Title: Chris Ferreira’s Eco-Home
Episode: WA4
TX: 23/3/14
Presenter: Chris Ferreira

Chris Ferreira is not only a guru in the garden, he is also full of handy hints and tricks to keep your house cool in the summer, warm in the winter, and, most importantly perhaps, keep your letter box free of energy bills!  Here he talks about the eco-friendly editions he made to his own house in Perth’s Hamilton Hill.

• Chris is the in process of growing his own veranda covering- a Flame seedless grape vine! In the interim, he uses a 90% block out shade cloth, keeping the outdoor space cool.
• Double-glazed windows and doors cannot be beaten for increasing a home’s energy efficiency, and Chris has them throughout
• His old fibro-sheeting has been replaced with an outer-shell of tin, and behind that hides three layers of insulation
• The roof has been painted with a white insulation paint, which reflects heat, and, in combination with one and half kilowatt worth of his sola panels, all the sun beating down on Chris’ roof is going exactly where he needs it to!
•  The inside of Chris’ home is decked out with blinds, thick curtains and pelmets to stop the heat getting inside the house
• LED down lights and cheap to run fans adorn the ceiling
• 100,000 liters of washing water is collected in Chris’ grey-water system and is used to water the garden, and a 5000 liter rain water tank makes sure every drop is utilized.