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HOME
FROM HOME
Architect turns childhood home
into client’s passive house

BUNGALOW
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Monaghan gets passive
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IRISH EDITION

Much ado about nothing A Robin Hood energy policy 46 C outside, cool inside
Is zero carbon construction Give to the frugal, take from Seville hotel beats the heat
even possible? the profligate with passive retrofit
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 PASSIVE HOUSE+ EDITOR’S LETTER

Publishers
Temple Media Ltd
PO Box 9688, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland
t +353 (0)1 210 7513 | t +353 (0)1 210 7512
e info@passivehouseplus.ie
editor’s letter
www.passivehouseplus.ie ISSUE 46

I
f 2023 was an annus horribilis for
Editor
Jeff Colley
the planet, then December was the
jeff@passivehouseplus.ie finis horribilis.
While negotiators were attempting to
broker a deal to limit warming to 1.5 C
Reporter
John Hearne above pre-industrial levels (1850-1900) at
john@passivehouseplus.ie COP28 in Dubai, EU scientists confirmed
that 2023 would be the warmest year on
Reporter record, based on the global mean tempera-
Kate de Selincourt ture for the first 11 months of the year. But
kate@passivehouseplus.ie how high was that temperature compared
to 1850-1900 levels? 1.46 C.
Reporter Think about this for a second. At a time
John Cradden when global emissions from fossil fuel use
cradden@passivehouseplus.ie continue to increase – effectively pouring
a hydrocarbon on a fire – the only thing
Reader Response / IT that kept the world below the 1.5 C limit
Dudley Colley in 2023 was the fact that we go two places
dudley@passivehouseplus.ie past the decimal point.
Of course, it should be said that this is
Accounts just one year, and these are preliminary
Oisin Hart estimates. If we are to look for crumbs of
oisin@passivehouseplus.ie comfort, we may find them in the hope
that some climate scientists cling to – that
Art Director an enormous sudden drop in emissions
Lauren Colley may keep 1.5 C within reach. But step
lauren@passivehouseplus.ie back and look dispassionately at the
situation. COP28 was held in a petrostate,
Design presided over by Sultan Al Jaber. This is a
Aoife O’Hara man whose day job is chief executive of the
aoife@evekudesign.com | evekudesign.com United Arab Emirates’ state oil company,
ADNOC. “There is no science out there
Contributors
Lenny Antonelli journalist
that says that the phase-out of fossil fuel
John Butler Passivhaus Consultant is what’s going to achieve 1.5 C,” Al Jaber
Toby Cambray Greengauge Building said in the run up to the event, adding that
Energy Consultants
Juan Manuel Castaño Castaño &
phasing out fossil-fuels would not allow
Asociados Passivhaus sustainable development “unless you want
Pat Crean Marlet Property Group to take the world back into caves.”
Marc Ó Riain doctor of architecture
Mel Reynolds architect
In that context, you might consider it
Andrew Simmonds Simmonds.Mills Architects a blessing that COP28 led to any kind of
María Vico Castaño & Asociados Passivhaus agreement at all that even green politicians
Jason Walsh journalist
felt they could sell to their electorates, but
Print
GPS Colour Graphics
www.gpscolour.co.uk | +44 (0) 28 9070 2020
it’s hard to escape the feeling that the kind
of radical action that the world needs will
not stem from this agreement. We may
already have reached the point where 1.5 C
is no longer attainable.
This is not to throw in the towel or wallow
in despair. The risk of reaching climate
tipping points notwithstanding, we must
beware of conceiving of our lot in simplistic
binary terms of doom or salvation. The fact
is that every fraction of a degree of warming
that we can prevent is worth fighting for.
The power to stop a bad situation from
getting worse – or limiting how much worse
it gets – is still within reach.
True, the enormousness of the challenge
facing humanity can be overwhelming. But
there are signs of hope. Land use emissions
are falling, albeit modestly. And fossil
fuel-related emissions are falling in some
regions, including Europe and the USA.
With the developed world, the clue is in the
name. Profligate, uneven and environmen-
tally destructive though our development
may have been, we do not need to create
the systems required to give most people a
reasonable standard of living. Rather, we
need to radically adapt how we think and
act to reduce our impacts on the planet.
For my part, as we head into a new year I
will take inspiration in the stories we have
the privilege of telling in Passive House Plus:
stories of people making profound improve-
ments to the places where ordinary men,
women and children live, work and play,
and in so doing prove that we do not need to
keep destroying the conditions that sustain
us in our attempts to improve our lives.
Regards,
The editor

