ECO DESIGN ADVISORS
 
Eco Design Advisors (EDAs) are a service provided by some NZ councils for people building a new home or renovating their existing home. The advice is free, independent and impartial, and includes personalised advice about your plans for new builds, or for upgrades to existing homes, a visit for a room-by-room assessment of the home.

MBIE (the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment) manages policy, regulation and changes to legislation for the NZ Building Code, the building consenting system, seismic risk management, and many sector processes.

Supporting councils are: 

Auckland City Council, Christchurch City Council, Dunedin City Council, Hutt City Council, New Plymouth District Council and Tauranga City Council.

Outside those centres, the EDAs website provides a range of information and practical guidance. 

Advice and resources cover:

• Orientation and layout

• Eaves and shading

• Insulation

• Windows

• Moisture, mould and condensation

• Passive solar design

• Building materials

• Heat pump water heaters

• Solar power (Photovoltaic)

• Ventilation

• Ground moisture barrier

• Draught proofing

Presentations and summaries from the EDAs’ national conferences are available on the website:  https://www.ecodesignadvisor.org.nz/conferences/  

The 2024 Conference – Retrofit for the future – covered topics including insulation, warm roofs and ventilation, Passive House assessments, electrification, work at Kāinga Ora and BRANZ, and overseas retrofit examples.