How to build your new home for comfort

Your home is your refuge. The place you escape to after a long day, where you can kick off your shoes and relax and be yourself... unless the windows are dripping in condensation, your breath is misting in front of your face, and the space you're in is an eyesore.

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Building for comfort is rarely articulated as a thought in itself. Still, it is always in the back of your mind because of all the things your home should do for you—healthy, beautiful, light and energy efficient—it should primarily be a place where you feel comfortable.

But what constitutes comfort?

Comfort, as defined by the Oxford English Dictionary, is a state of physical ease. A study called "What is a comfortable home? - A definition developed from homebuyer's perspective" by Victoria University of Wellington and BRANZ identified some of the factors that influence comfort as being:

  • Heating and cooling

  • Dry

  • Peaceful

  • Good lighting (particularly natural lighting)

  • Clean air

Emerging technologies in home construction can help tick all those comfort boxes and more.

A system that heats and cools and comforts

Many people associate comfort with warmth—being cosy—unless it's summer when a cool breeze is comfortable all on its own. 

There are, of course, several ways to tamper with temperature in your home. Air conditioning (noisy), insulation (necessary), and the ever-popular fireplace (takes effort) can help create a cosy environment.

But there's a new system that trumps all of those. Maddren Homes can help you with a system that ticks all the boxes; it's peaceful, heats and cools and keeps the air clean and dry—Waterware Heating & Cooling's Radiant Energy. 

Radiant Energy is a system that manipulates the surface temperature of items in your house to heat or cool as required by letting radiant energy perform its magic. It is a silent heating (and cooling) system that is low cost to run, healthy and offers uniformity of temperature. Because there are no air blowers, there is no air movement and no recirculation or collection of dust particles, which means cleaner air.

To find out more, talk to your Maddren Homes representative about your Radiant Energy options, including:

  • Active ceiling system, heating and cooling.

  • Underfloor heating and cooling.

  • Radiator heating.

Light and dry, it's all in the windows

Low E and Argon gas are types of window joinery that can improve the insulation in your home. 

Low E (low emissivity)—a virtually invisible coating applied to double-glazing—retains heat and blocks excessive heat.

In winter months, when heating is being used inside the house, Low E glass reflects warm air back into the place instead of letting it

escape through the glass. 

Argon gas helps to insulate by minimising heat exchange through the window. As a result, it can reduce the possibility of condensation on your windows (the Kiwi's perennial winter nightmare).

But what about waking up to cold floors?

Maddren Homes can help you install Waterware ComfortZone, a premium underfloor heating package that offers complete comfort through the cold winter.

The ComfortZone package provides you with a constant form of heating with consistent temperature from one part of the home to the next at a fraction of the price.

When building your dream home with comfort in mind, working with a trusted builder familiar with existing building regulations and the latest trends in home building technology is important. A builder like Maddren Homes.

Maddren Homes