Join Josh as he discovers the joys and pitfalls of building his own home, as he delves a little deeper into the Australian Housing industry, and when he finds out just how much this project means to West Australians.
Video Overviews
Josh’s House EPISODE 1 : Introduction
Introducing Josh’s House, a project following the design and construction of two 10 star energy efficient family homes in the Fremantle suburb of Hilton, Western Australia with Josh Byrne environmental scientist & presenter on ABC TV’s Gardening Australia, his young family and his sister in law.
This first episode explains the plan, what work has been done up to this point and introduces Josh and his family.
Josh’s House EPISODE 2 : Plumbing and Greywater
Construction is underway and in this episode Josh gets all excited about the dual plumbing and grey water systems that are being installed. We also speak to Ed Hauck from the WA Department of Water and we catch up with Josh’s family.
Josh’s House EPISODE 3 : Walls and Insulation
Things are well and truly pumping at the block, the walls are up and roof structure is on plus all the important wall insulation has gone in.
In this episode Josh and his family take a look around where they will be living in just a few months, we also visit a brick manufacturing plant to find out how they’re made, expert building designer Griff Morris talks insulation, Josh & Kellie talk about the projects first major problem and we invite some WA politicians to site in the lead up to the state election.
Josh’s House EPISODE 4 : Roof and House Performance Monitoring
Lock up is drawing near and every day that passes brings Josh and his family closer to moving in, but, as usual, there’s still plenty of work to get done.
In this episode Josh explains why they chose a white roof, he also explains the data cabling , plus, landscaping talks are underway and you can barely hold Josh back. We also take a visit to another sustainable home close by to see what they have done and if Josh can borrow some ideas.
Josh’s House EPISODE 5 : Windows & Glazing
Every aspect of these ten star rated energy efficient and solar passive homes has been thoroughly researched to make sure these buildings perform at the highest level. One key design considerations is the windows and glazing, in this episode we take a closer look during a visit to a pretty impressive Perth-based window manufacturer.
With that done the homes are ready for lock up so it’s a champagne ending to another installment of Josh’s House.
Josh’s House EPISODE 6 : Reduce, Reuse & Recycling,
In this episode we focus on the all important three R’s to get a better understanding of how we can manage building site waste and show how easy and rewarding it is to reduce, re-use and recycle.
Josh visits a recycling facility that specialises in construction waste, hits the jackpot at a local timber salvage yard and is shocked to see a local house being demolished and carted away to landfill.
Josh’s House EPISODE 7 : Water
This episode is all about water, looking at the many systems that this project has implemented to harvest, save and use this precious resource. From feature rainwater tanks to grey water systems, water saving internal fittings and even a bore to name just a few.
To put things in perspective Josh visits Perth’s seawater desalination plants and we hear from the Water Corporation’s Water Efficiency Manager, Ben Jarvis.
Josh’s House EPISODE 8 – The Landscape Special
In this episode we are bringing you the highly anticipated LANDSCAPE SPECIAL. Journey back to the start of the homes simple yet stunning outside living spaces and see them come to life.
With 800 square metres of outside space to play with and a relatively tight $100,000 budget, Josh must ensure this design is beautiful, useable, kid friendly and productive whilst not forgetting deliver on time and on budget.
Josh’s House EPISODE 9 – The Power of the Sun
This episode is where Josh shows off all of the ways his sustainable housing project is using the sun.
Josh provides some great tips on how to choose a good residential solar power system as well as exploring some of the finer details of other sun related elements and the data logging and monitoring systems.
Josh’s House EPISODE 10 – Moving In
It’s Episode 10 of Josh’s House and the family is moving in. Josh shows us the internal features and design elements including how universal access and internal air quality informed the choices made and how they have improved liveability.
Josh’s House EPISODE 11 – Sustainable House Day 2013
In this episode Josh and his family throw open the doors to the public for the first time on Sustainable House Day 2013.
It’s an overwhelming experience as people come in droves to get a first hand look at this ground-breaking housing project. Not only that but the street turns into a bustling festival with music, food, stalls and Q&A sessions. The number of attendee’s exceeds expectation and Josh has a real skip in his step.
Josh’s House EPISODE 12 – Series One Final
This is Josh’s House, a project that set out to prove that sustainable housing can be affordable and effective. We’ve shared everything incorporated into the design and build of these two ten star rated energy efficient homes and in our final episode for series one we look back at exactly what we have achieved and if we accomplished what we said we would.