I'm a sustainable homes expert and I want to create healthy, efficient homes that don't cost the Earth.

This week, I answer a couple of listener questions about the cost effectiveness and red tape associated with building green. 

Following up on last week, I also discuss if concrete slab edge insulation is important in a hot climate for keeping cool.

Upcoming events mentioned in the show:

• HIVE Prefab open day: It's free! http://www.prefabnz.com/Events/Upcoming-Events/HIVE_2013/
• Green Property Summit, from the New Zealand Green Building Council and the Property Council of New Zealand http://www.greenpropertysummit.org.nz/
• Breathe New Urban Village Project, with my hero Kevin McLoud http://www.futurechristchurch.co.nz/breathe

You can find me at:

• http://homestylegreen.com/
• nz.linkedin.com/pub/matthew-cutler-welsh/16/789/6b6/
• http://www.youtube.com/homestylegreen
• https://www.facebook.com/HomeStyleGreen

Thanks to James Schramko over at Superfastbusiness.com for recommending Auphonic. I've tried it out this week with this episode. Can you tell the difference?

Ingo Ratsdorf is a registered architect with Babbage Consultants based in Auckland. 

Having grown up and been trained in Germany, Ingo is very aware of how poorly most New Zealand homes stack up against international standards. 

When Ingo and his family were hunting for their dream renovation project, they were continually overwhelmed with the size of the job they saw. It seemed each house they looked at would need far too much work to bring up to a level of quality and comfort that would satisfy them. 

And so it was that they ultimately realised they would have to build from scratch.

Listen in to our conversation as Ingo explains the inspiration and challenges of building and completing (almost) their dream in Riverhead.

He shares some sound advice for anyone looking at start a building project. 

This podcast is best accompanied by a great slideshow of the build available here on slideshare:

http://www.slideshare.net/IngoRatsdorf/riverhead-passive-solar-design-house

I hope this finished product will be an inspiration for your project!

The inspiring  book Ingo referred to and which I also highly recommend for anyone interested in design, 'Cradle to Cradle' can be found here: http://amzn.to/VVbBBr

Eion Scott is an Eco Design Advisor with the Auckland Council. Eco Design Advisors around the country offer free, in home, independent advice on how to improve the warmth, health and comfort of your home. 

For more information go to the Eco Design Advisor website. 

I was lucky enough to first meet Carlin Archer in Chrstchurch a few years ago.

Carlin was interested in building an 'ecohome', but didn't know the first thing about building houses. He did know a lot about building websites thought. So he and his brother sat down and reated Ecobob.co.nz

After insulation, heating is the next thing most people look at when improving the comfort and warmth of their home. 

In this episode of Home Style Green, I discuss room heaters:

• Standared electric heating: electric fan heaters, bar radiators, oil column, wall panel etc
• Gas unflued heating: And why you should never use it!
• Flued gas heating
• Heat pumps or reverse cycle air conditioning

In the episode I refer to the 'carnot cycle'. This is the awesome thermodynamic principle behind air conditioning and refrigeration. Refer again to our trusty Wikipedia for a good article about the detailed physics:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carnot_cycle

Of course the best form of heating is free from the sun. But making the most of passive solar heating is a design challenge and there's usually not a lot that can be done to improve this once a house is built.

So if you're trying to heat an existing, cold home, what's the best option?

In part 2 of this insulation introduction, I discuss the main types of insulation used for ceilings, floors and wall. 

For more information about insulation materials, check out Level.org.nz from BRANZ:

http://www.level.org.nz/fileadmin/downloads/Materials/LevelMInsul.pdf

For more on the properties of wool, including great microscopic imagery, check out:

http://www.biotechlearn.org.nz/focus_stories/wool_innovations/wool_fibre_properties

and

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wool_insulation

In this episode of Home Style Green, I discuss the basic physics of insualation. I give an overview of the three main types of heat transfer, that is conduction, convection and radiation. Most bulk insulation products on the market rely almost entirely on reducing conduction. 

I discuss what 'R-Value' means and the common materials of household insulation products. 

For more information, visit our site at: 

http://www.homestylegreen.com

Also, for a more indepth discussion on insulation and 'R-Values', its hard to go past Wikipedia:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/R-value_(insulation)

Welcome to Episode 1 of Home Style Green, the podcast about how to live a healthy and happy lifestyle without it costing the Earth.

I'm Matthew Cutler-Welsh: Engineer, Dad, Homeowner and someone who's passionate about making urban environments more sustainable. 

This is my first podcast and my objective is to share ideas about building green homes, with style. 

Links in today's cast include:

• The Home Style Green website: http://homestylegreen.com
• EECA Energywise: http://www.energywise.govt.nz/