All 10 Star Homes are technically competent and incorporate a holistic design approach, combined with appealing and delightful X factor. We are passionate about the look and functionality of the home.

10 Star Homes feature true passive solar design with correct glazing proportion, shading and use of the thermal mass in the concrete foundations to store energy from the solar heated hydronic under floor heating system.
“Passive solar design refers to the use of the sun’s energy for solar gain and thermal mass to contribute to the heating and cooling of living spaces. In this approach, the building itself or some element of it takes advantage of natural energy characteristics in materials and air created by exposure to the sun.” Source: passivesolar.sustainablesources.com on 25.2.16

10 Star Homes are low damage design and are often approximately 2 x code minimum structural bracing requirements. The addition of optional mechanical dampers or shock absorbers in the wall construction work together to achieve very high standard of EQ resistance.

The level of solar gain into the house is, in part, seasonally controlled by the extent of the eaves of north and west elevations. All 10 Star Homes are designed with this philosophy in mind.

Standard on all our homes are full height doors. This design feature is not only visually appealing and creates a sense of space but also improves air flow and heat distribution.

Our showroom is fully fenced and landscaped with an edible food forest. We believe that if you can’t eat it, why grow it! We can incorporate this into your design.

All 10 Star Homes are fitted with solar panels as standard.
Our show home located at 9 Church Square has a 4.1kW Hyundai & Renesola solar PV system (25 year power warranty) consisting of 18 PV modules plus 1 inverter. The system complies with AS/NZS 5033: 2014 Installation and safety requirements for photovoltaic (PV) arrays and the inverter complies with AS 4777.1:2005 Grid connections of energy systems via inverters Part 1: Installation requirements.

All 10 Star Homes have the option of having an energy storage system in the form of a battery. Battery technology is changing daily, and prices for self-storage are coming down quickly.

A 10 Star Home will include a smart system that monitors energy production and usage, so you can know when is the best time to run appliances in order to best take advantage of the electricity the house is producing for free from the sun.

LED lights use significantly less power than conventional incandescent bulbs.
10 Star Homes only specify LED lights. Having all such lights surface mounted also ensures that the building fabric is kept air tight thus making the living spaces thermally efficient. This makes for an energy efficient electrical design.
See by how much by visiting: https://www.energywise.govt.nz/tools/lighting?gclid=CMTZvNOulMsCFQF-vQodCKUAew

The heat from the hot water used in the shower after it passes through the floor drain is recovered by a heat transfer device and used to preheat water supplied to the shower mixer.

All 10 Star Homes have the option of incorporating a solar wall. This is constructed black aluminium cladding that delivers warmed air via a cavity into the energy recovery ventilation (ERV) system.

Top quality passive house standard balanced air system link to solar wall. ERV is the energy recovery process of exchanging the energy contained in the solar wall air space and using it to treat (precondition) incoming outdoor ventilation air in the HVAC system.

Every 10 Star Home has the option of being fitted with EV charger. This can be even further upgraded to a fast charge EV bowser. Our show home at 9 Church Square features a BMW EV bowser that supplies free power to the general public, show home visitors and the CEO’s BMW i3.

Integrated space heating & hotwater heating power by PV solar system .

The hydronic under floor central heating system is very energy efficient with low running cost. It has different zones and timer control. It is powered by an energy efficient air to water heat pump unit. There are different circuits of pipe work within the floor slab of the entire ground floor. These circuits can be controlled separately by the flow controls at the control panel.

All 10 Star Homes are designed to keep the outside noise out. This is achieved using 140mm thick walls and well insulated walls that also act as an efficient thermal envelope. We use Gib Quietline acoustic sheets for living room ceilings and internal walls have sound batts.
The floor layouts reflect functional efficient planning to allow easy flow and eliminate waste space. Efficient sizing of rooms and common areas is the key to every one of our designs.
Functional efficient planning / layout / flow / efficient size matters.

Lifemark standards for ergonomics, ease of use and accessibility etc
“Lifemark design standards are best practice for building an adaptable, accessible and safe home. The Lifemark 5-Star rating system provides consumers with information about adaptability, safety and ease of use. The entry-level 3-Star Lifemark certification is achieved by meeting the minimum 25 standards. Additional points are then accumulated to achieve a 4 or even a 5 star level. The 5 Star rating is achieved when virtually all features are in place and the accumulated points reflect this level of performance.” Source: http://www.lifemark.co.nz/about-lifemark/lifemark-standards.aspx on 26.2.16. Our display home located at 9 Church Square, Addington in Christchurch collected 268 points on Lifemark which confers a grade 5 Star Standard (>240). The focus of every 10 Star Home is making them easy to use, accessible and ergonomic.

