{"id":77904,"date":"2023-08-21T11:48:23","date_gmt":"2023-08-21T02:18:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/?p=77904"},"modified":"2025-06-23T10:40:26","modified_gmt":"2025-06-23T01:10:26","slug":"solar-roof-builders","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/solar-roof-builders\/","title":{"rendered":"Talking Solar To Builders &#8211; We Need Better Thinking From the Roof Down"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"attachment_77955\" style=\"width: 870px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-77955\" class=\"wp-image-77955 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/skillion-solar.jpg\" alt=\"Solar panels on a simple skillion roof\" width=\"860\" height=\"525\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/skillion-solar.jpg 860w, https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/skillion-solar-300x183.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/skillion-solar-768x469.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 860px) 100vw, 860px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-77955\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Perfectly simple skillion roof. Image Credit: Josh Sheppard Electrical<\/p><\/div>\n<p>As a qualified solar electrician, roof plumber, licensed contractor and supervisor, I have seen the ugly truth behind Australian roofs first-hand. <!--more-->The sad reality is the roofs I&#8217;ve worked on could move anyone to tears if only they realised the opportunity missed for both passive and active solar power system design.<\/p>\n<p>Please bear with me. This post is as important as it is long.<\/p>\n<h2>Introduction: The State Of Australian Roofs<\/h2>\n<p>It&#8217;s hard to know what&#8217;s driving the way Australians build, but it&#8217;s not common sense.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Fashion seems to dictate insipid monument grey <sup class='endnote'><a href='https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/solar-roof-builders\/#en-77904-1' id='enref-77904-1' onclick='return hhEndnotes_show(77904)'>1<\/a><\/sup> is the only colour to use. If only we could get fleet car buyers to specify houses, there would be more light-coloured roofs, like there are appliance white cars.<\/li>\n<li>Developer and local government rules dictate you can&#8217;t have shiny metal cladding. The grace of aged galvanising is replaced with faded paint.<\/li>\n<li>Ludicrous complexity has become a virtue.<\/li>\n<li>We&#8217;ve expanded on the subject with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/getting-solar-right-building\/\">more here.<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>The Issue With Complex Roof Designs<\/h3>\n<p>Growing up in a c.1875 house replete with iron lace and solid stone walls, I appreciate that ceiling height is directly proportional to happiness and, more importantly, you can&#8217;t have a decent verandah without height to hang it from.<\/p>\n<p>Driving through the suburbs makes me despair. I call it federation virus: turned finials, Dutch gables, bay windows, and &#8220;bullnose&#8221; verandahs that have almost no curve because the house they&#8217;re attached to just isn&#8217;t tall enough to legally have both 2050mm headroom underneath and a 5\u00b0 fall to shed water.<\/p>\n<p>These places look like a poor imitation because they are, but they&#8217;re still not as ridiculous as the quintuple-fronted modern house with parapet walled portico.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_62816\" style=\"width: 1034px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-62816\" class=\"wp-image-62816 size-large\" src=\"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/06\/bad-conduit-roof1-1024x422.jpg\" alt=\"Bad rooftop solar conduit\" width=\"1024\" height=\"422\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/06\/bad-conduit-roof1-1024x422.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/06\/bad-conduit-roof1-300x124.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/06\/bad-conduit-roof1-768x317.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/06\/bad-conduit-roof1.jpg 1200w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-62816\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Just look at it. Call me uncharitable, but whoever designed this roof should be thrown off it. After they&#8217;ve been forced to crawl through the ceiling space to run those solar conduits properly.<\/p><\/div>\n<h2>Builders Aren&#8217;t Adventurous, They&#8217;re Stuck<\/h2>\n<p>There seems to be a perverse power imbalance at play, I&#8217;ve often heard people saying:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>&#8220;The builder won&#8217;t let us do that.&#8221;<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>It makes me wonder, who&#8217;s working for who exactly?<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_77931\" style=\"width: 910px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-77931\" class=\"wp-image-77931 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/developer-lies.jpg\" alt=\"Two-storey townhouses - solar panel layout\" width=\"900\" height=\"525\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/developer-lies.jpg 900w, https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/developer-lies-300x175.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/developer-lies-768x448.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 900px) 100vw, 900px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-77931\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">A couple of two-storey townhouses, where the upper levels have no less than 29 hips, ridges and valleys. The developer lied to the customer that single panels couldn&#8217;t work because they didn&#8217;t want to buy more expensive microinverters. In any case a terrible roof design.<\/p><\/div>\n<p>From the trade perspective, customers looking to <em>change<\/em> anything, especially ones asking for extra time or material can be seen as troublemakers. Variations are expensive. Just moving a tap could cost hundreds, so savvy investors simply buy what&#8217;s on the plans.<\/p>\n<p>If you start talking about energy efficiency, you must be some weirdo greenie, and you&#8217;ll cop what is called &#8220;the dickhead tax&#8221;. For a builder, the easiest way to avoid doing something new, that you reflexively don&#8217;t like, is to price it beyond belief.