Jasper’s story
Jasper has a background in supply chain logistics and corporate commercial strategy and is currently studying a Masters of Environmental Sustainability at Monash University. He lives in a 1970s ground floor apartment in Kew (in a block of four) with his wife and 9-year-old daughter.
Why are you electrifying your home?
“I want to leave a legacy to my daughter. I would like her to realise you can live a fulfilling life without the energy and material consumption we’ve been used to over the last 50 years.
We all need to reduce the climate risks we face. It's time for citizens to ask themselves what part they can play in mitigation of that risk. One of the easiest ways to do that is by looking at solutions that have a lower carbon footprint. It is satisfying to be contributing to the bigger goal and teaching my daughter a more climate conscious way of living.”
The journey so far
Jasper says his family has been on a sustainability journey with the apartment since they bought it in 2016.
Their first project involved Jasper advocating to upgrade the single glass, aluminium windows for all four apartments, which were in a state of disrepair, to new double-glazed windows.
“Our unit is now fully double glazed which means the most we use our heating or air conditioning system is a maximum of 20 days a year,” says Jasper.
The second project was solar panels. Two of the four units wanted solar, so a major challenge was negotiating the shared rooftop.
After a conversation with the body corporate, it was agreed to add a clause specifying that if the roof needed to be accessed, the units that own the solar panels are responsible for their removal and replacement.
“I thought it was going be a lot more difficult than it was,” says Jasper. “We’ve all nurtured and built the body corporate committee over the last few years and it is very community spirited. If it's reasonable, we sign off on things so that obviously helped.”
What’s on your electrification wish list?
“We have a slightly larger solar system than the other unit because we wanted to future proof our energy needs. Our wider electrification objectives include an induction cooktop, an electric vehicle and potentially a battery for full electrification.
Recently we installed a heat pump, purely by necessity, because our hot water gas storage system broke down. I had been looking into heat pumps, but suddenly had to do a lot more research quickly. It’s already delivering with 95% of our water heating provided by our solar panels.”
What advice would you give to apartment owners in Boroondara?
“Start the discussion and don’t give up with the first hurdle. There will be people who will say it can’t be done, but if you don’t start a discussion, you don’t know what hurdles to overcome.
The second part is to gain support from others in the body corporate because if you have momentum, then suddenly the dialogue can change. If multiple apartment owners are saying the same thing, the body corporate will listen, and other apartment owners can jump on board.
Thirdly, think about framing it as an opportunity rather than a cost. I framed window glazing and solar panels as opportunities to add value to the environment and your property. Benefit framing is really important because the focus is often ‘it’s hard and riddled with issues,’ but actually in the end, it’s just about having a discussion, positive framing and gaining support.”