2019-12-01_Australian_House_Garden

Growyourownshade

“Climbingplantsonpergolasconnected

tothehomebreakthesun’spathand

canhelpcoolthehouseoverall,”says

NicolaCameron,directoratPepo

BotanicDesign.“Deciduousclimbers,

suchasornamentalgrape(Vitis

vinifera), droptheirleavesduring

wintersoyoucanenjoythesunin

thecoolermonths,”shesays.

Planttreesinyourgardentoprotect

yourhomefromthesunandhotwinds,

saysChrisMahoney,groupdirector

oflandscapearchitecturalfirmVerdé

DesignGroup.“Considergoldenpenda

(Xanthostemonchrysanthus) for

smallergardens;forlargergardens,

trytulipwood(Harpullia pendula).”

Goforgrass

Lawnfeelsfarcoolerunderfootthan

hardscapingsuchaspaversorgravel,

saysDarinBradbury,directoratMint

Pool+LandscapeDesign.“Thebest

speciesforAustralianconditionsis

buffalograss– SirWalterorSapphire–

astheycanself-repairandaremore

drought-tolerantthanotheroptions.

Layinglawninrainierseasonslike

springorautumnhelpsit establish

beforea hotsummeror cold winter.”

Justaddwater

A strategicallyplacedwaterfeature,such

asa pond,canalsohelpmakehotdays

morebearable.“Locatewaterfeatures

nearwindowsorinbreezeways,where

they’llcatchthebreezeandprovide

evaporativecooling,”saysMahoney.

Getcross-ventilating

“Cross-ventilationdrawscoolairinto

thehousewhilewarmairisexpelled,”

saysarchitectRebeccaNaughtin.

“Youcanachievebasiccross-ventilation

simplybyopeningwindowsanddoorson

oppositesidesofa room.”Alternatively,

maximiseyourhome’scoolingpotential

withspeciallydesignedopenings,such

aslouvres.“Theseallowtwiceasmuch

airtocirculateasmoretraditional

windowswhenfullyopen,”saysLeigh

Rust,directorofSafetyline Jalousie

Louvre Windows. #

Feeltheairmove

Ceilingfansaresurprisinglyefficient.

Theymoveairacrosstheskintomake

youfeelupto 3 °Ccooler.“Fansarethe

cheapestformofcooling,costingabout

twocentsanhourtorun,orabout$6

overa summer,”saysDrRobertSimpson,

energy-efficiencyexpertatAusgrid.

Usinga ceilingfaninconjunctionwith

airconcanalsocutcosts.“Aceilingfan

pushescoolairdownandthroughthe

room.Asa result,youdon’thavetoset

thethermostataslow,whichcanreduce

airconditioningcostsbyupto 10 per

cent,”saysDeniseHammond,product

knowledgespecialistatBeaconLighting.

“DirectCurrent(DC)ceilingfansconsume

75 percentlesselectricitythanstandard

ceilingfans,”saysHammond.“Typically,

youneeda 122 cmbladespanfora small

tomediumroomanda 132 cmor 142 cm

span for a larger space.”

CLOCKWISEFROM

FARLEFTDuette

Architellatop-down/

bottom-upshadesin

VolcanicAsh,from

$2190(151cmx181cm),

LuxaflexWindow

Fashions;luxaflex.com.

au.Gardendesignby

MintPool+Landscape

Design;mintdesign.

net.au.WS09TWS

2.5kWreverse-cycle

airconditioner,$1242,

LG.AirfusionAkmani

152cmceilingfan,

$795,BeaconLighting;

beaconlighting.com.au.

DysonPureCoolMepersonal

purifyingfan,$499,Harvey

Norman; harveynorman.com.au.

Euromatic30cmretrodeskfan,

$69,Bunnings;(03) 88319777

or bunnings.com.au.

FAN-TASTIC

OPTIONS

GoldairNavigatortripod

pedestalfan,$149,Domayne;

domayneonline.com.au.

SunbeamFA8900pedestalfan,

$169,WinningAppliances;

winningappliances.com.au.