This gives you the opportunity to control and manipulate that climate to your benefit. Controlling and manipulating the local climate and geographic attributes through building design is known as Micro Climate Design. You are creating your own form of climate change by the physical attributes and structures you superimpose onto your block. In addition you are using the existing topography and weather conditions to your benefit.

The force of nature is massive and we need to harness that force for our advantage. Why build a house that is freezing in winter and boiling hot in summer when with a little forethought and understanding you could minimise those extremes within and around your home. That is why having a good knowledge of your home site or current home location and the type of weather it experiences is beneficial. You can then use that knowledge to design your home to suit. You can use all that nature provides you such as the sun and the wind, the shadows, the trees, rain and the earth etc to your advantage.

The judicial location of fencing, wind breaks and wind funnels, shade paths, specific tree planting designs, watercourses or neighbouring homes, sheds, hot spots etc can manipulate the prevailing winds or sunshine to your benefit. Using an existing body of water such as a lagoon or creek or building a dam nearby the home offers you the ability to improve cooling of the house in summer.

In addition it gives you the ability to increase your interaction with nature. This has been proven overseas in many studies to significantly improve your health.

Nature provides us with all the necessities to heat and cool our homes. We just need to know how to manage those attributes. Simply turning your house by only 45 degrees can give a great effect on the external environment around the home and the environment inside the home.

Directing the wind, coercing the sunlight, directing the water run off, using existing hills and gullies around or near your home is a major component of sustainable design. Using natural convection and sunlight and manipulating them both through certain design principles can significantly improve the breeze flows and heating and cooling of your home.

Design your home for the climate it is located in.

Micro climate design has been used traditionally by different civilisations over thousands of years. Micro climate design is the first step in designing and building a sustainable home.