Unlock the energy efficiency score of your home! Learn about Home Energy Rating, a valuable tool to assess and improve your property's eco-performance.
Published on 12/10/2023
By Amita Hemkar
Energy Comparison
Home Energy rating, An energy efficient home has a lot of benefits like reducing unnecessary energy consumption, healthier and more comfortable living conditions plus, this can help you save money on your bills. Can you tell whether or not your home is energy efficient?
The Nationwide House Energy Rating Scheme (NatHERS). is the star rating system that rates the energy efficiency of a home, based on its design. This is administered by the Department of the Environment and Energy.
The scheme provides homes with a star rating on a scale from 0 to 10 based on an estimated heating and cooling energy use. This will help each home to be more comfortable to live in at the same time help save on energy bills with having smarter design choices. The more stars, the less likely the occupants will need cooling or heating to stay comfortable.
A house can be rated before or after it is built with the use of NaTHERS Accredited Software to determine how energy efficient your home is. The multiple data points are inputted by an accredited NaTHERS assessor into the software to generate the score.
They have to take the following information:
During the assessment, assessors don’t consider elements like appliances and light fixtures except for ceiling fans. The energy efficiency of appliances (such as air conditioners) is covered under the Greenhouse and Energy Minimum Standards (GEMS).
The ‘star band’ is a range for star ratings which is set for each climate zone considering the extremes of the local weather conditions. The star band allows for a comparison of buildings within and between climate zones and is based on the maximum energy consumption per unit area (MJ/m2) loads for each half- star level. Additional star bands are created when new climate zones are added to NaTHERS.
The higher the star levels the more thermally comfortable the house is, the less need for artificial heating and cooling.
A 0-star rating means they don’t practice anything to reduce the discomfort of hot or cold weather. On the other hand, a 10-star rated home is unlikely to need any artificial heating and cooling.
Homes built in the early 1990s typically gets a 1-star score especially if no renovations yet were made. Before the introduction of national energy efficiency regulations for houses in 2003, less than one percent of Australian houses achieved six stars. Many well-designed houses are now being built that are rated at seven stars or more.
Visit the NatHERS website and request for a rating without much hassle. For those who have already obtained a rating can get a new one once the renovation is completed.
Certificates will be provided to serve as proof that your home is energy efficiency, this will be useful if you’re looking to sell your property. There are two types of certificates you can receive when you request a rating. The first is from NaTHERS and is a universal, accredited ranking with all the information needed. The NaTHERS scale is universally observed and backed by multiple safeguards, which is why most builders and renovators use NaTHERS as the standard.
An efficient home can provide you with a better quality of life and save on your hard-earned money. If you’re looking for more ways to lower your energy bills, Econnex will help you.