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_77932\" style=\"width: 916px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-77932\" class=\"wp-image-77932 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/plan-vs-reality.jpg\" alt=\"Solar panels on a complex roof - original plan vs finished project\" width=\"906\" height=\"526\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/plan-vs-reality.jpg 906w, https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/plan-vs-reality-300x174.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/plan-vs-reality-768x446.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 906px) 100vw, 906px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-77932\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">The sales plan on the right here didn&#8217;t pan out. In actual installation on the left was still a bit tricky, but a nice big system on a big house.<\/p><\/div>\n<h2>Shift To Something Genuinely Good<\/h2>\n<p>Just like <a href=\"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/solar101.html\">solar power systems<\/a>, large sales companies aren&#8217;t likely to offer great outcomes. Go with a smaller business, a boutique builder or an architect who&#8217;s well-versed in passive solar design. I highly recommend inspecting a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.endurobuilders.com.au\/display-home\/\">display home\u00a0<\/a>built to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.passivhausassociation.com.au\/\">PassivHaus\u00a0<\/a>standards. Efficient houses are highly insulated and airtight. They use HRV devices to reclaim energy by pumping fresh air through a heat exchanger, so the air gets changed, but the temperature doesn&#8217;t.<\/p>\n<h3>Now, Here&#8217;s The Kicker.<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>To meet passive house standards, a house can only leak <strong>60%<\/strong> of the inside air volume every hour.<\/li>\n<li>Your average new house in Australia, built to NatHERS 6-star design, will leak <strong>1500%<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=CasrjYhZB1M\">PassivHaus shows what&#8217;s possible<\/a>, but is probably overkill in Australia, it&#8217;s the total opposite of an evaporative air conditioning design, where the air volume is turned over every few minutes. However, many Australians have ducted RCAC air conditioning\/heating on what is sadly a glorified shed. You have to spend a lot of money pouring energy in to make them comfortable while the house leaks like a sieve.<\/p>\n<h2>It&#8217;s Time to Turn the Tables: Lobbying and Profitability in the Building Industry<\/h2>\n<p>Energy-conscious builders exist, but they&#8217;re outliers. Be under no illusion most of the building industry works for you in the same way that Big Tobacco works for their customers; that is, they put their short-term profits above your long-term interests, by actively lobbying to delay increased energy standards.<\/p>\n<p>Read for yourself, but there&#8217;s only <a href=\"https:\/\/masterbuilders.com.au\/building-a-sustainable-and-resilient-future\/\">one passage<\/a> I can find anywhere from Master Builders Australia that puts sustainability before profitability. They <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mbqld.com.au\/about\/policy-and-advocacy\/measure-twice\/our-concerns\/energy-efficiency\">argue against<\/a> improved standards, instead saying that software and education will improve things, slowly. If they can get subsidised training.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>&#8220;Through our advocacy work we\u2019re focused on ensuring your (building) business isn\u2019t overburdened by unnecessary red tape&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;The MBA is lobbying for changes to star ratings for new homes to be <a href=\"https:\/\/www.smh.com.au\/national\/fight-over-energy-efficiency-requirements-for-new-homes-looms-as-ministers-meet-20220318-p5a5s0.html\">delayed until 2025.<\/a>&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;The Master Builders Association (MBA), representing many large developers and construction companies, said <a href=\"https:\/\/www.smh.com.au\/national\/fight-over-energy-efficiency-requirements-for-new-homes-looms-as-ministers-meet-20220318-p5a5s0.html\">more time was needed<\/a> and the costs would outweigh the benefits.&#8221;<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<div id=\"attachment_77933\" style=\"width: 909px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-77933\" class=\"wp-image-77933 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/vent-everywhere.jpg\" alt=\"Roof vents interfering with solar panel layout\" width=\"899\" height=\"525\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/vent-everywhere.jpg 899w, https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/vent-everywhere-300x175.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/vent-everywhere-768x448.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 899px) 100vw, 899px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-77933\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Here we see the benefit of no less than four bathroom vents messing up an otherwise decent roof plane. Image credit: Karl Jensen<\/p><\/div>\n<h2>So Where Do We Start? Simplicity And Efficiency<\/h2>\n<p>The simple answer is: <strong>start with simpler roofs<\/strong>. This is an easy win if we explain that it&#8217;s cheaper, faster and more efficient to make large rectangular planes instead of complex hips and valleys or problematic parapets and box gutters for a flat roof.<\/p>\n<div class=\"mceTemp\"><\/div>\n<div id=\"attachment_77956\" style=\"width: 910px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-77956\" class=\"wp-image-77956 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/skillion.jpg\" alt=\"unfinished house with skillion roof\" width=\"900\" height=\"454\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/skillion.jpg 900w, https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/skillion-300x151.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/skillion-768x387.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 900px) 100vw, 900px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-77956\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Another skillion, this time on a rendered straw bale house. These off-grid jobs never get old.<\/p><\/div>\n<p>If you&#8217;re a customer building a new house, demand a split skillion roof with decent eaves and at least a 10\u00b0 pitch.