Cover
Leeward passive house, Cork.
Photo by John Morehead

Publisher’s circulation statement: 7,000 copies of Passive

House Plus (Irish edition) are printed and distributed to the
leading figures involved in sustainable building in Ireland
including architects; consulting; m&e and building services
engineers; developers; builders; energy auditors; renewable
energy companies; environmental consultants; county, city
Official partner magazine of:
and town councillors; key local authority personnel; and to The Irish Green Building Council
newsagents nationwide via Easons. The Passive House Association of Ireland
Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in Passive House Plus The International Passive House Association
are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the
views of the publishers.

ph+ | editor’s letter | 3

CONTENTS PASSIVE HOUSE+
CONTENTS
10 26
IS SHARED EQUITY A BRIDGE
8 TOO FAR?
In the face of an affordability crisis, first time
buyers of new homes are being offered a
cocktail of incentives to help them get on the
property ladder, including the government’s
Help to Buy and First Home schemes. Mel
Reynolds asks: are these the solution to the
affordability crisis?
BIG PICTURE
10
The first passive house certified hotel in
Seville’s historic centre defies the challenges
posed by its hot climate, small size, and
preservation requirements, showcasing
innovative strategies to mitigate heat and
maximize energy efficiency.
NEWS
18
Proposals for zero emission buildings and
renovation overhaul agreed in recast EPBD;
new guidance document previewed for
planners to cut carbon emissions; green
finance products for sustainable homes must
meet new EU rules; and SEAI says Ireland is
failing to stay within carbon budgets.
4 | passivehouseplus.ie | issue 46
COVER
STORY
36
COMMENT
24
Shortlisted for the Stirling Prize in 2003, BedZed
was a prominent example of architecture starting
to pay attention to sustainability. But how well
did it work? In the latest part of his series on the
history of low energy architecture, Dr Marc O’Riain
looks back at a landmark project.
CASE STUDIES
Bungalow bills
Monaghan retrofit takes passive route to
26 low costs and high comfort
What does it feel like to suffer the cold, mould and
discomfort of a 1960s bungalow, and experience
its rebirth as a passive house? The owner of one
award-winning project spills the beans.
Home from home
36 Architect turns childhood home into client’s
passive house
Few architects are tasked with knocking their old
family home, but for John Morehead, once this
difficult decision was made, it was a chance to
create a future-proofed new passive house that
embraces its stunning natural surroundings and
exhibits remarkable attention to detail.

46 56
Handled with care
46 Exeter extra care scheme goes passive
to protect the elderly
If thermal comfort is important for people of
all ages, it’s even more so for elderly people,
for whom the right living conditions can be
a matter of life or death. Passive House Plus
visited one award-winning extra care facility in
Exeter to learn how the decision to go passive
was working out for the residents.
Play to win
Creative play café brings passive benefits
56 for Bristol families
A site with a dilapidated building in Bristol has
been transformed into a crucial social space by
a husband and wife team of environmentally-
and socially-engaged architects, aided by a
polymath sustainability consultant.
INSIGHT
Much ado about nothing
66 Is zero carbon construction actually possible?
As the world edges ever closer to the precipice
of runaway climate change, some sustainability
terms have moved from relative obscurity
towards the mainstream of marketing and
public discourse – and none more so than zero
carbon. But is zero carbon construction a real
prospect, or is it just wishful thinking?
PASSIVE HOUSE+ CONTENTS
70
Carbon first, fabric second
70 How to decarbonise the UK’s housing stock
Rapidly decarbonising our cold, leaky dwellings
is the greatest challenge facing the building
industry, one fraught with complexity and risk.
Given that the UK faces similar challenges
to Ireland – in a similar climate, with similar
housing stock – what can we learn from British
efforts to meet this challenge? Leading UK
green building association the AECB has put
forward a proposal that could help to chart a
new course through these choppy waters.
MARKETPLACE
74
Keep up with the latest developments from
some of the leading companies in sustainable
building, including new product innovations,
project updates and more.
A new energy policy: give to the frugal,
78 take from the profligate
Should we look to Robin Hood to help
transform energy use in buildings? New
proposed reforms to how energy is priced could
hold the key to discouraging excessive energy
use, stimulating retrofit and driving down
carbon emissions, argues Toby Cambray.
contents || 55
ph+ || contents
ph+
CONTENTS PASSIVE HOUSE+

