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Max Lindegger

describes the building

ECO
of a model eco-centre
at Crystal Waters
Permaculture Village,
CENTRICITY Queensland.

I
n Crystal Waters, the teaching space has always been appropriate. The Crystal Waters Community Co-operative
rather basic – an old farmhouse that had its internal (the owners of the commercial land in Crystal Waters) were
walls removed. Other than an example of recycling, enthusiastic in their support.
the building was not a good example of environmental We see the building itself as an educational experience
building. We had wanted to build an environmentally sound for us and for those using it, comfortable to learn in and
education building for many years, but simply never had an example of environmental technology in building, water,
the funds. However, by 2000 we felt it was time to ‘bite the waste water and energy. We also planned that the building
bullet’ and to build such a centre – somehow! We had would serve some social function in the community, and
been putting aside funds (earned from our courses and be an attractive venue for movies, talks, discussions and
overseas consultancy work) for five years and so we had performances of many kinds.
accumulated much of what we would need. Assured by This article aims to provide some detail about the Main:
various government representatives that it was an excellent techniques, materials and decisions (including the Overflow from
project, worthy of government or institutional funding, we compromises!) of the construction process that we hope will the EcoCentre’s
were encouraged to go ahead. be useful for others who may be considering constructing rainwater
In early 2000, we chose a building designer (a past an ecological building. storage tank
student of ours!) who specialises in environmental design keeps the ponds
and asked him to create a building that was energy efficient, LOCATION topped up.
would use the best environmental practices and also remain The EcoCentre is situated in Crystal Waters Permaculture
affordable. We wanted the building to be an achievable Village, the UN Habitat Award winning ecovillage. We have Above:
example that others could replicate. We spent some time in placed the building in the commercial area of Crystal Waters, Max
community consultation and incorporated suggestions when on land that is owned by the community co-operative. We Lindegger.

www.permaculture.co.uk No. 31 Permaculture Magazine 15


wanted the EcoCentre a ‘soft’ surface to walk and sit on and one which was
to be reasonably close to comfortable in winter for unshod feet (we’ve made the space
the existing Crystal Waters a ‘no shoes’ zone). We decided to have a polished timber
commercial kitchen building, floor. We installed stone and broken concrete (recycled
where course participants eat from the cattle dip) under part of the floor to act as a cool
their meals. By building on store. Cool air is blown via an in-line fan through this area
the higher level the building up into the indoor teaching area in summer. We selected
is better positioned to catch blackbutt (Eucalyptus pilularis), a locally sourced non-
cooling breezes in summer, treated hardwood, for the verandah timber. The tongue-
and to avoid the frost-basin of and-groove timber flooring in the indoor teaching room
the lower ground in winter. is also blackbutt. It was important for us not to use treated
We had to deal with the timber, as we are concerned about the effects of the process.
remains of an old cattle dip, A problem (of which many house builders are unaware) is
a concrete bathtub about that off-cuts from such flooring should never be burned,
11m (36ft) long and 2m as this releases noxious gases.
(61⁄2ft) deep, built when the All the timber used in our building is untreated and
property was a cattle farm. thus had to be ordered specially – and all deliveries
double-checked.
ASPECT
It is difficult to design a WALLS
comfortable and energy Possibly the most striking feature of the EcoCentre is
efficient building if it is the load-bearing rammed-earth walls. While this makes it
facing in the wrong direction! principally an earth building, today’s technology and design
It is generally agreed here means there is no resemblance to a ‘mud hut’ – which is what
(the Southern Hemisphere) many people visualise when thinking of earth buildings. We
Top: that a building facing north (having an east/west axis) with find the method no more expensive than other building
The first a deviation of less than 20° to the east or west, is the best styles, and it provides the extra benefits of low maintenance,
rammed earth aspect for maximising passive solar opportunities. low embodied energy and excellent
wall goes up. The expected improvements to the efficiency of the acoustic and thermal qualities.
photovoltaic (PV) panels installed on the roof is an Rammed earth walls are built by
added bonus. compacting a slightly moist earth and
aggregate mix between plywood clad
NEEDS metal form-work, using, in our case,
The design incorporates the experience and wishes mechanical/pneumatic rammers.
accumulated by a good number of teachers/facilitators The walls are 300mm (1ft) thick,
over many, many years of teaching in all types of spaces. providing excellent thermal mass.
Centre: We are fortunate in having a magnificent climate and Other walls in the EcoCentre
The bamboo we wanted to make full use of the benefits this offers. are timber-stud, clad with various
used on the We wanted the space to be airy, yet compact, create materials. Cypress pine (Callitris sp.),
entrance wall enough roofed area for indoor and outdoor learning which does not attract termites, was
was grown at during any weather, and have room for at least 60 used on the walls in the ‘mud room’;
Crystal Waters. people to listen to a lecture, watch a movie or attend bamboo on the entrance wall, and
a meeting. We wanted space for participants to break hoop pine (Araucaria cunninghamii)
into small groups, perhaps to draw, make models, – a local species, grown in local
create large scale graphics or maybe to complete individual plantations – on the ceilings. A unique feature is the radially-
journals. All these requirements had to be accommodated sawn weather boards on part of the southern wall.
in the design. Radially-sawn timber wastes a lot less timber per log than
conventional milling, and we also like the finished look.
FLOORS
We wanted to minimise the ‘embodied energy’ of materials ROOF
used but at the same time the materials had to be appropriate We chose a zinc aluminium-coated steel roof in favour of
for the purpose. For the indoor teaching area we wanted tinted colourbond steel. Again the decision was based on
a number of factors. The roof can only be seen from far
Bottom: away, and thus the reflection of sunlight from it does not
These radially adversely affect anyone close by. The light colour allows it to
sawn timber reflect a higher amount of heat than a coloured roof.
boards were While the manufacture of steel requires a lot of
left over from energy (steel has quite a high level of embodied energy:
a construction 25-33MJ/kg = 19,200 BTU/lb), it is also relatively easy to
site. This recycle. Also, all the raw materials needed (such as iron
technique uses ore, zinc and coal) are sourced from within Australia. We
much more of considered that alternatives like earth, thatch or shingles
a log than were inappropriate, given that we wanted to collect and use
conventional rainwater as our potable water. Steel sheeting is lightweight
milling (less is (which means smaller rafters are required), fast to install
wasted) leaving and requires no maintenance to speak of. It’s hard to
an attractive beat as a roofing material for our situation, but possibly
edge. inappropriate in other areas.