All 10 Star Homes include edge insulation, insulation under perimeter foundation and structural ribs/thickenings.
The display home at 9 Church Square in Addington features a floor slab that is a fully insulated (R 3.36) with a warm edge waffle slab with internal structural raft / ribs that have been specifically engineer designed. The latest innovative solution includes fully insulated Magroc Insulfound edge insulation / protection detail and XPS insulation under the ribs and strip footing eliminating any thermal bridging. Another option is MAXRaft floor systems.

10 Star Homes can be constructed using a panelised wall system. This modular approach to building ensures that all wall framing, bulk insulation, wall cavities, installation of insulation, installation of internal linings and external wall cladding material are factory controlled off site. This saves time, improves quality, reduces waste, increases build time, and lowers build cost.

All 10 Star Homes come with exterior wall framing 140mm thick in lieu of the industry minimum standard of 90mm. The result is a much better building envelope, both structurally as well as for greater energy retention due to the additional insulation it incorporates.

All framing is Nelson sourced LVL (Laminated Veneer Lumber) for superior strength and straightness. LVL is environmentally friendly and reduces construction waste due its manufacturing process. This not only makes our houses stronger and warmer due to increased insulation thickness but benefits the wall lining fixings as the walls are laser straight that results in a superior final wall finish.

All 10 Star Homes are structurally engineered for solid seismic performance and incorporate “Gib Fix framing system” a new type of timber framing system design that specifies noggins on edge and metal angles to connect internal corners. Dwangs / noggins can be removed where not required further increasing the capacity for insulation, and structural cavity battens are included. This system greatly improves the thermal efficiency of the building envelope and is stronger.

Thicker walls allow for more insulation and a better building envelope to retain energy.

opean PVC framed windows and doors, with low E glass argon gas filled glazing units with Thermex internal spacer between panes. This is plastic instead of the standard metal to reduce thermal bridging. Total window R-value is R 0.70. as compared to a double glazed aluminium window that is R 0.26 This improves both the warmth and sound insulation of the home.

The entire exterior framing is clad in a ridged air barrier which provides superior bracing adding to the EQ resistance and also makes the house more air tight and therefore achieving a higher performance thermal envelope.
All 10 Star Homes have correct membranes and detailing to ensure airtightness. Our homes are door blower tested < 3 air changes per hour.

10 star homes use Materials that are environmentally sound and certified to approval of the NZ Green Building Council (NZGBC).
Our timber wall framing and finishing timbers are sourced from sustainable forests.

All paints and sealants used to make every 10 Star Home are low VOC.
“Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are organic chemicals that have a high vapor pressure at ordinary room temperature. Their high vapour pressure results from a low boiling point, which causes large numbers of molecules to evaporate or sublimate from the liquid or solid form of the compound and enter the surrounding air, a trait known as volatility. For example, formaldehyde, which evaporates from paint, has a boiling point of only –19 °C (–2 °F).
A major source of man-made VOCs are coatings, especially paints and protective coatings. Solvents are required to spread a protective or decorative film. Approximately 12 billion litres of paints are produced annually. Typical solvents are aliphatic hydrocarbons, ethyl acetate, glycol ethers, and acetone. ” (Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volatile_organic_compound & https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volatile_organic_compound#Paints_and_coatings on 16.2.16)

All 10 Star Homes incorporate waste management during construction. This target is waste to landfill less than 15kg per m2 of finished area (under 2.7 tonnes for a 180 m2 house). Other options include composting and recycling facilities.

All paving or gravel paths are always constructed of environmentally sound permeable surfaces, meaning that the whole site is permeable either planted or porous paving.

Water efficient tapware and plumbing fittings.
All 10 Star Homes come with high efficiency (WELS) fittings: 5 stars+ for taps, 3 stars+ for showers, 4 stars+ for toilets, 5 stars+ for clothes washers, 4 stars+ for dishwashers. What is WELS? Find out more by visiting: http://www.waterrating.gov.au/about-wels

10 Star Homes optional feature kitchens are constructed of BioBoard, that is made up of fast-growing renewables and have 37% less timber. This is achieved using corn and other fast growing renewables that are PEFC certified and not in animal feed. Find out more on PEFC certification by visiting http://www.pefc.org
Our kitchens are modern, easy to clean, have waterproof edging, are scratch resistant and best of all fingerprint free.

As an option 10 Star Homes can be designed to collect the rain from the roof and store it in large plastic tanks that can sometimes be buried underground for use in the home. These are typically a minimum of 1500L in capacity for a three bedroom home.

Greywater recycling is optional. Greywater is the wastewater produced from baths and showers, basins that is filtered and treated then reuses for the laundry and clothes washing machine and to flush toilets. This can be incorporated as an option.