Get the next four copies of this fantastic magazine delivered directly to your door.
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.
|
|
|
Eco pods create level 5 social housing |
|
 
|
|
|
|
4 Sep 2009, 7:24 PM
|
An innovative social housing scheme built by Paradigm Housing Group has seen five green roofed eco-pods, providing 24 one and two bedroom flats, pop up on a piece of derelict land between rows of semi-detached houses.
|
Each of the prefabricated structures is topped by a vegetated roof and surrounded by gardens, so that neighbouring London residents still see green views from their bedroom windows.
The development is one of the first CSH level 5 social housing developments built: a previous one was completed last year for Raven Housing Trust in Surrey but only consisted of two homes. Raven chose traditional-looking homes, but Paradigm has opted for futuristic domes.
Paradigm was encouraged in its eco-ambitions by construction company and sustainability specialist Sunrise, which owned the land. Sunrise persuaded Paradigm to make the move from level 4 to 5. The units were grant-funded by the Homes and Communities Agency, and Paradigm paid for the extra cost (£23,000 per unit) of getting to level 5. Phase two of the low carbon buildings programme provided £60,000 for photovoltaics.
The pods incorporate mineral wool insulation in four layers, with two breathable membranes. Additional insulation is provided by the brick cladding, although this could be timber or even metal.
The result is that the building fabric is so well insulated that only double, not triple, glazing is needed. The insulation will also keep the houses cool in the summer, while the pods are angled for optimum benefit from the sun’s heat.
The housing association will be working with the residents to draw up a 'green charter' for transport, waste and water, encouraging them to think about how their behaviour impacts on the environment.
Some help with the biodiversity of the site was needed to meet code level 5 - nesting boxes for lace-wings, log piles to provide a refuge for beetles, bird boxes or water baths. There were already mature hedges surrounding the site. The green roofs will help too.
Prefabricated pods were chosen as the site wasn’t wide enough for a conventional bricks and mortar development. They are modular buildings with steel frames, completed in a factory, where they are fitted out with windows, bathrooms and kitchens.
Pod-parts are the size of a lorry and are stacked together like bricks by a huge crane. This method cuts the build time to six months, half that of original plans for a time frame scheme.
A Froling Turbomatic 100kW biomass boiler will serve the whole site, from a basement beneath the cycle store, fed with wood pellets from Surrey. PV panels will provide electricity, and sewage and waste water is recycled on site. Rainwater harvesting will provide water for gardens.
|
|
|
|