6 | passivehouseplus.ie | issue 46
PASSIVE HOUSE+ CONTENTS

contents || 77
ph+ || contents
ph+
MEL REYNOLDS COLUMN
Is shared equity
a bridge too far?
In the face of an affordability crisis, first time buyers of new homes are being offered a
cocktail of incentives to help them get on the property ladder, including the government’s
Help to Buy and First Home schemes. Mel Reynolds asks: are these the solution to the
affordability crisis?
What do the schemes offer?
The Help to Buy scheme (HTBS) allows
up to a €30,000 lump sum tax rebate to be
claimed by qualifying purchasers. There is
no salary cap and mortgages must be a min-
imum of 70 per cent of the property value.
To date, 42,000 buyers have availed of this
measure.
The First Home scheme (FHS) allows
buyers to ‘bridge the affordability gap’ with
the state owning up to a 30 per cent ‘eq-
uity share’ in a new home, reduced to 20
per cent if the purchasers are also availing
of the HTBS. There are a range of price
caps depending on location, ranging from
€325,000 in less expensive counties to
€500,000 for apartments in Cork City and
Co Dublin. A minimum 10 per cent deposit
is required along with a maximum mortgage
of four times one’s income. Since 2018,
€590 million has been lent out under this
scheme to 3,580 households.
In the sixth year of ownership under the
FHS, if buyers haven’t fully paid off their eq-
uity share, a service charge will begin to ac-
crue, starting at 1.75 per cent and stepping
up to 2.85 per cent for year thirty. Owners
can buy out all or part of the equity share
at any time. The full amount must be re-
deemed under several conditions, such as if
the property is sold or rented out.
If prices continue to increase, what’s not to
like? The best way to examine this is to look
at a number of scenarios.
Case study A: second-hand home
A Dublin-based couple have a joint income
of €70,000 and a €40,000 deposit. They can
obtain the maximum mortgage and want to
buy a second-hand home. They can’t avail of
either the HTBS or FHS as the house is sec-
ond-hand. Their maximum purchase price
will be €320,000.
With an interest rate of 4.5 per cent, a
thirty-year €280,000 mortgage will have
monthly repayments of €1,419. At the end
of the thirty years they’ll own their prop-
erty outright. At time of writing, there are
more than seven hundred advertisements
8 | passivehouseplus.ie | issue 46
online for homes for sale in Co Dublin for
€325,000 or less, so there is plenty of choice.
Case study B: new home
The couple are tempted by the incentives
on offer for new homes. In addition to their
maximum mortgage of €280,000 and de-
posit of €40,000, they qualify for €20,000
under the HTBS, less than the maximum.
They also qualify for 15 per cent of the pur-
chase price under the FHS, a €60,000 equity
share. Their purchasing power increases by
€80,000 and they can now buy a new home
for up to €400,000.
But their choice is limited: In October
2023 there were just five new schemes in Co
Dublin advertised with prices of €400k or
less so it’s likely that their new home will be
in the commuter belt.
Costs
With new home prices rising by 11 per cent
per year the incentives may look compel-
ling, but the devil is in the detail. There
are two main components to the costs of
buying a new-build: the mortgage and the
‘equity share’.
• The mortgage is straightforward. With an
interest rate of 4.5 per cent, a thirty-year
€280,000 mortgage will have monthly
repayments of €1,419. After thirty years
this debt is paid off.
• The shared equity is a bit more compli-
cated. The FHS isn’t a mortgage, and the
equity share goes up and down accord-
ing to market values. Service charges will
be due along with the equity. If the debt
isn’t paid off early, service charges over
thirty years in this case will be €30,270.
At a low level +2 per cent price inflation
per year, the equity amount increases to
€108,630, and the total repayable will be
€138,900 – equivalent to a 6.65 per cent
thirty-year mortgage.
But this could be a lot more. If price in-
flation is +3 per cent per year, then the FHS
equity share plus fees increases to €175,900
over the term, equivalent to a 9.15 per cent
thirty-year mortgage. If buyers pay off the
equity share within the first five years, no
service charges apply. But if prices increase
sharply in this period, the costs increase. If
price inflation averages +8 per cent per year
in the first five years, the FHS total due in
year five is the equivalent of a whopping
16.3 per cent five-year loan.
Buy new or second-hand?
The shared equity scheme sounds great, but
you need to look at the fine print: it may
cost more in the short term when the mar-
ket rises. The examples above suggest that if
prices increase even marginally above infla-
tion over a long period, the cost for a first-
time buyer of a new home with the aid of
incentives versus a cheaper second-hand one
could be €176,000.
Government requests for repayment
down the line may result in owners being
forced to refinance close to retirement age,
or in selling to pay-off the equity share.
Incentives that seem enticing now may
end up costing thousands more in a few
years. My advice is to think carefully and do
your homework - look before you leap. n
A fully referenced version of this article
is online at www.passivehouseplus.ie
Mel Reynolds is a registered
architect with more than 25 years of
experience in project management,
conservation, urban design and
developer-led housing. He is also a
certified passive house designer.
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TRIANA HOUSE BIG PICTURE

