Building in Bushfire Prone Areas

Wednesday, November 20, 2024

With bushfires already started early for this summer, it is important to know what to expect when building in one of the higher bushfire prone areas. And it is not necessarily ‘bush fires’ but also ‘grass fires’ that can be dangerous to homes. If you plan to build in a BAL rated area, you will require a Bushfire Attack Level (BAL) assessment. Bushfire Attack Levels – BALs There are 6 BALs that range from BAL-Low, BAL-12.5, BAL-19, BAL-29, BAL-40 to BAL-FZ. The higher your BAL, the more expensive your new build (or extensive extension) will be, and the more important

4 Awards - A BIG Thank You

Monday, September 16, 2024

Recently Paarhammer was awarded the NSW State Award for Residential Window/Glass Retrofit for Beach Retreat and the Victorian State Award for Commercial Window/Glass Project under $750,000 for Clifton Hill Passive House Primary School. Both projects were also successful and received the Australian National Awards in their category from AGWA, the Australian Glass and Windows Association. A big thank you to all our Paarhammer staff who as a team were making the windows and doors for these projects. A big thank you to our clients, architects, and builders who chose Paarhammer to work with them on their remarkable projects and to all

Compliance: Insights and Pathways

Thursday, April 18, 2024

The integrity and compliance of building components are paramount to ensuring health, safety and sustainability in the evolving landscape of the building industry. Among these components, windows play an essential role in the structural and environmental performance of buildings. Poorly manufactured or standard windows lose more heat in winter and gain more heat in summer than any other surface in a building. This whitepaper delves into the multifaceted dimensions of window compliance within Australian standards and regulations, highlighting the economic, legal and social implications of non-conforming and non-compliant building products. It underscores the importance of rigorous independent testing and certification processes

Award winning Projects featuring Paarhammer Windows

Friday, December 01, 2023

Over the years a number of architects, builders and suppliers received awards for projects that feature Paarhammer windows and doors. From new builds to renovations and additions, residential as well as commercial, see some examples here: Beach Retreat Winner of 2023 MBA Regional Building Awards, category Additions and Alterations, with the builder Davis Builders, also being awarded Young Builder of the Year and Residential Builder of the Year by Master Builders Association Regional Awards. This project is set on a steep slope at the edge of bushland with stunning views of the sea; the renovation and addition came with a fair share

More Awards for Mangerton

Thursday, July 06, 2023

This project has already received the Master Builders' Association as the best in the NSW Southern Region in the $1.5 million to $2 million home category for 2022. The home's builder, Icon Projects, was also named Residential Builder of the Year Southern Region. Now another award has been added to the list: winner in the residential over 80k category in the NSW 2023 Design Awards of the Australian Glass and Windows Association (AGWA). What is so special about this project? It started with the owners wishing to achieve a highly energy-efficient and secure home in a high bushfire prone area,

Additional benefits of bushfire windows

Thursday, February 09, 2023

Paarhammer manufactures bushfire safe windows and doors for all BAL (Bushfire Attack Level) ratings including BAL-FZ (Flame Zone). They are tested, certified, approved and compliant to all relevant Australian Standards and are designed to keep the fire out and you safe in the event of a bushfire. But the benefits go far beyond bushfire safety.High energy efficiencyA frame thickness of 78mm combined with special double-glazing achieve 7 to 8 WERS (Window Energy Rating Scheme) energy stars for heating and cooling, with a U-value from a very low 1.6. Such high energy efficiency can dramatically reduce energy bills while at the same time increase comfort

Summer can equal Bushfire Danger

Wednesday, November 30, 2022

Bushfires are a threat we have to live with in Australia and other countries around the world. Planning controls apply to many aspects of how land can be used and what has to be considered when building. A large component of building in bushfire prone areas are windows and doors and strict regulations apply.Different BAL-Levels6 levels of severity of Bushfire Attack Levels: BAL-low, BAL-12.5, BAL-19, followed by BAL-29, high BAL-40 and extremely high BAL-FZ (Flame Zone). If your planned building is in a Bushfire Prone Area, you will need a Bushfire Attack Level (BAL) assessment. Each BAL-level measures a buildings

NEW product: 30min BAL-FZ

Monday, September 12, 2022

Paarhammer recently had new BAL-FZ windows tested, well exceeding minimum requirements of the AS1530.4 test. These are 30-minute products (-/30/-) which are allowed to be used in Flame Zone without shutters as per the 2018 Australian Standard for Building in Bushfire Prone Areas with limitations. Two Options: AS1530.4 products (-/30/-) can only be used in BAL-FZ without shutters if there is ‘... a minimum setback distance of 10m from the edge of the classified vegetation’.  The Australian Standard (AS) states that ‘In circumstances where the 10m setback distance between the building and the edge of the classified vegetation cannot be achieved, those elements

Paarhammer at Bushfire Conference 2022

Monday, June 06, 2022

Now in its eighth year, the Australian Bushfire Building Conference is on again this year. Date: 14-16 September 2022 Place: Fairmont Resort & Spa Blue Mountains, Leura, NSW. Paarhammer will again have a display of our BAL-FZ windows at the Conference, and our experts will be there to answer all your questions. Warringtonfire, NATA-accredited third party, tested Paarhammer products, first a range to BAL-40, and then Paarhammer developed and patented BAL-FZ windows and doors without the need for shutters. These have been tested and are approved and compliant to AS1530.8.2-2007, and also to AS3959-2009 and AS3959-2018. Matching products for lower

What is the largest size for sliding doors?

Tuesday, December 07, 2021

Giant lift-slide doors can be made up to 400kg per leaf. This means that a height of 3.4m and a width of 2.5m (maximum of 8.8m2) per sliding leaf is entirely possible, or a slider leaf height of 2.4m with a width of 3.6m (again at a maximum of 8.8m2) can be made. Stacker lift-slide doors can be made up to 14m wide. Even large sizes like these can be easily moved manually and glide smoothly, and single slider configurations can also be automated. How lift-slide doors work: With a turn of the handle the slider lifts up to free

Paarhammer featured on Small Business Secrets - SBS

Sunday, March 01, 2020

An exciting day of filming wrapped up last week here at the Paarhammer facility for an upcoming episode of ‘Small Business Secrets’ to air on SBS. Small Business Secrets focuses on the stories of migrant entrepreneurs who have turned their business dreams into reality. It all started out of necessity when Tony and Edith were planning to build their own house here in Victoria and were unable to find high performing European style windows and doors similar to those in Austria where they had grown up. From there the dream of helping others to live in a comfortable house with

Bushfire Compliance

Wednesday, January 16, 2019

Flame Zone (BAL-FZ) product testing requires successful completion of the AS1530.8.2-2007 test. This test has a 30 minute furnace cycle and a 60 minute cooling down cycle in which the product still has to keep its integrity. Part of the test is also a radiant heat requirement of a maximum of 15kW/m2 on the inside. Paarhammer BAL-FZ products showed a heat flux on the non-fire side of between 1kW/m2 and 2kW/m2 in the test, depending on the product. This is just 1/10th of the allowed radiant heat. To put this into perspective, naked skin can tolerate 5kW/m2 for approximately 10 seconds