If you’re in the process of building a new home, the design decisions you make now can greatly impact your energy bills for years to come.
In this week’s episode of Open Homes Australia, Natalee Bowen, one of Australia’s most well-known and awarded designers, meets a family who future-proofed their stunning new build against high energy bills with smart design choices and a brilliant Huawei solar, inverter and battery solution supplied and installed by Empower Solar Perth.
Last week, Energy Matter’s CEO Rosh Ramnarain also caught up with Natalee for a one-on-one chat about the award-winning show Renovate or Rebuild, her design studio Indah Island and this week’s episode of Open Homes Australia.
Below is a recap of Empower Solar’s feature Open Homes Australia and some highlights from Rosh’s interview with Natalee.
A Modern Home Designed Around Family-Living
In episode 5 of Open Homes Australia, we head to Floreat, WA – one of the jewels in the crown for the Town of Cambridge. Nestled between the city and the sea, Floreat’s modern architecture, picturesque parks, state-of-the-art amenities and strong sense of community defines what a vibrant and diverse suburb should be.
Here Natalee meets Wei, whose young family has only recently moved into their brand new contemporary modern home. Wei gives Natalee the grand tour, showing off the home’s unique and stylish features, each carefully selected to suit his family’s needs and lifestyle.
Grand and spacious yet inviting thanks to the use of subtle hues and natural materials, the home is filled with just the right amount of natural light.
With two small children, Wei and his wife wanted to make sure their new home was comfortable and practical, without sacrificing on style. One way they achieved this was by installing timber floors with underfloor heating throughout – perfect for little feet on those cold winter mornings!
Another practical yet luxurious touch is the under staircase wine cellar. This is not only a smart storage solution but also makes for a stunning showcase feature when you first enter the home.
Upstairs is a dedicated kid’s haven, with a magazine-worthy playroom and whimsical yet tastefully-decorated children’s bedrooms.
A Perth home wouldn’t be complete without incorporating indoor/outdoor living, and this home is no exception. Large windows and sliding glass doors open up the living zone to the alfresco and pool area, creating a seamless indoor/outdoor entertaining space that’s perfect for Perth’s sunny climate.
Empowering Homeowners with Huawei
A large five-bedroom home with plenty of living space, soaring ceilings and luxurious touches such as underfloor heating is truly a dream come true – but could easily spell disaster for your energy bills!
Wei and his wife were conscious of the high cost of running a large home and decided to take proactive measures to future-proof their new build against rising electricity prices.
Their approach was two-fold – the first aim was to minimise their need for electricity by making smart design choices such as orienting the home to make the most of natural light. They also sought energy-efficient windows.
“We particularly asked for double-glazing with commercial-grade framing for all the windows”, said Wei.
The second tactic was to install a Huawei solar and energy storage solution supplied and installed by Empower Solar Perth, which would offset their energy usage and dramatically reduce their power bills. The 14kW system includes east and north-facing solar panels, a Huawei LUNA home battery and Huawai’s latest inverter.
Natalee spoke with Anthony Lentini from Empower Solar Perth about what sets the company apart from the competition.
“We’re probably the only fully 5 star rated renewable energy company in WA right now”, he said.
Natalee asked Anthony how his team helped Wei and his family achieve their goal of saving on energy costs.
“Because we knew the bills were going to be massive, we knew straight away they needed at least 10kW worth of inverters, plus battery storage from home…we’ve got 10kW of storage for nighttime”, he said.
Both Anthony and Natalee agreed it’s a “no-brainer” to get solar in WA with all that beautiful sunlight to harness, and the supplied solar panels and Huawei inverter and battery solution were the ideal fit for the family.
Rosh from Energy Matters provided some further details on the Huawei LUNA home battery, explaining it is a flexible and modular choice, offering 5kW modules that are expandable to up to a massive 30kW of battery storage.
Wei and his family are now saving hundreds of dollars a month on their electricity bills. They can feel empowered knowing they’ve not only made a wise investment for their own family’s future, but by choosing solar they’re also doing their bit to help the environment.
Watch the full episode here on 9Now.
Road To Zero Podcast: Natalee Bowen
In this episode, Energy Matter’s CEO Rosh Ramnarain caught up with Natalee Bowen who has been in the design industry for over 20 years. Renowned Hamptons expert and founder of design studio Indah Island, Natalee’s work has received many industry awards and is now featured in countless magazines, social media and TV programs such as Dream Homes, Ready Set Reno, Luxury Homes Revealed, Best Houses Australia, and Through the Front Gate.
Below are just a few highlights from the interview – the full podcast can be viewed via the video linked above or streamed for free on Spotify here.
Rosh kicked off the interview by asking Natalee about her start in the design industry. Natalee joked that although it’s technically been 20 years since she started her career, it seems like a lifetime.
“My dad was a builder so I probably started when I was two,” she laughed.
“You know going around building sites, picking up stuff and making stuff – it’s one of those things that’s always been within me”.
She also provided some insight into how she has managed to maintain such a long and successful career in the design industry.
“You’ve always got to stay astute. In the ever-evolving world of design and products and everything to do with creativity – you’ve always got to be on your game”.
Natalee has proven she is more than capable of adapting to the trends and changes in the industry, expanding her wildly successful design studio Indah Island to offer an end-to-end design and build service.
“Indah Island started out more an interior design focus…my whole business has evolved from beautiful styling through to getting a builder’s licence – so we encompass everything now from start to finish”.
“This is deliberate, purely because to do the beautiful, you have to do the foundation – you’ve got to literally work from the ground up to create these amazing homes”.
While based out of WA, Indah Island has customers all around Australia and even internationally in cities like New York and even the Hamptons, the birthplace of her signature style.
Later in the interview, Rosh and Natalee spoke about sustainable home design and their journey through the hit show Renovate or Rebuild where Natalee was a judge.
“The show emulates that great conversation starter…what is a 5-star building?”
She spoke about how the show influenced her clients, who previously didn’t care about sustainable design “stuff”, to suddenly think seriously about what star rating they needed to have and what their energy bill might end up costing based on their design decisions.
“The show really got that conversation started”, she said.
“It was a great experience and I’m really looking forward to the next series”.
Catch the rest of the interview via the links above!
Open Homes Australia: Season 5 Airing Now
When you buy a home, you’re not just buying a roof over your head – you’re buying a place to call your own, a sanctuary from the outside world. Your home should be a reflection of your unique style and personality, and it should be a space that you’re proud to come home to at the end of a long day.
Here at Energy Matters, we believe that the best homes are designed with sustainability front of mind – not only will a sustainably-designed home keep you comfortable year-round, but it will save you thousands in energy bills while also helping the environment.
Energy Matters is thrilled to be partnering with Open Homes Australia for its 5th season.
This season continues the tradition of showcasing incredible Australian homes, breath-taking designs, and sustainable choices that will be sure to inspire and awe you. Featuring some of Australia’s most recognisable designers and creatives, as well as many from your favourite seasons of The Block and Renovate or Rebuild – this is a show you don’t want to miss!
Catch the next episode on Saturday April 16th @ 4:30pm on 9Life!
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