Posted by guest author on Thu, Feb 23, 2012
Q: Are solar P.V. systems still a viable investment for the affordable housing sector with the Government now cutting the feed in tariff after 3rd March 2012?
A: "Yes".
Even though the opportunity to install “retrofit P.V.” on affordable housing and public sector 
buildings to make the 13-15% financial return may now have ended with the Governments' “fast track review” of feed in tariffs, there has been a very positive reaction from the renewable industry to counter act this by radically reducing the cost of P.V installations from the previous levels of 2011 now making retrofitting P.V systems still a very good overall investment for 2012.
For P.V. systems up to 50kw the enhanced payment tariffs are still available and will typically give a 10-12% return index linked for 25 years. A 50kw system will generate around £14,500 / annum and could easily pay for itself in around 10 years.
A recent survey found that over 80% of local authorities and housing associations were still considering retrofitting P.V renewables in preparation for the 2020 deadline to reduce carbon emissions by 20%.
So fitting a solar P.V. system is a long term investment but if you are looking for a solution that will remain at maximum efficiency for a minimum of 25 years then SolarTech can offer the best brands of P.V. to best fit your individual project needs. All of our products enjoy a full 25 year performance guarantee and are Government approved under the M.C.S. scheme. This approach ensures that you can install a system with the confidence that it will be fully operational over the Feed in Tariff scheme.
We are also able to offer a lease solution where appropriate enabling clients to spread the cost of the installation over a period between 2 and 10 years. This enables our Clients to spread the cost of the installation over a number of years whilst benefiting from the full income of the Feed-in tariff. This solution compares favourably with “free P.V.” schemes where the installer / S.P.V. will take all of the income from the feed-in tariff.
SolarTech are also able to offer remote monitoring with condition based maintenance capability ensuring maximum system performance over its life time and a fail safe way of recording all the individual quarterly fits payments without a need to access multiple tenants’ properties to read the meters.
Posted by Richard Lupo on Wed, Feb 22, 2012
Fabric Energy Efficiency Standard for new dwellings
On one level, wherever the FEES level is set is academic, because the target carbon reduction will have to be met whether builders chose to do this by improving the fabric or by installing other carbon reduction measures such as photovoltaics. It should be noted that it is recognised that certain build types will be harder to achieve a FEES than others.
The units used for FEES are kWh/m2/yr. It represents the heating demand of a home taking into account fabric insulation, air permeability and thermal bridging. The figure is already in use in the Code for Sustainable Homes. The 2016 level are expected to be maximums of 39 kWh/m²/yr for apartments and mid-terrace houses and 46 kWh/m²/yr for semi-detached, end of terrace and detached houses.
The government prefers to set intermediate FEES maximums at 43/52 kWh/m2/yr (depending on home type). Housebuilders are free to build to better standards in order to achieve the carbon compliance, but the rationale for setting a higher, but less demanding FEES is explored in the consultation. They argue that for some properties, e.g. off-gas properties, achieving the lower, more demanding FEES will go most of the way to achieving the carbon compliance levels.
There will only be a small amount of carbon reduction to achieve. One of the cheaper options will be to install a technology such as ground source heat pumps. As the heat pumps are a
finite size, the added carbon reduction will ”overshoot” the carbon reduction compliance target. In other words too much carbon would be saved. Again, it remains to be seen if respondents believe this logic is reasonable.
Fuel Factor for new dwellings
The consultation also addresses the fuel factor used to set the variable target in current building regulations. No preference is expressed, presumably because the fuel factor will not feature at all in the 2016 regulations, so whatever decision is reached will only be short lived. It is recognised that preserving the fuel factor at its current level, some types of property may not attain any reduction in carbon reductions compared to 2010 regulations. On the other hand removal of the fuel factor may mean an extra cost of up to £4,992 per unit to achieve carbon reduction targets.
