to do a renovation in future to make this home as sustainable as possible and we even plan to go off-grid. These plans were put on hold due to the purchase of a bush block in Gariwerd.

We are a family of four, passionate about sustainable living and looking to reduce our carbon footprint. Our home is quirky, and we have always intended to do a retrofitting and renovation to improve its sustainability and comfort. Currently, the quality of our home is a mix of charming and challenging. The windows are drafty, making it cold when it's windy, which affects our comfort levels. We use gas for cooking and showers, which we are considering replacing with more sustainable options.

We wanted to get an energy assessment done to identify the easiest wins to make our property more energy-efficient and sustainable, recognizing that a renovation will be further into the future. Our goal was to understand our home's current energy performance and discover opportunities for improvement in the short term. The assessment provided a detailed analysis of where our home is losing energy and where we can make significant improvements. We learned about the specific areas that need attention, such as window insulation, more efficient heating solutions, and low-energy lighting.

The report suggested sealing drafty windows, replacing the lights, zoning the home to reduce heating costs, and switching from gas to electric heat pumps for heating and hot water when the current unit needs replacing. Moving forward, we plan to implement the suggested retrofits in stages, starting with the lights and windows and upgrading our hot water service. Our long-term goal is to make the house as energy-efficient as possible, reducing our energy bills and environmental impact ahead of a renovation.