<\/p>\n<p>If you&#8217;re a carpenter or roofer, don&#8217;t just accept a square metre rate for any roof, demand a premium for every angled timber or sheet you have to measure and cut.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_77957\" style=\"width: 910px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-77957\" class=\"wp-image-77957 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/six-frontage.jpg\" alt=\"unfinished house with complex roof\" width=\"900\" height=\"424\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/six-frontage.jpg 900w, https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/six-frontage-300x141.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/six-frontage-768x362.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 900px) 100vw, 900px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-77957\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Rural greenfield site, so there&#8217;s no space constraint. There&#8217;s SIX frontages, not facing the sun, but facing the road so it looks&#8230; impressive?<\/p><\/div>\n<div id=\"attachment_77936\" style=\"width: 910px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-77936\" class=\"wp-image-77936 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/12-panel-lunacy.jpg\" alt=\"crazy roof solar panel array\" width=\"900\" height=\"405\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/12-panel-lunacy.jpg 900w, https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/12-panel-lunacy-300x135.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/12-panel-lunacy-768x346.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 900px) 100vw, 900px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-77936\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Twelve solar panels littered all over this lunatic roof design shown below.<\/p><\/div>\n<p>And if you&#8217;re a building company designing these houses, point out to the punters that every step in the wall and every corner in the floor plan costs time and money. Reduce the hard-to-insulate fiddly building outlines, and most of all, think before you press the &#8220;apply roof&#8221; button on the computer design. Can there be a little extra eave to make the roof, fascia and gutter straighter and faster?<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_77935\" style=\"width: 695px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-77935\" class=\"wp-image-77935 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/ludicrous-roof-designs.jpg\" alt=\"Crazy roof designs\" width=\"685\" height=\"525\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/ludicrous-roof-designs.jpg 685w, https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/ludicrous-roof-designs-300x230.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 685px) 100vw, 685px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-77935\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Here we have four houses under one long single red ridge. We call this a roofers roof. Next door, we have four freestanding houses with no less than NINETY-FIVE individual hips, ridges and valleys&#8230; and a solar array that&#8217;s admirable for its persistence.<\/p><\/div>\n<h2>East &amp; West Is The New North: Making The Most Of Your Solar<\/h2>\n<p>When Time-Of-Use (ToU) retail plans mean that exported electricity at midday is almost worthless, you can triple the value from your <a href=\"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/panels\/\">solar panels<\/a> by generating before 10am and after 3pm. If you have trees or other obstacles, don&#8217;t forget that a south-facing roof is still worthwhile. In not-so-sunny Melbourne, a 22.5\u00b0 pitched south-facing roof will still make 95% in summer and 26% in the pits of winter. Who doesn&#8217;t want 26% more?<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_77926\" style=\"width: 910px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-77926\" class=\"wp-image-77926 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/mixed-hips-valleys.jpg\" alt=\"Solar panels on difficult roof designs\" width=\"900\" height=\"525\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/mixed-hips-valleys.jpg 900w, https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/mixed-hips-valleys-300x175.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/mixed-hips-valleys-768x448.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 900px) 100vw, 900px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-77926\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Some solar installers will have a red hot go if you let them.<\/p><\/div>\n<div id=\"attachment_77934\" style=\"width: 831px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-77934\" class=\"wp-image-77934 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/good-vs-crap-roof.jpg\" alt=\"a good and a bad solar roof\" width=\"821\" height=\"525\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/good-vs-crap-roof.jpg 821w, https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/good-vs-crap-roof-300x192.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/good-vs-crap-roof-768x491.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 821px) 100vw, 821px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-77934\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Here&#8217;s an expensive waterfront example of an elegant solar skillion versus the fashionable folly of a modern pagoda.<\/p><\/div>\n<h2>Put The Bricks On The Inside: The Importance of Thermal Mass<\/h2>\n<p>Thermal mass is important for comfort, so don&#8217;t be afraid to put the heavy stuff inside the insulated building where you control the temperature.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_78177\" style=\"width: 910px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-78177\" class=\"size-full wp-image-78177\" src=\"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/thermal-mass1.jpg\" alt=\"thermal mass with lime render and bricks\" width=\"900\" height=\"672\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/thermal-mass1.jpg 900w, https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/thermal-mass1-300x224.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/thermal-mass1-768x573.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 900px) 100vw, 900px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-78177\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">This room in Adelaide will stay warm long after the fire goes out and cool long after the summer sun rises, thanks to the lime render and bricks.