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PODCAST

Get It Right with Undercover Architect

Amelia Lee, Undercover Architect

If we haven’t met before, I’m Amelia Lee, the architect behind Undercover Architect: an online business to help and teach homeowners like you how to get it right when designing, building and renovating your home. Undercover Architect is all about giving you access to the industry knowledge and insights you need to avoid the mistakes and dramas that can cost you thousands, tens of thousands and even hundreds of thousands of dollars. And it’s about levelling the playing field, so that the world of

arts design

All Episodes

17:36

44 Ways #27: Choose for Low Carbon Footprint

Get It Right with Undercover Architect ·

2026/10/05

Hello! This is Episode 427. This is Way #27 of the 44 Ways to Create Your Sustainable Home series, and we’re continuing through Section Six: Choosing Materials, Fixtures and Finishes. In this section, I’m covering specific criteria for choosing the products, materials, fixtures and finishes for your future home. Last episode, in Episode 426, Way #26, I talked about choosing for longevity and durability, and the five financial costs of any material decision. Way #27 is: Choose for Low

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16:28

44 Ways #26: Choose for Longevity and Durability

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2026/10/01

Hello! This is Episode 426. This is Way #26 of the 44 Ways to Create Your Sustainable Home series, and we’re beginning Section Six: Choosing Materials, Fixtures and Finishes. Way #26 is: Choose for Longevity and Durability. [For all resources mentioned in this podcast and a free, downloadable PDF transcript, head to www.undercoverarchitect.com/426] The last couple of sections have been detail-heavy and chunkier episodes, especially as I’ve talked about the building envelope, because

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27:37

44 Ways #25: Include Eaves and Window Hoods in Your...

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2026/09/28

Hello! This is Episode 425. This is Way #25 of the 44 Ways to Create Your Sustainable Home series, and it’s the last episode in Section Five: The Building Envelope. Over this section we’ve worked through airtightness, windows, building wraps, and insulation. In this episode, we discuss something that can elevate the performance of your building envelope very simply. Way #25 is: Include Eaves and Window Hoods in Your Finished Home. [For all resources mentioned in this podcast and a free,

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22:24

44 Ways #24: Install Insulation Correctly

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2026/09/24

Hello! This is Episode 424. This is Way #24 of the 44 Ways to Create Your Sustainable Home series, and we’re in the final stretch of Section Five: The Building Envelope. In the last episode, we went through the types of insulation, what R-values mean, and how to think about products for your ceiling, walls, and floor. This episode is the follow-up to that: what happens when the product is specified, the quote is signed, and the installer shows up. Because that’s where a lot of the

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29:39

44 Ways #23: Choose Appropriate Insulation

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2026/09/21

Hello! This is Episode 423. This is Way #23 of the 44 Ways to Create Your Sustainable Home series, and we’re continuing through Section Five: The Building Envelope. Way #23 is: Choose Appropriate Insulation. [For all resources mentioned in this podcast and a free, downloadable PDF transcript, head to www.undercoverarchitect.com/423] The things we’ve been discussing in Section Five are all about improving the energy efficiency of your future home, whilst also supporting its durability,

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26:49

44 Ways #22: Review Building Wraps to Manage Moisture...

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2026/09/17

Hello! This is Episode 422. This is Way #22 of the 44 Ways to Create Your Sustainable Home series, and we’re continuing through Section Five: The Building Envelope. In the last two episodes, we covered thermal mass and window selection. Before that, in Way #19, we talked about what building tight actually means: why you want a continuous air barrier, and why airtightness and ventilation have to be designed together. This episode is about a layer that sits within the wall and roof assembly of

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27:00

44 Ways #21: Review Your Window Selection

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2026/09/14

Hello! This is Episode 421. This is Way #21 of the 44 Ways to Create Your Sustainable Home series, and we’re continuing through Section Five: The Building Envelope. Way #21 is: Review Your Window Selection. [For all resources mentioned in this podcast and a free, downloadable PDF transcript, head to www.undercoverarchitect.com/421] In my experience, as people go to design their new build or renovation, it can be all about maximising the indoor / outdoor connection, and having a home that feels

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18:37

44 Ways #20: Use Thermal Mass to Maintain Even...

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2026/09/10

Hello! This is Episode 420. This is Way #20 of the 44 Ways to Create Your Sustainable Home series, and we’re continuing through Section Five: The Building Envelope, A Sustainable Skin. In the last episode, Way #19, we covered airtightness and ventilation. We talked about what it means to build tight, why homes don’t need to breathe, and what ‘ventilating right’ looks like in practice. In this episode, we’re looking at one of the most commonly discussed, and commonly

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22:05

44 Ways #19: Build Tight, Ventilate Right

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2026/09/07

Hello! This is Episode 419. This is Way #19 of the 44 Ways to Create Your Sustainable Home series, and it’s the first episode in Section Five: The Building Envelope. We’ve spent four sections of the ‘44 Ways’ series covering a lot of information for your sustainable renovation or new build. Site, orientation, breezes, passive design, energy and water selections, renewables, and the tools that help you model and measure how your home will actually perform. All of that work is

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22:38

44 Ways #18: Measure Your Home’s Carbon Footprint

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2026/09/03

Hello! This is Episode 418. This is Way #18 of the ‘44 Ways to Create Your Sustainable Home’ series. And this episode completes Section Four: Modelling and Measuring Your Sustainability. Across this series, we’ve talked a lot about energy efficiency, and how, as we improve energy efficiency, we reduce energy use, which in turn reduces the carbon emissions associated with energy production. At the same time, we’ve got better at measuring the embodied carbon in construction