BIG PICTURE
PASSI VE & ECO BUIL D S F R O M A R O U N D TH E WO R LD
With climate change leading to increasingly frequent and intense heatwaves across
much of the world, parts of southern Europe have suffered more than most. In the
historic Andalusian city of Seville, the mercury has been hitting 46 C. How do you
keep a building cool in those conditions without putting enormous strain on air
conditioning systems? One existing boutique hotel may have hit the answer – with a
passive retrofit.

by Juan Manuel Castaño and María Vico, Castaño & Asociados Passivhaus

1. Triana House boutique hotel:

a passive house icon in Andalusia

The first passive house certified hotel in Seville’s historic centre de-
fies the challenges posed by its hot climate, small size, and pres-
ervation requirements, showcasing innovative strategies to mitigate
heat and maximize energy efficiency. Through meticulous design
considerations, including strategies to minimize cooling demands,
Triana House boutique hotel achieves the passive house standard
while preserving its traditional Andalusian style.
Triana House proudly claims the title of being a trailblazing pio-
neer – the very first passive certified hotel in all of southern Spain.

10 | passivehouseplus.ie | issue 46
 BIG PICTURE TRIANA HOUSE

2. The original idea

Isabel, the driving force behind Triana
House, already had another hotel in the
same area and harboured an incredibly am-
bitious goal: to refurbish a newly acquired
building in the Triana neighborhood, creat-
ing a hotel that would not only set industry
standards but also deliver utmost comfort to
its guests, coupled with unparalleled ener-
gy efficiency. It was a sustainable endeavor
where, beyond the use of natural materials,
minimizing pollutant emissions and energy
consumption was paramount. It represent-
ed an ecological commitment that artfully
melded sustainable features with luxury and
tradition. The true allure of Triana House
lies not just in what it is, but in how it op-
erates, how it feels, and how it appears. It’s
a story of dedication to eco-conscious prin-
ciples while weaving an intricate tapestry of
opulence and heritage. The essence of Triana
House transcends its physical form; it’s a vi-
sual symphony, a testament to sustainable
hospitality, and an embodiment of beauty
that extends far beyond what the eye can see.

