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Always featuring numerous articles on a wide range of eco-building projects from all around the UK, most of which are written by the very people that designed or built them. It is the ideal read for architects, builders, developers, self builders and anyone interested in eco-building, including interested homeowners/clients.
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Tenants move in to new green social housing |
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30 Sep 2012, 7:50 PM
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The first tenants have moved into a new eco-friendly social housing development and are already enjoying a “different way of living”. More than 500 people applied for the 21 properties at Sinclair Meadows, off Laygate, South Shields, finally complete after five years of planning and hard work by not-for-profit Four Housing Group.
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The properties at Sinclair Meadows have been built so that the main rooms are south-facing, to collect maximum natural heat from the sun – and so help residents save money on energy bills, as well as reducing the need for heating.
The heating and hot water will be provided by a communal biomass boiler, which will use recycled-timber fuel pellets.
A rainwater harvesting system ensures the flow from the roofs of the properties is stored in underground storage tanks – a combined system for the apartments and individual systems for the houses. This water will then be used to flush toilets, as well as for gardening, to reduce the amount of mains water needed for everyday use.
The completed homes also have energy monitoring systems installed, which allow the occupiers to see how much they are using at any time, although having been fitted with one of the largest arrays of photovoltaic panels on any domestic buildings in the UK, bills should be minimal.
Additionally the buildings use natural materials wherever possible, including timber frames, hemp insulation and lime render.
Now the housing association hope the green homes-for-rent project will provide a template for future communities across the nation.
The potential tenants had to go through a long ‘audition’ process, to ensure they genuinely support the site’s zero carbon ethos.
Dawn Keightley, director of operations with FHG, said: “Sinclair Meadows is unique because it is the first purpose-built and designed carbon-negative housing scheme on this scale that, within three years of being built, has the ability to remove its own carbon footprint created during construction. Once the development has reached the end of its useful life, the majority of the materials will be reusable, recyclable and biodegradable.
“The early signs are excellent, with large numbers of potential tenants showing interest in the homes.
“We look forward to welcoming them in, to see the technology in action and to experience life in the most advanced carbon-negative social housing community in the UK. These low-energy, quality homes offer security and predictability at a time when fuel costs are volatile, so we also expect our tenants to benefit financially.”
Tenants will be extensively trained in how to be energy-efficient in their new homes, so they have the opportunity to use less and save more.
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