A Live Green House in Taylor Square

BRIEF – 23 September 2009 – At last curious householders can go and see what a real live green house looks like and talk to the architect, thanks to the City of Sydney’s sustainable house project which will be open to the public 15-18 October at Taylor Square in inner city Darlinghurst.

The 25 square metre “Live Green House”, which will be part of the Art and About Festival, will include everything from green roofs and balcony gardening to eco linen, cooling paint, self-cleaning concrete pavers, solar power and government rebates.

Architect of the house, Martin Urakawa from Archology, will be on hand to take queries.

Visitors will be able to learn how to reduce the environmental footprint of their home, with tips on how to save money on water and energy bills, create balcony gardens and green spaces, and how to find out about government rebates for rainwater tanks, solar hot water and electricity, and insulation.

Lord Mayor Clover Moore said the Live Green House said the move was a response to the consultation process for Sustainable Sydney 2030.

“People told us they wanted Council to lead the way on sustainability – but they also wanted practical tools and information to make changes in their own homes,” Ms Moore said in a media statement today.

Other products on display at the house from leading designers will showcase reusable design including chairs made from road signs, recycled kinetic jewellery, fold-away beds, lights made from recycled plastic bags, milk bottle stools and bags made from juice containers, the media statement said. The Department of Environment, Climate Change and Water sponsored the project.

Top tips to Live Green at your house

• Recycle kitchen scraps using a worm farm, compost bin or a Bokashi Bucket
• Check your taps – a dripping tap can waste more than 2000 litres of water a month
• Installing a AAA efficient shower head and taking shorter showers can reduce your energy bill by up to $100 a year and save 750 kg of greenhouse gas emissions
• Avoid unnecessary product packaging, reuse where possible and aim for zero waste
• Every degree warmer or cooler you make your home can add around 10 per cent to your electricity bill. Learn how sustainable design can keep your home comfortable year-round and save you money
• Energy-efficient compact fluorescent light bulbs or LED globes are around 80 per cent cheaper to run and last up to 15 times longer than incandescent globes. Change your globes and save money
• A halogen down light can burn up to 65 watts and cost more than $10 a year. If you have 20 – that’s 1300 watts or $200. Swap your globes to save
• The average home has 10 appliances in stand-by mode adding around 10 per cent to your electricity bill, turn them off and save more than $100 a year
• An old 3-star rated 400L fridge will add $230 a year to your electricity bill.  A 400L fridge with a maximum 6-star energy rating can cost as little as $40 a year to run
• A water-efficient washing machine uses around a third less water. If you purchase a water-efficient washing machine you’ll receive a $150 Sydney Water rebate
• Even in the smallest urban space you can grow edible plants, fit solar-powered lights, collect water, compost waste and add a bit of green.

For more information see www.artandabout.com.au/livegreen or call (02) 9265-9333

tperinotto@thefifthestate.com.au

The Fifth Estate – sustainable property news