After shivering through three Bendigo winters, Chris Corr and his family are finally cosy thanks to their smart renovations and new HRV ventilation system

Like many recent arrivals to Bendigo, Chris and Karen Corr bought an old weatherboard house close to the heart of the city with the intention to renovate and improve it where needed to create a comfortable family home for their two young children.

Almost 100 years old, their new home proved anything but comfortable in the cold winter months that followed and for the first couple of years the family shivered when the thermostat fell.

Being concerned with sustainability, Chris and Karen opted to install insulation and replace their leaky old windows to increase their comfort. After getting several quotes they installed batts in the ceiling and the walls of their renovated kitchen. They are putting Foilboard under their recently polished timber floor. Their windows were replaced with custom made uPVC, European, double-glazed windows supplied by NuEco in Melbourne. Similar high quality windows are now available locally in Bendigo from the Windows Factory.

Finally the Corrs installed a HRV heating system which they had seen at a friend's place. The HRV is a thermostatically controlled ventilation system which filters warm air from the roof cavity and blows it into the house. The couple noticed the difference immediately. Chris says:

"Even on a mildly sunny day our gal iron roof and ceiling insulation means our roof space heats up pretty rapidly. On a 13oC day with a bit of sun it will be 19 or 20oC up there. The fan just pumps it down into the house through a medical-grade filter. On even a mild day with some sun, 4-6 oC can be added to the whole house for a total of just over 1 kWh of electricity to run the fan". The system will also work in reverse in the warmer months pumping filtered cooler air from the roofspace into the home during the night.

With all the changes the family no longer dreads the arrival of winter, nor their winter bills. Chris said:

"We've noticed a small increase in our electricity bill, but that's because the fan is working. It's a small cost considering the benefits and the fact that we can access all that free heat sitting in our roof space. It's a lot cheaper than say installing and running central heating."

There's always something you can do to renovate your home to be more sustainable, comfortable and cheaper to run. Why not check out our Refit n' Save deals today and take the plunge?