Energy Efficiency Rating for Apartments PART 2

Happy New Year to you and I hope you‘ve had a restful and safe Christmas break.
Following my previous newsletter (in Nov 2010), I thought to write more on the same topic because of the increasing demand on multi-level apartment projects, and Victorian government is encouraging higher density living.

To re-cap what I discussed last November, the below matrix summarises current and upcoming regulations from May 2011.

	Energy Efficiency Requirements for Apartments for Classes 2 and 4	Comments and application for insulation
Current Regulations BCA 2009 Section J0.2	Individual apartment to be not less than 3 stars Combined average of all apartments to be not less than 5 stars Services not required	External walls to be insulated by minimum R1.5 Wall insulation between apartments not required, only optional Highest floor to be insulated by minimum R2.5 Ceiling insulation between apartments not required, only optional
From May 2011 Regulations BCA 2010 Section J0.2	Individual apartment to be not less than 5 stars Combined average of all apartments to be not less than 6 stars BCA Section 3.12.5.5, artificial lighting requirement to be 5W/m2 for living areas	External walls to be insulated by minimum R2.0 Wall insulation between apartments recommended minimum of R1.5 Highest floor to be insulated by minimum R3.5 Ceiling insulation between apartments recommended minimum of R2.5

Is Section J required for multi-level apartments?

Short answer is Yes. Multi-level apartment buildings are considered as class 2 type. A brief Section J energy assessment will be required for the common areas and basement carparks (Class 7a). If the proposed building has either retail (Class 6) or commercial offices (Class 5), then these areas will require a full Section J energy assessment to include: fabric, glazing and services such as airconditioning and artificial lighting.

Sustainability Tip

To satisfy ESD requirements, energy efficient electrical appliances and efficient water fixtures to be within one point of the highest efficiency available on the market. This is to apply for items which are part of the base building works.

For further information, feel free to contact our office on 03 9390 2934 or by email info@efficientenergychoices.com.au. 

Visit our website www.efficientenergychoices.com.au. 

Karim Ghobrial
Electrical Engineer; Energy and Sustainability Consultant