Compliance for new dwellings
Part of the consultation revolves around the quality of compliance with new targets. The Government is keen to hear views on how this can be introduced. Suggestions include a quality assurance scheme to be introduced. Those who are accredited to the quality assurance scheme will be able to use as built figures in their SAP calculations. Those not accredited will have to include a margin of error in their SAP calculations which is an element of over design, to ensure that the as built home meets the modeled emissions rates.
One of the more interesting proposals is the proposal that the quality assurance scheme should include an element of post construction testing and co-heating tests. These tests are more onerous but provide far more detail on how homes perform.
The government is keen to hear views on compliance. Do let them know. In the next blog I am going to talk through the most important element of the changes to Part L for existing homes. Government are proposing a mechanism to drive forward energy efficiency improvements in existing homes.
We provide training on retrofitting existing homes to low carbon levels, Passivhaus, the Code for Sustainable Homes and other areas. See a list of potential courses here.
Posted by Richard Lupo on Tue, Feb 21, 2012
Last week I provided a summary of how measurement has been conducted in the past and the context of building regulations.
This week I am going to talk you through the proposed new proposed measurements and carbon compliance levels.
Proposed metrics for new dwellings
The consultation revolves around how the 2013 regulations should be a stepping stone towards the expected 2016 regulations. The government sees two choices. The first option is to use a Fabric Energy Efficiency Standard (FEES) and then set a carbon compliance method similar to what is now used, i.e. modeled emissions must be better than a variable target emission rate. The second option is to use FEES plus an absolute carbon target which is half way between current levels and the zero carbon objectives in 2016. This option is called the
“halfway point”.
It can be seen that both options will require FEES. Calculation of FEES is already in SAP 2009 software because it is used for certain aspects of the Code for Sustainable Homes. This means that some housebuilders are already gaining experience with this new metric.
The government’s preference is to use FEES plus the current method of showing that modeled emissions are better than target emissions. This is described as “FEES plus services” approach. They have opted for this approach because they feel that it introduces the concept of FEES to all housebuilders but also retains the variable target approach, with which builders are familiar. Come the 2016 regulations, it is anticipated that the FEES will be retained but absolute carbon levels will be introduced instead of variable targets.
Carbon compliance levels for new dwellings
The next stage of the consultation is to decide at which level they want to set the carbon compliance limit.
The consultation states that the government has carried out modeling of build costs based on the FEES plus services approach and have concluded that their preferred option is to set a carbon compliance level which results in around 8% reduction in carbon emissions compared to 2010 building regulations. The average extra costs to housebuilders would be £795 per unit.
These levels may come as a disappointment to those interested in keeping carbon emissions and household fuel bills down. For housebuilders, these levels may come as a relief in the short term, but in the long term, the increase in cost per unit to get to 2106 requirements will undoubtedly be much higher. Nevertheless, the rationale behind setting this arguably low level of carbon reduction is “Government has a commitment to reduce the burden on the housebuilding industry over the course of this Parliament”.
The consultation states that a higher carbon reduction level (around 26%) would mean an average increase cost per home of £2,866. It remains to be seen whether respondents to the consultation view the reduced fuel bills worthy of the increased costs of build and whether the extra burden on occupiers should also be considered in government commitments.
I hope that has been of use. In the next blog I will be talking through the Fabric Energy Efficiency Standards for new dwellings and the Fuel Factor (the calculation that allows for the carbon content of fuels supplied to homes)
We provide training on retrofitting existing homes to low carbon levels, Passivhaus, the Code for Sustainable Homes and other areas. See a list of potential courses here.
Posted by Richard Lupo on Wed, Feb 15, 2012
The Government proposals for the 2013 Building Regulations are now available from the Department of Communities and Local Government website.
We like to keep our community informed of important updates. These are significant. They have implications for how we measure the energy efficiency of new build homes. They also have implications for organisations making improvements to existing homes.
Introduction
The proposed Part L changes make for an interesting read because, amongst other things, they are the stepping stones between the current regulations and the 2016 regulations. By 2016 the Government have committed to introduce zero regulated carbon emissions from new homes. New methods of introducing carbon efficiency into existing buildings have also been proposed which ought to link in with the Green Deal programme.
