The requirements for planning and building a new home are constantly evolving in order to improve the quality of our homes as well as lower the impact they are having on our environment. As a result, a substantial part of the Building Code now relates to energy efficiency of buildings.
New homes and renovations must now meet the standards set out in Section 9.36 of the National Building Code of Canada. There are a number of acceptable ways (or ‘paths’) that can be used to comply with these building code requirements which can also lower environmental impact, provide cost benefits, and increase comfort.
With these benefits in mind, we feel that energy ratings should be an integral part of the design, not an afterthought. So rather than outsourcing this important part of your design, Global Design Studio is proud to be one of the few design and drafting offices in Grande Prairie trained to provide in-house Prescriptive and Performance Energy Audits! This gives you more choice and flexibility over the design of your new home!
- Performance -
whole house solution
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no individual component requirements
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potential cost benefits
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typically relies on high efficiency mechanical equipment
- Prescriptive -
all building components must meet specified minimums
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streamlined design process
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may require hrv and/or
higher insulation values
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typically relies on a higher performing envelope
- Trade Off -
prescriptive with trade-off
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similar to prescriptive but allows 'trade-off' compensation for components that don't meet specified minimums
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similar pro's and con's to prescriptive ratings