01 Aug 2017

What Makes a Home an Eco-home?

‘Eco’’ or ‘sustainable’ homes have become popular in recent years. As many have become increasingly environmentally-minded and health conscious, and the cost of fuel in various forms as skyrocketed, there has been a growing desire to look at alternative ways of building homes beyond traditional brick and mortar builds to those offering increased levels of efficiency, as well as benefits to health.

But what is it that really defines an ‘eco-house’? The term is cloaked with numerous connotations, from straw bale self-builds to mud wall hobbit homes. The truth is they can come in all shapes and sizes and often exist as living, breathing architectural masterpieces that make a real difference to people’s lives and the environment. We’ve seen positive developments in self-build construction in the UK recently and building with sensitivities, not only to the environment but also to personal health has become a key priority for a growing number of self builders. So what are the best ways to ‘go eco’? Here are a few to consider;

Think ‘Fabric First’

Houses are like people as in order to stay warm in cold weather, they work best with an insulated and waterproof hat, boots and jacket to keep them dry and retain heat. Few people walk around in winter wearing a t-shirt, frantically eating food to metabolise in order to stay warm. But homes which don’t concentrate on ‘fabric first’ effectively function under this principle.

A good eco-home works on common-sense, paying special attention to implementing a well insulated, airtight shell, roof and foundation that protects from inclement weather and retains heat within the envelope. Plus glazed areas, when cleverly placed, can benefit a house with solar gain. Invest in fabric first and your house need not cost the earth (quite literally) to run!

Let Technology Add its Magic

These days, smart eco-tech don’t stop at energy efficient appliances. A significant amount of research and development goes into creating next-generation wall construction methods, insulation materials and even the gas that fills the newest glazed windows. But although a well-insulated building envelope needs less investment in renewable heating methods, this doesn’t mean that eco-heating and ventilation technology doesn’t play an important role.

Such tech may capitalise on energy which is freely available, such as heat from the sun in the case of solar panels, or on heat in the air or soil, as in the case of a heat pump.

Heat from a heat pump can be used to heat radiators, underfloor heating systems, or warm air convectors and hot water in your home. Although the heat they extract is from the ground, air, or water is constantly being renewed naturally, they may have some impact on the environment as they need electricity to run. So if investing in a heat pump, why not invest in solar PV too? Free sunlight being used to extract free heat from the air or soil. What’s not to like?

So by combining two or more eco-tech solutions, efficiently-constructed properties can easily match or even exceed their own energy requirement. This can unshackle self builders from the need to track the steady rise of energy prices, whilst also providing peace of mind that a new property has the lightest of environmental footprints.

Oliver Grimshaw, Head of UK Sales, Hanse Haus GmbH

Oliver Grimshaw is the Head of UK Sales for premium German supplier of pre-manufactured, high-efficiency homes. Founded back in 1929, Hanse Haus now erects some 400 homes annually Europe-wide and has been active in the UK since 2006.

With over 85 years’ experience in the construction industry and boasting more than 30,000 completed homes, the company is also a certified builder of the remarkable Passivhaus; a home that loses almost no heat through its walls, roof and windows, thanks to extremely high levels of thermal insulation.

[email protected]     www.hanse-haus.co.uk      0800 3029220

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