<\/p><\/div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_78179\" style=\"width: 910px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-78179\" class=\" wp-image-78179\" src=\"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/IMG_5142-scaled.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"900\" height=\"672\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/IMG_5142-scaled.jpg 2560w, https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/IMG_5142-300x224.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/IMG_5142-1024x765.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/IMG_5142-768x574.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/IMG_5142-1536x1147.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/IMG_5142-2048x1530.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 900px) 100vw, 900px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-78179\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">The same room from another angle. Bricks inside. This is the way.<\/p><\/div>\n<p>You can clad the outside of a timber framed house with timber, cement sheet or polystyrene, using all the same building ingredients; simply making it reverse brick veneer means it&#8217;ll use less energy without any other changes.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_78180\" style=\"width: 573px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-78180\" class=\"wp-image-78180 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/reverse-brick-veneer.jpg\" alt=\"reverse brick veneer\" width=\"563\" height=\"750\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/reverse-brick-veneer.jpg 563w, https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/reverse-brick-veneer-225x300.jpg 225w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 563px) 100vw, 563px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-78180\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Reverse brick veneer. Image Credit: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.yourhome.gov.au\/materials\/brickwork-and-blockwork\">YourHome<\/a> \/ Crosby Architects<\/p><\/div>\n<p>Explain it to your builder as a double brick building, but smarter.<\/p>\n<h2>Engage An Auditor<\/h2>\n<p>I&#8217;ve seen first-hand a roofing contractor desperately searching the BCA rule book for a clause that would get him out of having to totally remove and re-lay the roof. Why? His workers had installed sarking as requested by the owner, <strong>but they&#8217;d pulled it tight, so it <em>looked<\/em> neat. <\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The customer was furious because<strong> every single metre<\/strong> of the stuff has installation instructions printed on it. Pictures show it should sag between purlins (to create an insulating air gap) and they simply had no clue that was required.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_77953\" style=\"width: 910px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-77953\" class=\"wp-image-77953 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/Insulation-Sarking-Installation.jpg\" alt=\"roof cladding insulation\" width=\"900\" height=\"455\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/Insulation-Sarking-Installation.jpg 900w, https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/Insulation-Sarking-Installation-300x152.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/Insulation-Sarking-Installation-768x388.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 900px) 100vw, 900px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-77953\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Anticon\/Blanket on the left is good. Note the green foil sarking has the correct saggy installation, and a picture printed on it explaining how.<\/p><\/div>\n<h3>Bulk Up Bulk Insulation.<\/h3>\n<p>Just 5% gaps in insulation coverage will lower the value from R2.5 to R1.5, so it&#8217;s critical that the builders understand it gets fitted neatly, not stuffed in holes, thrown aside or simply left packed in the plastic bags! You must get the place assessed before the linings go in to make sure you&#8217;re getting what you paid for.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_77954\" style=\"width: 710px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-77954\" class=\"wp-image-77954 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/poor-insulation.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"700\" height=\"525\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/poor-insulation.jpg 700w, https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/poor-insulation-300x225.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 700px) 100vw, 700px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-77954\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Scrunched in places, gaps in others. This builder argued (wrongly) that it didn&#8217;t matter if the insulation wasn&#8217;t sitting directly on the ceiling plasterboard.<\/p><\/div>\n<div id=\"attachment_77952\" style=\"width: 855px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-77952\" class=\"wp-image-77952 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/full-bagged-insulation.jpg\" alt=\"insulation not installed\" width=\"845\" height=\"525\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/full-bagged-insulation.jpg 845w, https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/full-bagged-insulation-300x186.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/full-bagged-insulation-768x477.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 845px) 100vw, 845px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-77952\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Insulation &#8220;installed&#8221; in the roof, not that it&#8217;ll do any good when it&#8217;s still packed in bags.<\/p><\/div>\n<h2>The Bottom Line<\/h2>\n<p>If you&#8217;re paying hundreds of thousands of dollars for a new house, don&#8217;t accept the keys for something that&#8217;s 7 stars <strong>as designed<\/strong>, make sure the contract includes 7-stars <strong>as built. <\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Your auditor must test it to see that the finished product performs properly. As consumers, we must demand more from the building industry.