What Are The Four Methods Of 6 Star Energy Rating System?

If you are planning to build a new house, or looking forward to add extensions, you’ll come across a common phrase, that is, 6 Star Energy Rating. It is a rating system to understand the energy efficiency requirements of a project. It is a part of National Construction Code (NCC, the Building Code of Australia). As per the government rules, all dwellings and apartments in Australia must meet a minimum rating of 3 star considering the environmental impact created by humans. However, for residential buildings, there are 3 typical methods that demonstrate energy efficiency compliance and a new one that has been introduced in 2016.

6-Star method

The most common form of assessment is the 6 Star Energy Rating to understand the requirement of insulation and other aspects of a properly constructed building design. The assessment process involves appropriately modelling the inspected building using thermal modelling software. The final result which comes out as a rating correlates to the amount of energy required to heating and cooling the building to a comfortable temperature in an entire year. The higher the number of stars, the less energy is required by the building. This type of rating method is the fastest and easiest process for demonstrating energy efficiency compliance.

DTS method

DTS is referred to as the elemental provision method, which was previously known as the Deemed-to-Satisfy (DTS) method. It was introduced in 2003 when energy efficiency provisions first came into play with the Building Code of Australia (BCA). This assessment process involves comparing the inspected building's construction to the standards advised in the NCC.

The VURB method

VURB is referred to as the Verification Using a Reference Building method. It has become a popular method in the field of assessment which combines the practices of NatHERS (House Energy Rating Scheme) with the elemental provision method. In the assessment process, the construction of the dwelling is compared with a proposed building as a reference which is compliant with the elemental provisions. This assessment is known for its flexibility and cost effectiveness which is based on certain types of building only. However, this type of assessment process is a bit longer than others.

VUSV method

VUSV is known as the Verification Using a Stated Value method. It was introduced in 2016 as a simple assessment process which compares a building’s energy efficiency against a basic thermal load metric. The process of assessment is similar to VURB with just a bit of change. Instead of comparing the dwelling, the final result comes out as pass or fail by meeting certain codes. 

These are the four methods of energy assessments used all over Australia.