6 Star Energy Rating Report

7 Star Energy Rating reports will be mandatory soon.

In NSW, ACT and Queensland, 7 Star will come into full effect in October 2023.

Victoria will be mandatory on the 1st May 2024 with the other states to follow in 2024-2025.

Contact us today on 1300 248 348 to find out how we can help you with the new requirements.

A 6 Star Energy Rating Report measures the heating and cooling loads of a dwelling to determine how much energy is required per year to keep the occupants comfortable. It considers design layout, orientation, windows, doors, and building material, amongst other things, to form a zone-by-zone analysis of the energy required to keep the home warm in winter and cold in summer. A 6 Star Energy Rating is required for all new homes and extensions.

We use the latest FirstRate 5 software and have completed advanced modelling workshops conducted by Design Mattes so that we can perform 6-star energy rating reports on the trickiest home designs.

A 6 Star Energy Rating is required for all new homes and extensions.

As a minimum, we will need floor plans, elevations and section to include:

One overall dimension on each floor
North Point
All window and door sizes
Building materials
Construction types
Floor coverings
Exhaust fan locations
Lighting plan
Neighbouring information

For more complex sites/design, having the CAD files will also help to model critical information.

6 Star Energy Rating Reports are mandatory for all new dwellings, apartments and extensions

In May 2011, a mandatory 6-star energy rating was required before any building permits were issued. Now, the reason I use the words ‘estimated’ and ‘theoretical’ in my discussions is that unlike white goods or electronics that go through thousands of hours of R&D and testing to work out their actual performance and energy consumptions, dwellings have a 6-star energy rating issued prior to the start of construction. In an ideal world, with a competent builder who checks to ensure insulation has been installed correctly and windows have been chosen to match what is stated in the energy rating report, you could indeed live in a comfortable 6-star home.

According to a report issued by the Department of Environment, Water, Heritage and Arts, heating and cooling accounts for 40% of the overall energy use in our homes on average within Australia.

What the 6-star energy requirement also aims to achieve is better thought in the design process to better utilise solar passive design principles, a method termed by using that beautiful warm winter sun that sits low enough in the sky so that it can penetrate through those north facing living areas where you spend most of your time – you don’t pay for the sun – that’s free energy!

Upload or email plans
Digitally accept online fee proposal
Receive preliminary report for review
Payment activated
Receive final report and stamped drawings

Frequently asked questions

How long will a 6 Star Energy Rating take?

We will have all preliminary energy rating reports back within 72 hours for single dwellings and dual occupancy. This ensures that your project progresses steadily. We prepare significant townhouse developments and apartment complexes within the week also. We are available to meet urgent deadlines and always happy to discuss your requirements and timeframes.

When is the best time to do a 6 Star Energy Rating?

The best time to do an energy rating is in the initial design stage once the design is completed. Once the results are calculated, we can analyze the weaknesses of a design, zone by zone, and offer recommendations to improve the overall energy rating. Completing a 6 Star Energy Rating at the end of the project gives you limited options to what can be done to get the dwelling up to 6 stars if the house performs poorly.

When were 6 stars introduced, and will it be mandatory to go beyond this?

6 stars were introduced in May 2010, and as a result, insulation upgrades and double glazing were nominated to achieve the additional star for most dwellings. The NCC 2022 is set to be released soon, and with it, there will be an increase in the minimum required star rating. It had yet to be determined; however, the preliminary discussion indicates it could be either 6.5 or 7 stars.

Now, more than ever, it will be essential to prepare a preliminary energy rating as soon as the initial designs are complete. This will provide a greater understanding of how the dwellings perform and what improvements can be made so that your insulation and glazing costs don’t significantly increase.

Four councils now require preliminary 6.5-star energy ratings when a townhouse development planning application is submitted, with more councils to follow suit.

Do you need double-glazed windows to achieve a 6-star energy rating?

It is possible to achieve a 6-star energy rating without the need for double-glazed windows and upgraded insulation if sound passive design principles have been implemented. However, we recommend nominating double glazing to all windows regardless of the star rating. The benefits over single glazing will be appreciated once the dwelling is built and lived in. Single glazed windows offer little protection during the cold winter months or hot summer days.

What will be provided as part of the process?

You will receive a full report with specifications, listing what is required to achieve a 6-star energy rating. Our reports are professional-looking, easy to read and understand and provide all the necessary information required. We will also provide a specification list and certification stamps for the construction drawings so that you can apply for a building permit.

Are 6-star homes more expensive to build?

A home that has not considered good passive design could have the potential to add high costs to the build by requiring expensive double glazing windows and doors and insulation. By viewing the site’s orientation and designing the layout appropriately, with careful consideration to a window location, size, and shading, a 6 star home is achievable with minimal additional costs.

A House Energy Rating is the index of a building’s thermal performance (i.e. heating and cooling requirements) for residential homes in Australia.

Volume Builders

Cost-effective and efficient reports are essential when working with the volume builder market. We have optimised our automation to be able to produce quick energy rating reports and with the ability to pass the savings back to our clients. Our back-end system also keeps clients up to date with where the project is. We currently can produce 100 reports a week.

6 Star energy rating reports for extensions and alterations

The size of the extension and the internal works dictate how we achieve compliance.

Over 50%
Under 50%

If the extension and the internal works are over 50%, the whole building will need to achieve 6 stars. Regulation 233 of the building regulations 2018 stipulates that any extension work over the last three years that is more than 50% of the original volume, the whole code applies.

So, the whole building must achieve a 6-star energy rating report.

We will treat the existing and alteration works as a “new” building and provide a 6-star energy rating report.

The client will need to apply for partial compliance, requesting an exemption for the existing walls, windows, and flooring due to the cost of bringing these up to the current 6-star code. The argument is that it will cost far more in construction costs to perform these upgrades than the potential in energy savings the owners may receive throughout the home’s life.

If the extension and internal works are under 50%, a two rating method can be used. This method enables us to perform a 6-star energy rating on the existing dwelling first with all the current conditions added, with an average result of 1.5-3.5 stars that can be expected. Then we perform another 6-star energy rating with the proposed extension also.

The proposed volume needs to be 6 stars, but this is averaged out with the existing dwelling results.

This method is often more cost-effective as you only need to concentrate on the proposed extension and the existing roof cavity.

Alterative solutions

If we are working on a tight site with limited solar access and difficulty achieving the minimum 6 stars, we can prepare an alternative solution report application. This alternative solution report will demonstrate that an alternative method can produce better energy savings than the 6-star rating.

For more info, please visit https://www.nathers.gov.au/