LEADER -
Selfbuild ecohome takes no time at all
Self builder, Sarah Villers, has recently completed a spacious detached, 3-bed eco-home. The house was intended to be as energy efficient as possible, designed with the sun in mind and she didn't want construction to take forever.
Villers explains "My plan was to selfbuild a simple, single-ridge, rectangular footprint home (12m x 7m) divided into three equal bays (4m x 7m) (north-south) to maximize passive solar gain".
Large areas of south-facing double-glazed windows for passive solar heating were incorporated. An integrated solar panel and wood pellet boiler produces hot water and underfloor heating. And,to reduce heating costs further, high levels of recycled cellulose (Warmcel) insulation was used.
"The slightest bit of sun makes a noticeable difference to room temperatures because of the large south facing windows. I only need to use the pellet boiler in very cold weather", she added.
The building land is a south-facing, rear ˜brown' infill plot which was found with existing outline planning permission, having previously housed a workshop. The site is located at the edge of the village boundary, overlooking a meadow and orchards.
The house was extremely quick to build. It took three weeks to erect the timber panel frame, including the windows and roof membrane, so making it almost weatherproof. It then took a further three months to complete the rest of the project. Externally, larch cladding was used on the upper storey and horse-haired lime render on traditional oak lath on the external of the ground floor walls. The roof was clad with dark grey roof tiles made from recycled car tyres.
So far, family visitors have all found the spaciousness and ˜feel' of the home to be welcoming and have also liked the effect created by the interior wood in the doors, upstairs birch floor, staircases, gallery and balcony. This is dramatically increased by the tree feature standing straight and true' at the corner of the staircase which soars into the void and supports the roof beam.
How did Ms Villers build her house so fast? Why isn't she having a wind turbine? And why did she start with a raft of reinforced concrete? Can that be Green Building? To find the answers read the full version of her article in the Spring Edition of BFF Magazine, out now.To order a copy, follow the link below.
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