External Assessment Features in the Scorecard Tool

Feb 2021

Additional features & assumptions

Features only previously present in the tropical pilot of Scorecard have been added into the standard
‘temperate’ version.

These features will be available from early 2021.

External Features
A new Tab has been created, called “Tropical” in the tropical pilot, but renamed to ‘External
features” in the mainstream Scorecard.

This contains most of the new information for the Scorecard.

Roof Colour
Roof colour can be Light, Medium or Dark.

The rules for colour are based on the National Construction Code.
The Building Code of Australia has classified roof colour on the basis of their solar absorptance,
referred herein as Light (L < 0.40), Medium (M < 0.60), Dark (D > 0.60).

Bluescope ColorBond colours are listed against the NCC criteria here:

http://www.steel.com.au/products/coated-steel/colorbond-steel/basix-and-bca-classification

Where there are several different colour roofs, chose the colour which represents the largest total area.

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Wall Colour
Wall colour can be Light, Medium or Dark.

As above, the rules for colour are based on the NCC.

Where there are several different colour walls, chose the colour which represents the largest total
area.

Evidence Requirements: Evidence of the roof and wall colour will need to be uploaded. A photo of
the wall and roof colour is most likely captured in the photo taken of the house. Take additional
photos if the wall or roof colour is different in other areas of the house.

Roof Ventilation
Roof ventilation is handled via the presence of wind or electrically powered roof ventilators.

Enter the number of each present.

Evidence Requirements: Evidence of roof ventilators is required. This may be captured with house
photos, or a screen capture from a satellite image of the house.

Eave Depth
Wall shading by eaves is important in tropical climates.

On the External Features tab, enter the average eave length (for eaves that shade the walls) in each
of the four directions (N, E, S, W).

Note that eaves over windows still must be entered for each window.

If the house is double storey, and there is an eave on the top storey but not the bottom storey, then
halve the eave depth or use 300mm if the eave is 300 or 450mm.

If a wall is connected to another building (an apartment, unit or semi-detached house), then use ‘no
walls in direction’. Use the majority if only part of a wall is connected.

Use the same direction rules for the walls as for window direction in the manual.

Evidence Requirements: Evidence of eave lengths is required. This may be adequately captured by a
photo of the front and back of the house. Take an additional photo if the eaves are not clearly seen.
This may also be used as evidence for eaves over windows.

Windows tab - Highly Openable Windows

Ventilation impacts are added by setting windows as “Highly Openable”.

This setting should be used for window types that open nearly 100%, such as casement or louvres.

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Evidence Requirements: Evidence of each type of highly openable window is required. One photo
can be used for all similar types of highly openable windows.

Zone Cooling tab - Ceiling Fans

Ceiling fans have been added in the cooling screen for each zone. A mixture of fan sizes can be
added.

Fans impact the assessment by reducing the cooling requirement. As the Scorecard only calculates
cooling energy when a mechanical cooler is present, ceiling fans will only have a positive impact
when installed in the same zone as an air conditioner or evaporative cooler.

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Evidence Requirements: Evidence of each type of ceiling fan is required. One photo can be used for
all similar types of ceiling fans.

Assumptions
Outdoor Rooms (Outdoor Living Areas)
Judgement will be needed where a room is an ‘outdoor room’.

If an outdoor room is enclosed on all sides by walls, it should be entered into the Scorecard as a
zone.

If an outdoor room is enclosed on 3 sides, but open on one side, it should not be entered as a zone.

In cases which blur the lines between a habitable room and an outdoor room, make a judgement on
the day and take a few photos so we can consider the issue further later.

Outdoor Living Areas have also been added as an “Additional Feature”. This should be used where
an Outdoor Room is present but not counted as a zone.

Opaque louvres
Opaque louvres (not made of glass) may be seen in houses. These can be considered to be a window
or a door, depending on the size of the opening.

If the opening is approximately a multiple of the size of a door (1.7m 2), enter the opening as a
number of doors.

If the opening is smaller than a door, e.g. an opaque louvre as part of a window, enter the opening
as a new window, make the glass toned and shade it with an external blind. If the opening is
aluminium, use single glazing - if timber, use double glazing.

Multiple PV systems
Where there is more than 5 kW of solar, only enter a single 5 kW system.

While multiple PV systems can be entered in the tool, they behave as single systems of the size
entered. The way this is calculated means that the assumption of how much solar is exported is
incorrect.

Certificate
There are some minor changes to the certificate for tropical areas compared to non-tropical areas:

1) No heating is assumed in tropical areas, and no heating percentage or heating appliances are
listed in the tool or on the certificate.

2) Cooling is assumed for at least 35% of the house. If less than this area is cooled, this is
managed by automatically adding coolers to rooms until the 35% limit is reached.

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