6 Star Energy Ratings and Artificial Lighting Requirements

May 1st 2012 is when the minimum star rating required for residential projects will be increased to 6 stars.

There has been a lot of work going into investigating the effects this will have on the building industry, to ensure the changes required to build processes can be met without disruption or excessive cost.

However there is more to complying with the new energy efficiency regulations than just getting a 6 star rating from the House Energy Rating Software. The BCA has included other clauses which must be complied with, in addition to the assessment performed by your energy rating assessor.

In this article we will look at complying with the Artificial Lighting regulation – BCA Vol 2 3.12.5.5

In essence this regulation states that there is a maximum amount of lighting allowed for any specific area.

Maximum Lighting Allowances

The maximum wattage allowed for each area are:

5W / m² in a Class 1 Building

4W / m² on a verandah or balcony attached to a class 1 building

3W / m² in a class 10 Building.

Example:

Area Name Area (m²) Maximum Wattage Total Wattage

Main House 190 5 950 Watts

Alfresco 25 4 100 Watts

Balcony 5 4 20 Watts

Garage 36 3 108 Watts

These totals are not able to be averaged over the house. So if you took a 50w light fitting you would only be able to have 19 fittings for inside the house. 2 Fittings for the Alfresco, 2 for the garage and a single 20w fitting for the Balcony.

Advice is still being bought from The Building Commission to clarify that the wattage of the globe can be used as opposed to the maximum rating of the fitting

When an Energy Rating is done for you ensure the lighting calculations are included in the process.

This can be done by providing you with a compliance report that nominates the maximum wattage allowed and removes the need to provide an electrical plan which may vary. This compliance report can be transported through to pre-start meetings with a calculation section included to ensure that the maximums are not exceeded during the selection process.

The new 6 star energy rating regulations will mean a change to the way builders, architects and building designers conduct their business. To ensure a smooth transition, the integration of energy rates into your system needs to be thought out before it is mandatory.

To help you do that, make sure you are in contact with a competent energy rating analyst to help you with your approval process.