Image Credit: Tess Kelly
Want to make your townhouse or apartment efficient, safe and healthy?
There are a number of action you can take as a apartment owner, owner corporation or property manager.
Apartments Sustainability Guides
We have developed a series of guides share what sustainable measure you can take, and what apartment owners and owners corporations can do.
There are simple guides for:
The guides were as developed as part of the Unlocking Sustainable Strata program by Merri-bek and Yarra City Councils in partnership with HIP V. HYPE Sustainability, The Knight, and Strata Community Association Victoria.
High Life Expo
The High Life Expo houses resources on how to make apartments, apartment buildings, and units more comfortable, efficient, healthy, and lovely to live in.
Find strata-specific resources and check out the case studies. Watch videos and review the slides from the 2024 seminar sessions in News and Updates.
Merri-bek City Council is a partner of the High Life Expo.
GreenPower
The easiest option – and something you could even do today – is to switch your individual apartment to GreenPower, so that the energy you buy is 100% renewable. (Though even if you get solar, you can still go with GreenPower.) Contact your energy provider or read Greenpeace’s Green Electricity Guide to see which Australian energy providers are investing in clean energy (and who is holding us back!).
Go Electric
Be part of a clean energy future by moving your apartment building to all-electric.
The Apartments Guide to Electrification provides a step-by-step process to transition to all-electric for both common areas and your home, be it an apartment or townhouse.
Choosing the best electric products – be it a new heater, cooktop, hot water system – can be confusing but this guide makes it simple by providing product recommendations. The benefits and considerations for each product have a rating of Best, Good and OK.
Solar for Apartments
Solar for apartments can be trickier to set up than a single dwelling but it’s a great way to get to know your neighbours and share the process and benefits. The key is to get other residents and your body corporate involved early so that you can gauge the appetite for solar and work together to find out the best solution for your needs.
There are several options available for apartments to access solar, from shared or single systems to solar gardens.
Shared systems
Allume’s SolShare enables apartments to share a single rooftop solar installation, upfront costs and the benefits of installation. With SolShare technology, the solar system can supply electricity to common areas, apartments and can also include any businesses on site. Not everyone has to participate.According to Allume, their systems achieve an average 40% reduction in grid energy usage for apartments which can be increased with batteries. Read more.
Single systems
Another option for solar for apartments is to install single systems.
A single system could be installed to service the common areas of the building, and pools or gyms, and the costs and benefits shared through one electricity metre and account.
You could also include single systems per apartment but you’d need to negotiate the available roof space. Single systems can be more straightforward to administer bui9t you don’t make the most of bulk-buy savings or enjoy the full benefits of sharing the experience with your neighbours.
Victorian Solar for Apartments program
Through the Solar for Apartments program, grants of up to $2,800 per apartment, with a maximum grant amount of $140,000 for buildings of up to 50 apartments, are available.
Solar for Apartments is jointly funded by the Victorian and Commonwealth governments and is delivered by Solar Victoria.
Grants are delivered to Owners Corporations who will be required to sign a funding agreement with Solar Victoria. Owners Corporations will need to pay the upfront costs of the installation with grant funding provided to them after milestones are met.
Apartment buildings up to eight storeys with between 5 and 50 apartments are eligible for grants, and Owners Corporations will have the choice to install multiple solar PV systems, a single large solar PV system coupled with solar sharing technology, or a combination of both.
Fin out more here: www.solar.vic.gov.au/apartments
Read more
How to get solar in apartments
How to get the most out of your solar
Energy switch for renters
How to move away from gas and why you should
New guides to make apartments sustainable
