The Superhome Movement has adapted well to the challenges of 2020. The annual tours have been replaced with video tours and virtual tours, and the team have been busy working on the Healthy Homes Design Guide.

Superhome Virtual Tours

As an alternative this year, the annual Superhome tours were instead completed as video tours and interviews, now available on the Superhome website.

The team are also working in partnership with Beca, on a new 3D virtual tour tool which will compliment physical and video tours. The demonstration home at 11 Church Square has been 3D scanned as an exemplar and will be made available in the next month. The new 3D virtual tour tool will enable the public to walk through the homes and provide links to technical and professional data as an education tool. Thanks to GIB for being a Superhome tour partner.

Healthy Homes Design Guide

The Healthy Homes Design Guide has had input from over 70 professionals across New Zealand, working together to improve New Zealand’s housing quality. With many of New Zealand’s homes being cold, damp, and mouldy it certainly needs improving. NZ’s building standards are over 20 years behind, and it is making us sick. We have one of highest rates of asthma death in high income countries*. Asthma New Zealand, a supporter of the guide, says that 87% of their patients live in housing unfit for human habitation.

The Superhome Movement’s focus is education through open source sharing of new ideas, technologies and techniques to improve the design and construction of all homes. The purpose of the Healthy Home Design Guide is to provide a step change pathway to help designers bridge the gap between code minimum compliant new dwellings and International Best Practice. It provides recommendations for Healthy, Resilient, Low Carbon Homes that are simple to achieve and don’t require an arduous and costly rating or certification process.

The guide is in the final stages of editing and is intended to be released late 2020. A Renovation Design Guide will follow next year.  To keep updated on the guide’s release or to join the movement, you can sign up through the Superhome website or by emailing info@superhome.co.nz.

*Asthma NZ