Heating
Solar water heating
Solar water heating can typically provide over 60% of your hot water during the course of a year. With water heating being one of the largest sources of carbon emissions in your home (or the single largest source in the case of a Passive House) this can significantly cut your home's carbon footprint.
Water flowing through Solar thermal panels on your roof, or perhaps on your wall, is heated by the sun. The heated water is then used to heat either your regular hot water cylinder, or a dedicated solar cylinder. Even on overcast days, the system can often make a contribution by pre-heating the water before it is heated conventionally.
Ground Source Heat Pumps
Although air temperature drops during the winter, the soil beneath your garden stores the warmth of the sun and remains at a fairly even temperature year round. Ground source heat pumps work by transferring warmth from below your garden into your house, using a system of underground pipes. Operating a little like a refrigerator in reverse, a heat pump can move 3-4 units of heat into your house for every unit of electricity used.
Heat pumps can help balance out the much higher carbon emissions from electricity, compared to using gas (over 60% of the energy used to provide electricity is lost in generation and transmission), so carbon emissions can be 30 to 50% lower than if a high-efficiency central heating boiler were used.
Air Source Heat Pumps
Cheaper but less efficient than when the ground is used as the source, air source heat pumps may not be able to improve on the carbon emissions from a modern gas central heating boiler. They are still worth considering away from the mains gas supply.
Carbon emissions, rising energy prices, gas shortages, water shortages, flooding, heatwaves, deforestation, depletion of resources, increases in allergies and asthma. Such issues are of growing concern to many people.
The Eco Design and Build team are committed to tackling these kinds of issues now, through the homes we build. We design and construct eco-friendly homes that are designed to reduce their impact on the environment, helping you to live more sustainably and healthily.