Renovate your house right the first time and ‘natural’ building

Residents considering renovating their home or building with natural materials will have the opportunity to get some ideas and advice with two talks happening in October.

The talks, with Council's Eco-Design Advisor Richard Morrison, are part of Council's 'Getting On To It' series and will be held at the Paraparaumu Library Meeting Room (koha entry).

The first talk on Tuesday 22 October, 7.30-9.30pm, will look at smart and sensible ways to renovate. This is a great chance to get some tips for creating the best renovation you can as Richard walks you through key design and detailing considerations.

Find out how to reduce heat loss, incorporate passive heating, limit indoor moisture, reduce energy and water use, optimise ventilation and indoor air quality, and select appropriate materials and products.

"Together these measures add up to a warmer, drier, healthier home for you and your family," Richard says.

If you're looking to build a home from scratch and interested in using natural building materials, Richard will talk about 'Earth/natural building' on Tuesday 29 October from 7.30-9.30pm.

As interest in building with natural materials grows, the variety of methods can seem confusing. Richard will provide a practical overview of different earth and natural building methods, including rammed earth, adobe brick, poured earth, earthships, strawbale and in situ adobe.

Richard has experience as a builder and architectural designer. He was also president of the Earth Building Association of New Zealand for three years.

For more information, contact Stacey Gasson at [email protected] or 04 296 4700.