There are many other changes described in the proposals ranging from electrical safety to a revision of the building control system. However, this briefing paper focuses on the proposed intermediate steps for the 2013 regulations as well as the proposals for improving the energy efficiency of new homes.
Background
To understand the proposals in context it is perhaps informative to describe where the regulations are now and then explain where the government intends to be in 2016.
The current situation is that energy efficiency compliance for new dwellings is demonstrated 
using the Standard Assessment Procedure (SAP). SAP uses the dimensions, fabric and heating systems information to model the predicted carbon dioxide emissions of a home. The predicted emissions are then compared to a target emissions rate. Provided the target is met then the home is considered compliant.
Currently the target is calculated for each new home and is dependent on the dimensions of the home, national fabric information and, importantly, a fuel factor which in turn is dependent on whether gas or electricity is used to heat the home. This means that the target is not permanently fixed and actually varies for every new type of home. Furthermore, it is up to the designer how the carbon emissions are reached, by whatever combination of technologies or design they chose. The key thing is, that the carbon emissions meet the (moving) target.
By 2016 the intention is to have zero regulated emissions for all new build homes. The first thing to note is the word “regulated”. This will mean that carbon emissions, as predicted by SAP, must be zero. However, SAP only looks at space and water heating, lighting, pumps, fans and cooling. It does not take into account things like fridge freezers, cookers and other appliances.
Crucially, the intention is to introduce new minimum standards for the fabric which has never been directed before. Also a specific carbon emissions target that does not change with fuel type and the concept of “allowable solutions” are anticipated for 2016.
This note will not deal with allowable solutions but briefly this is a means by which housebuilders can achieve a “zero carbon” home by paying for the equivalent carbon savings in other projects e.g. further improvements on the home under construction or reducing the same number of carbon emissions in existing homes.
In short, by 2016 housebuilders will have to reach a fabric energy efficiency target, maximum carbon emissions target and then perform activities to reduce the remaining carbon emissions.
I hope that has been of use. Our next blog will focus on the proposals for the 2013 building regulations. It should be up in the next week.
We provide training on retrofitting existing homes to low carbon levels, Passivhaus, the Code for Sustainable Homes and other areas. See a list of potential courses here.
Posted by Lisa Taylor on Tue, Feb 14, 2012
Congratulations to Macclesfield's Transition Town group, Macc 2020, for winning major Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) funding to develop a 'Green Deal Masterplan.' The project, conceived under the Local Energy Assessment Fund (LEAF) banner, will involve community engagement, research, and planning for green growth. You can read the press release here.
"This is a really ambitious programme of resource development and stakeholder engagement," said Lisa Taylor, responsible for Business Development & Projects at Sustainable Homes. "The March 31st LEAF deadline is right around the corner, but judging by the first meeting, this group will be able to deliver something really useful."
For the project, Sustainable Homes will tailor its suite of resident engagement tools to develop locally-focused Green Deal and energy-saving content, and to help bring community stakeholders on board.
Posted by Richard Lupo on Tue, Feb 07, 2012
Sustainable Homes have branched out! More of our clients are asking for more help. We are doing some great things to help organisations reduce their impacts.
Take Thrive Homes for instance. The Herts-based housing association approached us for help with measuring their carbon and reducing their wider environmental impacts. What happened then? Following detailed conversations with their operations director, Jo Barrett, a programme
was tailored to suit their needs. This included:
- Measuring carbon impacts - carbon assessment and retrofit strategy was developed for existing stock. This assessed every home to see which measures would most effectively reduce fuel bills.
Engaging staff and residents - an energy saving workshop was held at Thrive Homes offices.
Developing a survey specifically focused on engaging Thrive Homes residents about their attitudes to sustainability issues as well as passing on green tips and gaining data for asset management.
Independently assessing how green Thrive Homes is.
This will help determine how well they compare with their peers. The assessment covered their offices, existing homes, new build and the strategic approach of the business. In addition, they get to share and learn best practice from other organisations in the sector.
