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FR5 Software

FirstRate5® house energy rating software

FirstRate5® is an easy-to-use interactive tool with a graphic user interface that enables designers and thermal performance assessors to generate energy ratings for a home by tracing over floor plans. The software integrates the AccuRate calculation engine to estimate the annual heating and cooling energy and can be used to rate an existing design or as an interactive tool to optimise the design beyond compliance.

Latest News

Release of FR5 v5.3.1a (3.21) & Release of Customer Support Survey Report

by FR5 | May 11, 2021
FirstRate5 v5.3.1a (3.21) is now available as a free download from www.fr5.com.au. This version is a minor release and Sustainability Victoria recommends that all users upgrade to this version. In April 2021, Sustainability Victoria (SV) issued an online survey to gather feedback on the FirstRate5 technical support service, software development, and website. The survey report can now be downloaded for review.

FirstRate5 v5.3.1a (3.21) is now available as a free download from www.fr5.com.au. Sustainability Victoria (SV) recommends that all users upgrade to this version.

This version includes a number of bug fixes and also a minor enhancement to improve window filtering. Full details are available in the software release notes, which can be opened by clicking ‘Release Notes’ under the Help menu.

Below is a summary of key items included in FR5 v5.3.1a (3.21). 

  • A search bar filter and a 'Select modelled' button have been added to the Windows tab to enable users to more easily search the custom windows library. This training video explains how to use these new features.
  • Fixed the issue of the ‘Insulation & Air Gaps’ display for stacked walls not updating after construction details were edited in Construction Libraries and the updated stacked walls were copied to the project again.
  • Fixed a number of eave ID issues which was resulting in eaves connecting to incorrect walls.
  • Fixed the issue of the alert icon failing to display when there was a mismatch between a wall construction referenced in both the Construction Types and Construction Libraries tabs.

Current versions of FirstRate5

Both FR5 v5.3.1 (3.21) and FR5 v5.3.1a (3.21) are current versions of FirstRate5. Project files created in these software versions will calculate automatically on the website.

Release of FirstRate5 Customer Support Survey Report

In April 2021, Sustainability Victoria (SV) issued an online survey to gather feedback on the FirstRate5 (FR5) technical support service, software development, and website. The survey report can be downloaded from the FirstRate5 website. Please refer to this news story for further information. 

For more information on FirstRate5 visit www.fr5.com.au, submit a query through the online contact form or email [email protected]. ​
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Note: It is the user’s responsibility to ensure certificates are produced with the appropriate version. If a user chooses to inappropriately use an earlier version of FR5 to produce a certificate, they run the risk that a Building Surveyor will reject the certificate leading to further certificate costs.

Note: Installation of minor releases involving a letter change, eg,  v5.2.10a to v5.2.10b, will by default overwrite the previous version, while major releases involving a number change, eg, v5.2.10 (3.13) to v5.2.11 (3.13), will by default install beside older versions. 

 
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