We all know that the other Australian capital cities are jealous of Perth’s stunning beaches and sunshine. But truth be told, calling Perth home has its share of pros and cons. With all that fun in the sun can come long, hot summers, wet winters, and the occasional extreme weather conditions.
Perth’s weather patterns are becoming even more profound due to climate change, prompting homeowners and builders to think outside the box in order to climate-proof their new homes in and around the Perth metropolitan area. If you’re planning to build or renovate in WA’s capital city, making climate-ready considerations will make your home more comfortable, more energy-efficient, more cost-effective, and even future-proof.
Here are some key considerations to make when designing a home that thrives in Perth’s unique climate and adapts to the weather around it.
Be Solar Smart & Build With Perth-based Panels
Installing solar panels and pairing them with an energy storage battery can drastically reduce your power bills and even allow you to sell excess energy back to the grid. So solar panels will not only protect your wallet in the long run, but they’ll make your new build climate-ready by prioritising renewable energy over fossil fuel-fed alternatives.
If you are looking to install solar panels in Perth, be sure to employ a reliable, local solar provider that understands the unique environmental factors that will shape your solar installation and maintenance. Keeping things local also ensures that your panels are sourced from other local suppliers and businesses, so you may even benefit from special deals, bundles, or bargains.
Likewise, in Perth’s extreme climate, emergency maintenance may be required, so partnering with a nearby and trusted solar panel company will save you time and worry. You never know what could happen when, so it’s best to protect your investment with speedy, specialised service.
Solar panels are by far one of the best sustainable choices you can make for your new Perth home. That’s why this particular sustainable home improvement tops today’s list as a great method for ensuring your property has the resources it needs to work towards self-sufficiency.
Make The Most of Your Energy with Insulation
A lot of older homes in Perth are lacking adequate insulation, which means that they will always end up being too cold in winter and too hot in summer. This can spell disaster for homeowners who lose thousands of dollars a year juggling air conditioning and heating emissions – which inevitably leads to inflated utility bills.
A lot of these frustrations can be avoided by building your new home with insulation, like glasswool and rockwool, foil, and foam. Installing insulation in your roof, walls, and floors can allow for consistent indoor temperatures by preventing cooler and warmer air from escaping.
This can also be achieved by installing double glazed windows that will allow sunlight to warm up a room without losing the heat over time, keeping interiors cosier for longer in winter. Choosing light-coloured roofing and cladding can also help reflect sunlight away from your house, protecting the conditions inside upstairs during sunnier months.
By creating a thermally stable environment with insulation techniques, your new Perth home will be climate-proof and cost-effective by depending less on air conditioning and heaters. This will keep your Perth home comfortable all year long regardless what season you’re in.
Use Smart Technology for a Smarter Home
Another way to climate-proof your new home and save money is to take advantage of smart home technology. There are countless options available that can help automate certain house features to actively manage your home’s climate readiness.
Smart thermostats can automatically adjust heating and cooling based on weather conditions outside, even on unpredictable days. They can be set to timers so the heater and A/C can shut off on their own after reaching a preset, ideal temperature.
Automated blinds and shutters can be operated remotely and help control sunlight and condition insulation throughout the day based on light exposure. Your home’s interiors can benefit from a sunny day at noon, close the curtains automatically as the sun sets, and keep your rooms warmer for longer.
Home automation can level up your homes by optimising usage and identifying savings opportunities. By integrating these systems into your Perth build, you can fine-tune comfort while reducing unnecessary energy waste on any kind of day.
Design Your Home for Extreme Weather
While Perth isn’t in a cyclone-prone region like northern WA or Queensland, severe storms and high winds do occur. Climate change has also made more extreme, rare weather events more frequent.
We could learn a lot from our QLD friends and family by building our homes with extreme rain and wind in mind. While eliminating any and all weather damage is impossible, building with resilience now can mitigate impact and prevent costly repairs in the future.
When building your new home in Perth, consider cyclone-proofing your house with fixings and bracings in the roof structures and awnings. These will help the buildings stand strong against harsh winds.
Try to incorporate impact-resistant roofing materials to protect against falling debris or stray tree branches. Secure your guttering systems with weather-resistant adhesives to handle heavy rainfalls and winds. Localised flooding can be avoided by designing sufficient stormwater drainage that moves water away from the building.
Features like these that take extreme weather conditions into consideration ensure your new home remains safe and functional during unexpected weather events. Your new Perth house will stand the test of time if it can stand up against a boom cyclone!
A Climate-Ready Home Is Perth-Ready!
A climate-ready home in Perth is far more achievable than you may think. By factoring in solar panelling, insulation, smart technology, and weather resistance from the very start of your building process, you’ll end up with a home that works with the environment rather than against it.
Whether you’re breaking ground on a new building or upgrading an existing property, now is the perfect time to design for the Perth climate of today and tomorrow. With the right planning, your home will be ready for whatever Western Australian weather throws at it, protecting both your investment and everyone inside.
