As we look to the future, sustainable living choices are made everywhere, every day. We consider the environment when it comes to how we bring home our shopping, how we discard our rubbish, and how we make product choices. It’s also an increasingly key construction consideration. Exhibit A; this gorgeous contemporary residence in inner-city Melbourne. This was to be the owners’ dream home. And energy efficiency was non-negotiable.

Melbourne winters are notoriously cold and rainy, while the summers can reach extreme highs in temperature. With this in mind, the owners were determined to include passive Environmentally Sustainable Design (ESD) principles to reduce the need for artificial heating and cooling, and combat condensation.

In consultation with architects, Melbourne Design Studios, and window-and-door fabricator, All Weather Windows, the family chose to use state-of-the-art AWS ThermalHEART™ framing systems.

Benefits include a thermal break that minimises the transfer of heat and cold through the aluminium frame, giving the windows and doors excellent insulation properties and maintaining interior comfort during the height of winter and summer. The systems also mean the home can include sweeping expanses of glass while still meeting the strict Building Code.

The Commercial range of ThermalHEART™ CentreGLAZE™ framing systems (Series 804) allow for large fixed window and awning systems, flooding the home with glorious natural light.

Meanwhile, the Designer Series 731 ThermalHEART™ sliding door – one of the home’s many ‘wow factors’ – features soaring glass panes up to three metres in height. Opened wide, the doors allow cool summer breezes to enter the home, improving internal air quality and connecting the occupants to the great outdoors.

24mm-thick Insulated Glazing Units (IGUs) ensure there’s no compromise on strength or performance during inclement weather.

Bold custom black matt finishes on the windows and doors sit beautifully with the timber exterior and frame the home perfectly against the vast Victorian sky. Built to last, it’s testament to what can be achieved when sustainability is placed firmly at the centre of home design. 

Photographer: Peter Clarke