Was the approach successful?
Thrive Homes had this to say, “Thrive Homes is a trusted and respected landlord that delivers on its promises and sets high standards and that includes sustainability standards. The package offered by Sustainable Homes fitted our requirements perfectly and I’m pleased to say their work has given us clear guidance on where we go with energy efficiency and other sustainability issues for our stock. They even identified significant potential savings in our offices which will give us even more value for money.”
Want help with reducing your impacts?
The Sustainable Homes Team have years of experience and technical expertise. Call the friendly team 020 8973 0429 or email on info@sustainablehomes.co.uk.
Posted by guest author on Wed, Feb 01, 2012
Jenny Smith Andrews at H+H, offers her views on why getting a home’s envelope built as airtight and thermally efficient as possible is the best foundation for building to high levels of the CfSH.
Using the correct methods, we believe it is more than possible to build cost effectively to level 4 of the Code for Sustainable Homes (CfSH) with minimal or even no use of renewable technologies. We also believe that this can be done without entirely rethinking the way houses are designed and built. Only small tweaks are required in fact, not the radical departures that some advocate.
Putting as much effort as possible into the fabric of a home makes sense in many ways. In contrast to renewable technologies, a building’s fabric can’t be meddled with by tenants, in any significant way. Built correctly it will continue to perform as intended for decades and easily have other technologies added in future if required.
Compare that with how complicated some renewable technologies are, especially their control interfaces. Most people can work a simple thermostat dial but give them a complicated control, of which there are many, for any ground or air source heat pump, micro CHP or biomass boiler and it’s a different ball game.
It means either you have to spend time and money, as some local authorities have done, educating and training tenants how to use the equipment. Or, tenants use the technology incorrectly, turn it off, or worse, resulting in a home running in anything but an energy efficient capacity.
Such technologies also advance at frightening pace. In ten years what’s to say that technology installed now will not be inefficient and need upgrading? All this adds long term costs that can be unforeseen when costs to build an airtight and thermally efficient building envelope can be factored in from day one.
Ashford Council is just one example of a local authority building to level 4 of the CfSH using a fabric first approach. They had a clear objective to build high quality houses that will last for decades, being able to withstand the rigours of a number of different tenant families over time. The homes also had to be easy and comfortable to live in, delivering excellent U-values and airtightness in the process.
The chosen solution was the H+H Rå Build method of construction. This uses the H+H Thin
Joint masonry system with either solid wall or fully filled cavity walls using aircrete blockwork.
Airtightness is perhaps the most challenging aspect of building to level 4 and above of the CfSH. However, it was the substantial benefit in reducing heat loss that was the single most significant factor in the decision to use Rå Build.
In designing the wall structure, the use of aircrete’s very low psi values, based on Accredited Construction Details, allowed a halving of the y-value from 0.08 to o.04W/m2K. This is used to calculate the impact of linear thermal bridging within SAP 2005. The 0.04 y-value is achieved by virtue of the thermal efficiency of aircrete and has a similar effect on all external elements.
For the Ashford development cavity external walls were used with high performance full-fill cavity wall insulation manufactured by Superglass was used in the 125mm cavity. The structural width of the whole cavity wall was no more than 325mm with a U-value of 0.19W/m2K using two Thin Jointed leaves of 2.6N/mm2 aircrete. However, taking into account the 0.04 reduction in the y-value meant that the walls effectively provided a U-value of 0.15W/m2K.
To complete the energy efficiency of the build, solar PV panels were used on the roof of the dwellings. It was necessary to include some renewables in this project to achieve Code Level 4, but the contractors did note that the very thermally efficient structure significantly reduced the PV requirement.
Renewables are not the only answer to building to higher levels of the Code. H+H is involved
with an initiative to understand how houses can be built to Code Level 4 without using any sources of renewable energy.
AIMC4 is funded by the Technology Strategy Board and represents a unique collaboration between housebuilders, designers and product manufacturers to produce standard house designs that meet the demands of Code Level 4 purely through the efficiency of the fabric of the building. This must be the most sustainable answer – providing structures that are inherently efficient throughout the lifetime of the building.