16 Permaculture Magazine No. 31 www.permaculture.co.uk


softwood. No tropical timbers have been used at all. The Top:
verandah floor and the timber handrails have been sealed with The zinc-
Lanotec, a non-toxic oil finish made from lanolin. aluminium
coated steel
WATER roof goes on.
We live in an area which receives about 1,350mm of rain per
year. However, the rainfall is poorly distributed in the year,
with nearly all our rain falling during the summer months.
Winters can be very dry, with no rain at all for months on
end, while summers can be extremely wet, with very heavy
downpours. The EcoCentre has a roof catchment area of
approximately 320m2. This means that in an ‘average’ rainfall
year more than 430,000 litres of rainwater falls on, and
is collected from, our roof. With our low pollution levels
this means lots of clean drinking water. We have plumbed
ELECTRICAL the rainwater tank installed at the EcoCentre (made from
Our electrical installation seems, at first, quite standard – lots recyclable, food grade plastic) direct to the commercial
of power points and a mix of low energy fluorescent lights to kitchen which is situated below the EcoCentre. The tank
create a safe and bright environment even at night. But there holds 22,500 litres of water, which provides quite a few
is more to it than first appears! Up above the verandah sit days’ supply for the kitchen. If our tank is full we pump
24 photovoltaic (PV) panels which together have a maximum the water up to a higher tank and wait for more rain to fill
output capacity of 3 kW/h. They are connected to the mains our tank again.
electricity grid, which means that we do not have to use Sometimes, in heavy downpours, or at the end of the wet
batteries. The panels have an added little bonus for us – they season when the tank is full, neither tank can hold all the
are shading the roof they are fixed to, which means that the rainwater we would like to collect. Under these circumstances
verandah below is considerably cooler on a hot day. We did not the tank overflows into the ornamental ponds below the
have to install any insulation under this part of the roof. EcoCentre and this keeps them topped up and healthy.

INSULATION ‘WASTE’ WATER Centre:


There is mixed opinion about We are proud of our waste The glass
the need for insulation in water system. It is not a doors can be
our climate. It is true that we ‘waste’ water system at all opened and
lack the extremes of heat and really – the water is not the timber
cold that affect other parts wasted. It is a Biolytic Filter, shutter doors
of Australia. On the other a very clever system which pulled across
hand, we understand that treats black and grey water the opening.
people learn best in a moderate turning the waste into a Airflow and
temperature. Although our nutrient-rich resource. We light levels can
winter days are very mild use the resulting liquid to be separately
(in the low 20’s Celsius/mid irrigate the garden areas. adjusted using
60’s Fahrenheit), the early (More details about this individual
mornings can be chilly and system in a future issue. Ed.) louvre panels.
we get morning frosts on a The toilets are low flush
few days each year. Another systems, and we hope in the
factor was that we have designated the indoor lecture space as future to install an even smaller volume flush system – a 3/2
a ‘no shoes’ area. To make quite sure that the floor was not too litre flush: 3 litres maximum, 2 litres minimum. (In Australia,
cold for unshod feet, we decided to insulate the elevated timber all modern toilets have two buttons – a low volume flush
floor with a commercial product made from recycled shredded and a high volume flush, and the one selected for use in the
newspaper (120mm/5in thick). We also used the same insulation EcoCentre is the lowest water use toilet permitted under
material in the roof cavity (also at 120mm thickness). government regulations.) Such a reduction of water use in
a flush toilet makes a huge difference in water consumption
DOORS & WINDOWS over a 12 month period.
We’ve got a real mix here! Some new, some recycled. The
large doors into the main, indoor, teaching space were made
in Maleny from locally grown plantation hoop pine. We think
they are wonderful! The shutter doors were quite a find –
discovered in a demolition yard. That is also where we found
the solid doors for the store rooms (with their top-quality
locks), which came from an old Gympie hospital demolished
last year. Both the doors and the ceiling are of hoop pine,
but if you have a closer look at the timber you can see a
big difference in quality. The ceiling timber is probably from
plantation thinnings, while the timber for the doors would
have been selected from a larger log. Bottom:
Design
FINISHINGS students using
All the timber used for shelving in the store rooms is untreated the EcoCentre
hardwood and is unsealed. The timber trimmings are local space.

