I am sitting on my chair at the kitchen table and starring at the window, which was covered with ice on the inside of our first rental property in Fernhill/New Zealand. I am utterly frustrated, angry, feel like I am a total failure or even a complete looser bringing my family (with 2 young children, 5 years old) from Germany, where I had an insulated home with a luxury underfloor heating. In New Zealand I was wearing my beanie, gloves, thick socks & a thick piyama of course from “The Warehouse”, I thought to myself: “This is crazy, how many children are suffering from uninsulated homes in New Zealand, like my kids do? How many kids cannot concentrate at school, because they are busy with keeping themselves warm, or even suffering from Asthma, as my son did? It hit me, that was the pivot point of my self pity, anger & frustration of feeling helpless or even hopeless. That was my purpose and it’s literally right in front of me. Being in the industry for so long back in Germany, I can make a positive impact to New Zealand’s society. Even if I know that it is a male dominated industry and no way an easy walk in the park, but I won’t give up, until I get there, where I want to be and that’s building healthy homes for you & me, which have a smaller footprint, non-toxic and preferably designed & build the way how it should be. It won’t matter, how big or small.
My name is Claudia Elisabeth Kaltenstadler from CoolSpaces. Being a Sustainable House Campaigner & Consultant, I have made it to my mission to build & offer the most sustainable products, cause no unnecessary harm, use our business to inspire, implement solutions to the economical, social & environmental issues for New Zealand & beyond borders.
What makes a home healthy? There are 9 critical points to consider, to achieve that goal.
- Get your house airtight (measured with a Blower Door Test)
- Pack insulation in your walls, floor & roof as much as possible
- Eliminate thermal bridges to avoid condensation & performance losses
- Install a mechanical heat recovery ventilation system to eliminate moisture in your home & CO2 to stay healthy
- Install an underfloor heating, which helps for heating in winter, but cooling in summer.
- Get high performance windows (European Windows), which are airtight & perform efficiently in your home.
- Use only non-toxic paint in your home, because your house is airtight it can cause potential harm to your body.
- Install Solar Panels to benefit from low energy consumption
- Pay attention to weather-tightness, specific complex roofs or extra dormers can be tricky
Contact me on: coolspaces.co or book a time with me to discuss: Book a time with Claudia
It took a long time until the market has accepted these homes in New Zealand and it was tough. I often thought of giving up & just enjoy life, but when it gets tough, I always think about that time when I was sitting at the table, thinking about the suffering of children, including mine & families who are sick & waiting for companies, who solve their daily challenges. The industry is waking up and it’s great to see so many like minded professionals, who want to see the change as badly as I do! Feel free to have a friendly chat with me. We need more professionals who change the industry. Hope to make you curious about our company and feel free to contact us.
