The ACT Appendix to NCC 2025 provides additional flexibility when applying energy efficiency and liveable housing requirements to alterations and additions to existing homes.
For energy efficiency, the Appendix recognises that bringing an existing dwelling fully up to new-home standards can be impractical and expensive. It therefore allows several compliance pathways. The area-weighted pathway is designed to improve the overall performance of the home while acknowledging the limitations of the existing building.
The Appendix also provides concessions for matters such as existing glazing, insulation, evaporative cooling, hot water services and other existing building services, provided the new or altered work satisfies the applicable requirements.
Similar flexibility applies to liveable housing design. Existing homes do not always need to be fully upgraded, and concessions may apply to entrances, corridors, sanitary compartments and showers where compliance is constrained by the existing building, slab levels, space limitations or the need for otherwise unplanned structural work.
The key message for designers, certifiers and builders is to identify the ACT-specific alteration pathway early. The Appendix does not remove the need for compliance, but it can provide practical alternatives that avoid unnecessary upgrades to unaffected parts of an existing home.