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18:37

44 Ways #17: Get a WUFI Analysis Done on Your Floors,...

Get It Right with Undercover Architect ·

2026/08/31

Hello! This is Episode 417. This is Way #17 of the ‘44 Ways to Create Your Sustainable Home’ series, and we’re continuing through Section Four: Modelling and Measuring Your Sustainability. If you’ve been following this series, you’ll know we’ve spent the last couple of episodes looking at energy modelling, and how you can use it during the design process so its data-based findings can inform your design as it develops. Way #17 is: Get a WUFI Analysis Done on Your

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22:29

44 Ways #16: Use Other Options to Model Your Design...

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2026/08/27

Hello! This is Episode 416. This is Way #16 of the ‘44 Ways to Create Your Sustainable Home’ series, and we’re continuing through Section Four: Modelling and Measuring Your Sustainability. Way #16 is: Use Other Options to Model Your Design Before You Build. In the last episode, I talked about NatHERS energy modelling and why it can be so valuable as a design tool rather than simply using it as a late-stage compliance exercise. In this episode, I want to explore that further,

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22:10

44 Ways #15: Use Energy Modelling During the Design...

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2026/08/24

Hello! This is Episode 415. This is Way #15 of the ‘44 Ways to Create Your Sustainable Home’ series. And with this episode, we begin Section Four: Modelling and Measuring Your Sustainability. In Section Four, we look at the ways you can access data to inform your decision-making, beginning with energy efficiency assessments and modelling of your home’s energy use. We’re beginning Section Four with Way #15: Use Energy Modelling During the Design Phase. [For all resources

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20:19

44 Ways #14: Use Renewable Energy to Supply Your...

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2026/07/02

Hello! This is Episode 414. This is Way #14 of the 44 Ways to Create Your Sustainable Home series. And this episode completes Section Three: Sustainable Services and Infrastructure. It may seem strange that we’ve taken a while to get here, given this is where many homeowners will start in their sustainability choices for their project. ‘Let’s make sure we put solar on the house when we renovate or build new’ is a sustainability move many will make. Way #14 is: Use Renewable

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20:31

44 Ways #13: Select an Efficient Hot Water Unit and...

Get It Right with Undercover Architect ·

2026/06/29

Hello! This is Episode 413. This is Way #13 of the ‘44 Ways to Create Your Sustainable Home’ series. And we’re still in Section Three: Sustainable Services and Infrastructure, and reviewing our hot water supply. For many homeowners, their decisions about their hot water unit can come in a flurry, and simply be based on what they know. Sometimes it can be handed to the plumber, as they recommend a system, you go with it. However, your hot water unit is a product that can last ten to

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21:24

44 Ways #12: Store and Reuse Water for Greater Water...

Get It Right with Undercover Architect ·

2026/06/25

Hello! This is Episode 412. This is Way #12 of the 44 Ways to Create Your Sustainable Home series. We’re continuing through Section Three: Sustainable Services and Infrastructure. In Episode 411, we looked at where household water goes, especially in indoor use, and how to reduce consumption through fixture selection and design decisions. In this episode, we’re looking at the other side of that equation: not just using less water, but capturing and reusing the water that falls on and

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18:29

44 Ways #11: Reduce Your Water Use In and Around Your...

Get It Right with Undercover Architect ·

2026/06/22

Hello! This is Episode 411. This is Way #11 of the 44 Ways to Create Your Sustainable Home series. We’re continuing through Section Three: Sustainable Services and Infrastructure, and today we’re looking at water. In the last episode, we covered Way #10: reducing your energy use through your selections. In this episode, we’re looking at water efficiency. Where does water really get used in your home? What do the ratings mean in practice? And what decisions, beyond just choosing

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17:40

44 Ways #10: Reduce Your Energy Use Through Your...

Get It Right with Undercover Architect ·

2026/06/18

Hello! This is Episode 410. This is Way #10 of the 44 Ways to Create Your Sustainable Home series. And with this episode, we also begin Section Three: Sustainable Services and Infrastructure. If you’ve been following the series from the start, you’ll know that Section One was about designing for climate and site: orientation, breezes, passive heating and cooling, and climate zone. Section Two was about sustainable design strategies: home size, your team, structural efficiency,

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20:28

44 Ways #09: Improve Your Indoor Air Quality

Get It Right with Undercover Architect ·

2026/06/15

Hello! This is Episode 409. This is Way #9 of the 44 Ways to Create Your Sustainable Home series. This episode also closes out Section Two: Sustainable Design Strategies. In this episode, we’re finishing Section Two with Way #9. Way #9 is: Improve Your Indoor Air Quality. [For all resources mentioned in this podcast and a free, downloadable PDF transcript, head to www.undercoverarchitect.com/409] The ways I’ve been sharing in Section Two have been about the bigger-picture design

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15:53

44 Ways #08: Future Proof Your Design with Accessibility

Get It Right with Undercover Architect ·

2026/06/11

Hello! This is Episode 408. This is Way #8 of the 44 Ways to Create Your Sustainable Home series. We are in Section Two: Sustainable Design Strategies. The ways I include in this section are about the strategic design decisions that have consequences well beyond the immediate project, and Way #8 is a strong example of that. Way #8 is Future Proofing Your Design with Accessibility. [For all resources mentioned in this podcast and a free, downloadable PDF transcript, head to

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