Blog post by Jerome Partington, JASMAX: I've written several posts which highlight the big challenges and likely outcomes New Zealand is facing by our current 'unsustainability' – especially issues of growing social inequality and unmanageable climate change.

If you are wanting to learn more about designing for shade, consider reading Undercover – Guidelines for Shade Planning and Design.

Inadequate site selection decisions can eventuate in a closing-off of later desirable design options for efficient passive thermal design.

Liability insurance policies – unlike office contents and house or car policies – expire at the end of each term, so before your existing policy expires, you must reapply for cover for the following year.

After establishing in last month's post that vapour convection is the major contributor to Leaky Building 2.0, we will now explain how to measure installed performance by using a Blower Door.

Following on from last month's topic — thermal bridging — I want to continue with more applied building science, focusing this time on moisture transport.

When making design decisions on thermal aspects of building materials and constructions, it is important to put them in perspective to maximise their performance – the inter-relational 'sweet-spot' – without compromising the liveability, aesthetics, buildability and economics of the completed project.

On balance, is there a long-term thermal and economic gain to be had from fitting insulation to the exterior face of a ‘slab-on-ground’ concrete floor... and is it as effective as it seems? 

My new blog on EBOSS is intended to give you an understanding of applied building science relating to moisture control. Every month I will address a variety of building physics facts and discuss their relevance to the New Zealand climate and construction industry.

Kiwis like to get things done – fast. The quicker the design period and the faster the build, the fewer overheads and less risk to the client and contractor. It makes good business sense. Or does it?