AIMC4 is also taking into account the cost of highly efficiency building fabric and an objective at the outset was to achieve Code 4 at little or no additional cost over Code 3.
Our involvement with these pioneering projects demonstrates that aircrete, building on familiar design formats and UK site practice, represents a future proofed building fabric solution.
H+H Ltd is a corporate partner of the sustainability best practise group SHIFT. For more information on the programme please see here.
Posted by Allan Guy on Tue, Jan 31, 2012
Gentoo is celebrating after Sally Hancox, Director of Gentoo Green, was awarded an MBE in the Queen’s New Year’s Honours list for services to reducing carbon emissions and fuel poverty in social housing.
An MBE (Most Excellent Order of the British Empire) is an order of chivalry started in 1917 by George V. The MBE has been used to honour various individuals in non-military capacities. Some awardee’s include Joan Armatrading and Dame Kelly Holmes.
Sally said she is overjoyed by this prestigious recognition. She remarked: “It is hard to believe
I have been nominated for just doing a job I love. I still can’t believe it; I am amazed and humbled to receive this great award.”
Sally was appointed Director of Gentoo Green in 2007. Since then she has lead a strong 14-member team, dedicated to ensuring the Group remains at the forefront of the sustainability agenda. Gentoo is a founding member of SHIFT, the Sustainable Homes Index For Tomorrow, a sustainability best-practise group for housing providers and their supply chains. Gentoo Green has also been named in Sunday Times "Best Green Companies" list for four consecutive years.
In managing Gentoo Green, Sally continues to develop the business and ensure it makes the most of green thinking and technology. She also hopes this kind of recognition marks a major change in how seriously sustainability issues are taken:
“Six people in the field of housing were recognised this year. I hope this will help put some real focus and attention on this vitally important agenda.”
Andrew Eagles, Managing Director at Sustainable Homes, said: “This is a great achievement for Sally Hancox and this very progressive organisation. Sally has made an extremely significant impact on housing, and the recognition by the Queen is just icing on the cake. We are extremely happy for her and know that this won’t be the last award she receives for her work in the housing sector.”
Huge Congratulations go out to you from the Sustainable Homes team on receiving your award.
Posted by Andrew Eagles on Tue, Jan 31, 2012
A ground breaking eco-refurbishment of two Victorian, ‘hard-to-treat’ homes is being undertaken in Reading by Catalyst Housing Group. Catalyst is part of the Sustainable Homes Index For Tomorrow the national sustainability best practise group.
Buildings account for approximately 40% of UK carbon emissions, and the majority of this comes from domestic buildings. The Catalyst Group’s eco-homes project compares two different approaches, one which prioritises cost and one which prioritises performance, to provide information on how best to retrofit hard-to-treat homes, and to help identify value-for-money approaches to reducing carbon dioxide emissions across Catalyst’s housing stock.
As part of this innovative scheme, which is the first of its kind in the borough, the project
team will remotely monitor the performance of the homes for one year once residents move in. The residents will then be given training on how to reduce energy consumption by adapting their behaviour and the properties will be monitored for a subsequent year. Results from the first and second year monitoring phases will be compared. Catalyst hopes this will provide valuable information on how everyone can reduce fuel bills and carbon footprints by making small changes to the way homes are run.
The project uses two Victorian houses from Catalyst’s rental stock in Reading. Building A is referred to as ‘Cost House’, and the marginal costs over and above the standard refurbishment cost are kept as low as possible. Building B is referred to as ‘Quality House’, with budgetary constraints were secondary to performance when measures to reduce CO₂ emissions were being considered at design stage.
Data on CO₂ emissions, water and fuel consumption will be used to measure the actual performance of the homes against projected performance. A huge reduction in the environmental impact of the homes should be brought about by the energy efficiency measures installed, with a projected 83% CO₂ saving from Cost House and a projected 91% saving from Performance House.
