Every Friday, a column in NST RED will feature an article written by me. It's all about the unique spaces which I have come across that provide interesting or unusual experiences. Yes, the stories I write for NST RED can be about anything as long as it is related to spaces/places. After all, the RED in NST RED stands for Real Estate & Decor.
So, this Friday 11th January 2013 - I have written an article about loving our spaces in the green way. It includes an interview with one of our Malaysian talented "Green" Architects, Mr. Kiat Tung.
As there are always "constraints" in the newspapers' publication, this is the full version with extra pictures and information.
LOVING OUR SPACES
Whether we realise it or not, our daily lives are structured
around various living spaces – be they online or offline. Every activity of
ours is labeled and boxed into each specific space. As our society evolves, our
living spaces also undergo changes.
 |
| The Modern "C-House" |
In our own little space, our evolving lifestyles demand that
our living spaces be improved, innovated, and upgraded. We seek to be
constantly surprised and wowed. But what does it really mean to enhance our
living space? For one, do we even consider the effects our living spaces have
on the environment?
 |
| The Water Feature of the "C-House" |
Most of us tend to assume that “green” living spaces are
very costly. This is perhaps one of the reasons why many have not incorporated
the “green” elements into our habitats.
 |
| The Night View of the Water Feature |
Dispelling
‘costly green’ myth
In order to dispel the myth that creating a “green” living
space is expensive, I met up with one of my architect friends, Kiat Tung of T&T Architect Sdn Bhd. Kiat Tung was involved in
the drafting of the “Green Building Index Residential Tool” and was once selected
as one of the “30 Under 40 Emerging Malaysian Architects”. His specialty is in
how to design green buildings without breaking the bank.
 |
| Kiat Tung, The "Green" Architect |
One of Kiat Tung’s achievements is the “Dream Home Award”
for the “C House” he designed and built in Mutiara Damansara. It is essentially
a three-storey “green” contemporary house. The “C House” is about 6,000 sq ft
in total built-up. The cost of its construction was RM1.2 million, and
RM500,000 was spent on the interiors. Kiat Tung also undertook the ID (Interior
Design) work for this amazing “green” house.
These are some of the “green” features of the “C House”:-
a.
Rainwater
harvesting system;
b.
Cross
ventilation for e.g. the Pond is in the cross ventilation path;
c.
Orientated
North-South to minimise heat gain;
d.
Inverter air
conditioner system;
e.
Use Low VOC
paint;
f.
Optimise
natural day lighting;
g.
Minimum window
on East and West wall; and
h.
Double cavity
wall on the Western wall to reduce heat gain
 |
| Living Room of the "C-House" |
Kiat Tung shared some of the simplest and cost effective
“green” ways which we can easily incorporate into our homes. They are as
follows:-
1) Install rainwater
harvesting system: This costs about RM2,000 to RM3,000. In Kiat Tung’s
opinion, "Bacfree" is a good system because it has complete rainwater harvesting system from
filtration to storage. It is almost maintenance-free because the filter will
not be clotted due to the design.
 |
| The Living Room |
2) Install Inverter
air-con system: It may cost a few hundred ringgit extra for a single horse
power air-con, but we would see a 50 per cent savings in our electricity bills.
Inverter is efficient because the motor speed
varies depending on demand. Conventional motor runs on constant speed. As a
matter of fact, every motor or appliance which has inverter technology
installed would be by far more efficient, such as fridges, lift motors etc.
 |
| The Other View of the Living Room |
3) Zone the air-con areas: For example, compartmentalise the living
room so that cool air in living room is contained. Thus, the
doors and windows of the room are closed when the air-con is turned on so that the
cool air does not leak. The same can be done for the other rooms in the
house.
 |
| The Balcony at the Top Floor |
4) Use low energy
bulbs: These can be compact fluorescent bulbs, or LED bulbs. Again, we
would enjoy about 20 to 30 per cent savings in our electricity bills as a
result.
 |
| The Bathroom |
5) Cool the roof:
Most of the heat comes from the roofs of our houses. Therefore, Kiat Tung
suggests using a cooling roof system like “Monier Cool Roof”. It is a ventilated tile roof. There are other brands such as “Cool
Roof”, which offers a complete system so that air can be naturally ventilated
within the roof to cool down the roof. In normal roofing, hot air is often trapped
in the roof itself.