www.permaculture.co.uk No. 31 Permaculture Magazine 17


Top: INNOVATIONS
The 24 Biolytic Filter: this is a brilliant waste water treatment and
photovoltaic recycling system and we hope that people will be encouraged
(PV) panels on to use the technology in other situations once they have
the verandah seen our system.
roof provide Lanotec: this is a genuinely renewable resource, literally
more than ‘off the sheep’s back’! It is a lanolin-based product which
enough power is proving extremely adaptable. We have used the Lanotec
for the building product designed for timber on our outdoor verandah
with the excess area. Lanotec also produce a range of other lanolin based
being sold products, including some that are used for lubrication of
back to local machinery or have applications for the maritime industry.
power supplier. Indoor/outdoor teaching space: it seems obvious in
our climate to build a large space to encourage teaching
outdoors. Not only can you take advantage of the climate,
verandah space is much cheaper to build than a fully enclosed
room. By having the two areas we increase the ways the
FURNISHINGS building can be used.
We have tried to find hard-wearing, comfortable furniture, Grid connected PV system: we believe that we are one
made as far as possible from natural products. We also of the first Education Centres in Australia with a grid
preferred to buy as locally as possible. Good examples of interactive PV system.
this approach are the table setting on the verandah, which Recycling of cattle dip: the old dip has been an irritant
was made from ‘Grade 2’ for the community for a long time. We believe that the
hardwood (from the Cooroy concrete is well used as a ‘cold store’ under the building
timber mill – 50km away), and as the retaining wall. And that as a retaining wall it
and the book cabinets, which looks good too!
Centre: were made locally from
The verandah plantation-grown pine. WE CAN ALL...
floor is Many of the ideas and techniques we have used in the
blackbutt, ROOM TO IMPROVE EcoCentre here at Crystal Waters have applications in any
a locally The building is not a perfect type of home or building. We can all use: rammed earth
grown and example of building biology construction, non-treated timber, low flush toilets, energy
sourced – there is always room for saving lighting, recycled materials, non-toxic finishes, insulation
hardwood. improvement! The zinc in floor and ceiling, passive solar design, biological waste water
It is very aluminium roof may be treatment and recycled water. Some of us can use physical
hardy and considered environmentally barriers against termites and many of us can also install a grid
resistant to unsound by some. However, connected PV system and solar hot water. All in all, the building
termites. we could not find a material cost AU$230,000 (about £83,000 /US$117,000). This sum
which matched the many includes the building, furnishings, the photovoltaic system, the
positive aspects of our steel roof at a price which we could audiovisual system, and some landscaping. And so at the end of
afford. Since we wanted a building which demonstrated the building project, the EcoCentre is ready for operation
what can be achieved within a realistic budget, we chose
zinc aluminium. Max Lindegger was principle designer of Crystal Waters
Concrete has high-embodied energy, but we had no Permaculture Village and is now the Global Ecovillage
choice but to use it in places. However, we tried to minimize Network’s (GEN) Programme Director for Oceania/Asia
its use as far as possible. (GENOA Inc.). He has been running sustainable design
The electrical wiring is PVC coated, which is a highly courses in Australia and around the world for many years.
undesirable material. PVC
is very difficult to recycle or
to dispose of safely. It gives
off noxious gases during
its manufacture, which may
harm workers. An alternative
does not seem to be available
yet in Australia, although it
has been so for many years
in Europe. The plumbing
pipes also contain PVC.
A number of products
are imported, which of
course means energy has
been expended transporting
them to us, e.g. the power
inverter (which converts
Bottom: DC to AC power) is from
The EcoCentre Germany, and the slate on
viewed from the fireplace hearth is from
the front. India.

18 Permaculture Magazine No. 31 www.permaculture.co.uk

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