Catalyst Housing Chief Executive Rod Cahill said:
“Making sure our housing stock is fit for the future is not only important for the environment, but also crucial to affordability. Fuel poverty is a key issue for us particularly when the cost of energy is at an all time high, so we are very keen to understand how we can most cost effectively reduce the cost in use of our homes for the benefit of our customers. I am sure that other owners of such hard-to-treat homes will be keen to see what can be done to make them more energy efficient."
“The key thing about this initiative is that it looks at energy saving in the round – different types of materials and technology, but also resident behaviour. We are keen to share the results to help the government and housing providers up and down the country to make environmentally friendly and lower cost homes a reality. I am really proud of the in house team which has promoted this ground breaking initiative.”
Andrew Eagles, Managing Director of Sustainable Homes, said “this type of project is exactly what the sector needs: measured impacts of sustainability. Particularly exciting is the monitoring and open book approach to the retrofits being undertaken. We will all be able to learn from this approach.”
The whole project is being delivered on an open book basis, so that other constructors, housing associations, government departments and any other interested parties can use Catalyst's experience to help inform their own approaches to improving the environmental performance of the UK’s housing stock.
The project is being managed in-house, using existing partnering contractors and suppliers so that all parties benefit from lessons learned and knowledge gained. The measures which demonstrate maximum carbon savings for the least amount of money will be integrated into Catalyst’s new and existing programmes of work, and feed into its long term sustainability strategy.
Notes:
Full information on the project is available, where all the data and accounts from the project will be published.
Catalyst aims to be a catalyst for change and improvement wherever we work – so that more people have a chance to build a better future.
Catalyst Housing’s work includes housing regeneration schemes, low cost home ownership, general needs housing, sheltered and special needs housing, residential care homes, and key worker accommodation, plus various community based initiatives including training. Operating in an area of considerable housing demand, Catalyst currently provides over 20,000 affordable homes in London and the South East.
For more information, please contact Adrian Bradley, Media Relations Manager Catalyst Housing, 020 8832 3142 adrian.bradley@chg.org.uk
Posted by guest author on Wed, Jan 25, 2012
Mears is the UK’s largest provider of social housing maintenance and domiciliary care services. Every year we repair and maintain over 500,000 social homes and provide home care to over 20,000 people. We also run 18 Home Improvement Agencies which give advice and support to older private home owners.
SHIFT allows us to actively engage a range of policy makers and housing professionals on issues that have a significant impact on people’s lives. Our work puts us in contact with some of the most marginalised people within the UK. Being part of the SHIFT network allows us to be at the forefront of advances which can make a positive impact on the lives of tenants and wider communities such as initiatives to tackle fuel poverty.
Mears’ Record of Achievement
Mears is qualified to manage, install and maintain a wide range of energy-efficiency and micro-
generation systems and products. Beyond this we have a long-standing commitment to promoting environmental sustainability.
In 2011 Mears:
- Worked with clients from Glasgow to Brighton to retrofit existing housing stock, and appraise and install new green technology
- Mears project managed the internal fit out on behalf of British Gas of their " Information Hub" a part of the prestigious Victorian Terrace refurbishment at the BRE Innovation Park
- Was part of the team that received the 2011 Sustainable Housing Award for the Sustainable Larger Housing Retrofit Project of the Year
- Provided strategic support to asset management professionals on their carbon reduction programmes.
The Year Ahead
The Green Deal is going to bring many challenges and opportunities. Mears is already working with our Local Authority and Housing Association clients to maximise the benefits to the social housing sector. Mears is helping clients:
- Develop their Environmental Strategies and Action Plans
- Determine strategies for treating off-gas-grid properties
- Appraise the best ways to leverage funding and subsidies
- Develop a range of practical solutions to improve asset management information via more efficient stock condition surveying
- Build capacity by providing energy awareness training
It is only by working in partnership with Local Authorities, Housing Associations and tenants that we will be able to find an energy solution for every home.
Article written by Ray Blundell, Mears Group