<\/p>\n<p>Join us next week <a href=\"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/getting-solar-right-building\/\">as I explain more<\/a> about designing a roof for solar power and integrating the installation.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>As a qualified solar electrician, roof plumber, licensed contractor and supervisor, I have seen the ugly truth behind Australian roofs first-hand.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":28,"featured_media":81832,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[745],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-77904","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-energy-efficiency","entry"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v27.4 (Yoast SEO v27.4) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Talking Solar To Builders: Better Thinking From the Roof Down<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The truth behind Australian roof design: how it hampers both solar PV and passive solar design. 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He\u2019s a licensed electrician, builder, roofer and solar installer who for 14 years did jobs all over SA - residential, commercial, on-grid and off-grid. A true enthusiast with a skillset the typical solar installer might not have, his blogs are typically deep dives that draw on his decades of experience in the industry to educate and entertain. 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According to a recent article on the Financial Review (paywall unfortunately), as much as 70 per cent of industrial roofs are being built \"slender\" (to the minimum\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Commercial Solar&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Commercial Solar","link":"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/category\/commercial-solar\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Rooftop solar panels","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/slender-roofs-solar.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/slender-roofs-solar.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/slender-roofs-solar.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/slender-roofs-solar.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":9626,"url":"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/solar-air-conditioning-vs-heat-reflective-paint\/","url_meta":{"origin":77904,"position":2},"title":"Solar Air Conditioning Vs. Heat Reflective Paint","author":"Ronald Brakels","date":"April 5, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"It can get bloody hot in summer thanks to the sun blazing down on our roofs and making them hot enough to not only fry an egg, but some bacon as well. This post\u00a0is about stopping\u00a0the summer sun heating your\u00a0roof, turning your home into a metaphorical oven. There are 2\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Economics Of Solar&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Economics Of Solar","link":"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/category\/economics\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"heat reflective paint vs solar","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/04\/Solar-VS-Paint.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/04\/Solar-VS-Paint.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/04\/Solar-VS-Paint.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":57765,"url":"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/sunman-energy-factory-mb2312\/","url_meta":{"origin":77904,"position":3},"title":"Sunman Energy Cranks Up Lightweight Solar Production Capacity","author":"Michael Bloch","date":"January 12, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Lightweight solar pioneer Sunman Energy, which has a strong Australian connection, has celebrated the opening of its new 1GW production facility in Yangzhong City, Jiangsu Province, China. Sunman Energy focuses on the manufacture of glassless, ultra-light, thin and flexible solar panel products - some of which can be glued to\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;General Solar &amp; Storage News&quot;","block_context":{"text":"General Solar &amp; Storage News","link":"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/category\/solar-battery-news\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Sunman Energy solar panel factory","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/sunman-energy.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/sunman-energy.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/sunman-energy.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/sunman-energy.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/01\/sunman-energy.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":48220,"url":"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/tesla-solar-roof-apr1\/","url_meta":{"origin":77904,"position":4},"title":"Tesla Finally Launch Solar Tiles In Australia With Insane Bonus For Early Adopters","author":"Ronald Brakels","date":"April 1, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"Note: This post was published on April the first 2021 When Elon Musk launched Tesla Solar Roof Tiles four and a half years ago, there was only one question his Australian fans were desperate to know: When can we get these Tesla solar roofs in Australia? Up until now, the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Solar Innovations&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Solar Innovations","link":"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/category\/solar-innovations\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/solar-tiles-aus.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/solar-tiles-aus.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/solar-tiles-aus.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/solar-tiles-aus.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/solar-tiles-aus.jpg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":4299,"url":"https:\/\/www.solarquotes.com.au\/blog\/genius-bonkers-us-solar-company-glueing-solar-roofs-reduce-installation-costs\/","url_meta":{"origin":77904,"position":5},"title":"Genius Or Bonkers? US solar company glueing solar to roofs to reduce installation costs.","author":"Finn Peacock","date":"November 28, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"Innovation in solar never ceases to amaze me. But I can't decide if this particular innovation is genius or totally nuts. 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