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The government’s flagship green policy, the Green Deal, has been the subject of many column inches recently. While the scheme, which will offer insulation upgrades, has turned the spotlight on the issue of the energy efficiency of our current housing stock, industry commentators are not convinced that it has been fully thought through, raising concerns about a lack of detail.
I would argue that, while the Green Deal can at least be praised for providing the foundations for an effective programme to reduce the carbon emissions of the UK’s homes, it is crucial that it is carried out as part of a wider sustainable strategy. Insulation must be considered alongside adequate ventilation, in order to prevent the creation of new problems such as condensation in 1950s properties with cavity walls, and to promote occupant health. There was – and still remains – a danger that, by focusing too narrowly on reducing carbon emissions, we could merely be producing homes that have improved energy efficiency but low livability.
The housing minister, Grant Shapps, has been vocal in his dislike of homes that do not consider occupant well-being, calling them his “pet hate”. At a Conservative party conference fringe event hosted by VELUX last year, he commented: “The idea that we want to in live in sealed boxes cannot be healthy, nor can it be right in terms of achieving our zero carbon objectives. It’s not practical, not the way people want to live and cannot be good for occupants’ health. Reducing carbon emissions and opening a window can be compatible. We need to get way away from this definition that says energy efficient homes must be airtight boxes.”
We agree. In 2009, we launched our Model Home 2020 project – an international initiative that has so far seen us design and construct four low-carbon buildings in Denmark, Austria and Germany, with two more currently being built in the UK and France. The aim of the project is to find a solution to the challenge of designing energy -efficient buildings without neglecting the needs of their inhabitants.
Beyond energy efficiency
We believe that, for sustainability to be successful, the industry must be able to deliver buildings that go beyond simple energy efficiency. All of the buildings that form part of Model Home 2020 have been designed to conform to Active House principles that focus on the health and wellbeing of occupants, are sensitive to local design and conditions and use natural resources to reduce carbon emissions.
In the UK, Model Home 2020 involves the construction of two semi-detached homes, which have been designed to achieve, and indeed exceed, the expected definition of zero carbon: a 70% on-site reduction in carbon emissions with the remaining 30% offset through allowable solutions. The CarbonLight Homes are being built with the help of project partners HTA Architects and Willmott Dixon and are located on the site of Bovis Homes’ Charter Park development in Rothwell, near Kettering.
Crucial to the project is that the homes remain affordable and are easily replicable for large housebuilders. This aim sets the project apart from other low-carbon prototypes, which have been designed in such a way that they are not financially viable when built on a mass scale.
Self-sufficient homes
HTA Architects has designed the homes so that they have low-energy standards for heating, hot water and the electricity needed for appliances and lighting. There is also a focus on solar thermal energy to help promote energy self-sufficiency: the solar thermal system is able to provide for up to 70% of their hot water needs.
The dynamic building envelopes will regulate heat transmission during the night and day and throughout the changing seasons. In the summer natural ventilation will cool the homes and in the winter they will utilise passive solar heat gain. During this season, a mechanical ventilation system with heat recovery will be used in addition to the natural ventilation system, extracting heat from the kitchen and bathrooms and recycling it into the home to reduce the demand on the space heating system.
In addition, the homes will benefit from natural daylight all year round, which will have many health and well-being benefits, as well as reducing the demand for electric light and creating visual interest. Through extensive modelling, HTA has achieved designs with a minimum average daylight factor of 5% for the whole house – which is up to three times greater than that required by the Code for Sustainable Homes.
Double glazing will be used on the west-facing façade, to maximise solar heat gain and natural light, while better insulating triple glazing will be used on the east-facing side of the homes.
The intelligent home control systems will reduce energy consumption and ensure a healthy indoor climate. They are able to open and close windows and blinds at pre-set times and dates, or in response to temperature, sunlight change or signs of rain.
Post-occupancy monitoring
As I write, the final roof panel of the CarbonLight Homes is now in place and we are on schedule for completion in the summer.
Once completed, the homes will be open to the public for six months, before undergoing energy consumption and performance monitoring for a 12-month period with a test family in residence to determine the experiment's level of success. The findings will be published in the hope that they can help inform the sustainable homes agenda and the houses will be sold on the open market.
It is our ambition that the homes act as a benchmark for future sustainable developments across the country and can help both the industry and homeowners to learn more about what constitutes a sustainable home in the truest sense.
Visit www.velux.co.uk/modelhome2020 for further information.
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