 |
| Night View of the "C-House" |
6) Use Low VOC paint:
There are no extra costs in procuring these “green” paints. In fact, most
generic paints have high VOC (Volatile Organic Compounds). Emissions of VOC from
paints are hazardous to our health and the environment.
 |
| The Floating Stairs |
As the earth’s natural resources are being depleted with each
passing day, Malaysia is not going to be spared. One fine day, everything that
fuels our lifestyles may run out. Thus, what we do in each living space will
undoubtedly affect the environment at large. It is not a myth that the earth
suffers when our daily living “practices” do not promote a “greener” living
code of conduct. When the earth becomes afflicted, we would also inherit the
same affliction.
Redirecting
kitchen waste
Kiat Tung also highlights one of the grave concerns that are
harming our environment in Malaysia, as we speak. This is, waste discharge.
Kiat explains, “In most Malaysian houses, the kitchen’s
waste discharge goes directly into drainage systems. This is the most common
problem in a typical terrace house’s renovation that involves extending the
kitchen. For convenience and ease of construction, most contractors would just
connect the new kitchen waste discharge to the drain.”
When kitchen waste enters into the drainage system, it would
not be treated first, but is released straight into our water systems such as
rivers, seas etc. The right method is to connect the kitchen waste discharge
into the sewage system. In this way, the waste would be treated first, and then
be released into our water systems.
Kiat added, “Kitchen waste discharge from hawker stalls and food
courts also pose a similar major problem. This is happening in 95 per cent of our
every day corner shop-lots which operate as hawker centres, or what we normally
refer to as “Kopitiams”. When there is no proper sewerage discharge for these
kitchen wastes, our rivers and water systems would be inevitably polluted. This
may be one of the reasons why our Government has to spend billions in cleaning up
our rivers and water systems each year.”
Kiat further emphasised, “People are polluting the source
and that is, our drains. Not many people are aware that our drains are
connected to our rivers, our ponds, and eventually our seas! Grease, oil and
cleaning agents kill our marine lives, and our entire eco-system.”
Kiat Tung believes that the best solution is “to create more
awareness to the homeowners and hawkers. Local authorities should also be more
diligent in demolishing illegal structures set up as restaurants by the roadside.”
In addition, proper Urban Planning is crucial. As Kiat Tung elaborates,
"Local authorities
should encourage high density development which makes efficient public
transport. The remaining forest in Klang Valley should not be gazetted for
development. The idea is to use minimum footprint and we should go high or
underground. Ideally, the government should demarcate land for development with well
connected to public transport eg MRT. The demarcated land should be allowed to
develop very high density with plot ratio of minimum 12 and above. The
demarcated land should be tendered and awarded to the highest bidder (like what
is done in Hong Kong or Singapore). The money collected is then used to buy back
land which is not close to public transport and be gazetted as "green lung" or "forest". Gasing Hill is a good example."
Courage to
demand better
When we understand how each action will affect others, we
would begin to appreciate how the globe is likened to a “fish bowl”. What we consume
and discard would invariably go back into this very same earth, this very
sacred space we all call home. How each space can become a better living and
breathing place is very much dependent on what people do and how they do it.
Above all, it is how much we have invested in that very
space. When I say invest – I mean, an investment of heart, time and effort, not
just money.
We are the ones who can define every living space by the
decisions we make and the things we allow to be put into place. We, as the
decision-makers, have the power to decide how we want to enrich our living
spaces. After all, we are the very ones who have to live with them or suffer
the consequences.
Today, we can scour the web to educate ourselves in order to
make wiser decisions on our living spaces. It is definitely possible to create
living spaces that reflect our needs, lifestyles, identity, heritage and even
our values – without causing further harm to our environment or damaging our
bank accounts.
I firmly believe that if we give the same amount of love and
care to our living spaces, we would enjoy the beneficial experiences of living
in them. Therefore, to live as we would love and vice versa might the key to
making every living space of ours meaningful and fulfilling.
All it takes is a little courage to demand for better
standards, higher quality and a conscientious attitude towards our environment.
We need not surrender to anything less because we know we deserve better. More importantly, we can leave behind a better place for our future generations.
Here’s to beautiful living spaces that bring meaning and
lasting joy to one and all. Until next time, have a fabulous weekend ahead.