3. Hotel layout overview

At 291 m 2 in surface area, the hotel encompasses a basement,

ground floor, two additional floors, and a total of seven guest
rooms. Notably, the hotel only has a single facade facing the street,
which lies to the east, complemented by a traditional Andalusian
interior patio. The layout includes a kitchen and plant room situ-
ated in the basement, with the reception area and two guest rooms
on the ground floor, three rooms on the first floor, and two pent-
houses on the second floor.
From the outset, this ambitious architectural undertaking had
a formidable team of multidisciplinary experts: architect, passive
house designer, engineer, interior designers, and a construction
team with passive house tradesperson qualifications all came to-
gether to make this fantastic result possible.

ph+ | triana house big picture | 11

TRIANA HOUSE BIG PICTURE
4. Enhancing thermal envelope efficiency
The street-facing facade, protected by heri-
tage regulations, posed a unique challenge.
External insulation, commonly used for
retrofits, couldn’t be installed. As a result,
insulation was primarily applied to the in-
terior. Furthermore, in conjunction with
interior insulation, the decision was made
to implement a 2 cm insulating mortar lay-
er on the exterior.
The U-values and composition varied to
address thermal bridging, a necessary con-
cession due to the traditional typology and
design of the building.
Some of the envelope enclosure’s U-val-
ues on the facade are lower than typical for
this climate: the average U-values are 0.29
12 | passivehouseplus.ie | issue 46
for the facades and 0.173 for the roof. This
adjustment compensates for the building’s
shaded location and the thermal bridges
that had to be accepted due to the inability
to install external insulation.
Certified passive house wooden windows
designed for warm climates (with a frame
U-value of 1.20) were installed. The glaz-
ing features tripleglazing with a U-value of
0.84 and a solar factor (g) of 0.31. The deci-
sion to use triple glazing was driven by the
shading of the building’s openings, restric-
tions on enlarging window openings due
to heritage considerations, and the need to
maintain a low solar factor to reduce cool-
ing demand.
5. Hot climate, cool solutions
Triana House, though small with sub-
stantial internal heat loads, efficiently
meets cooling demands (15 kWh/m2yr)
using strategic passive design techniques.
The central patio provides natural
shade to every window, aided by a per-
manent awning during hot summers.
Managing solar radiation is key. Var-
ious exterior blinds, from traditional
to modern roller blinds in insulated
boxes, were used. The aforementioned
glass g-factor of 0.31 helps balance
cooling without increasing heating de-
mand too much.
To reduce internal heat gains, the me-
chanical room is placed outside the ther-
mal envelope.
The hotel has a fully automated instal-
lation, with smart building technology
including automatic external mobile
shading in the attic room, optimized
time automation on hot water recircula-
tion, and occupancy-based HVAC and
ventilation modes.
The building’s three heat recovery units
have three modes, considering an average
of 0.7 air changes per hour in the build-
ing in summer mechanical ventilation.
In addition to dissipating heat, it reduces
the indoor humidity.
Photos: Triana House Boutique Hotel
 BIG PICTURE TRIANA HOUSE

ph+ | triana house big picture | 13

TRIANA HOUSE BIG PICTURE

6. Airtightness challenges

The building’s airtightness posed a formidable challenge, giv-

en its compact size and the intricate web of installations, in-
cluding mechanical ventilation with heat recovery, domestic
hot water, and a cooling floor, all penetrating the envelope.
The structure was divided into two airtight sections: the base-
ment and the combined ground floor, first floor, and attic.
With access to all spaces from the exterior patio and a complex
network of utilities crisscrossing the envelope, achieving air-
tightness was no small feat.
Throughout construction, seven blower door tests were con-
ducted to assess various elements of the airtight envelope.
These tests encompassed the two independent sectors, instal-
lation shafts, twelve exterior doors, windows, and more. To
facilitate these tests, one-square metre openings were strate-
gically left between rooms within the sector, extending above
ground level until project completion. As the rooms were not
interconnected, access was provided through the gallery, a ne-
cessity for conducting the airtightness test.
In the end, the n50 result stood at an impressive 0.60 air
changes per hour at 50 Pa, marking the triumphant resolu-
tion of airtightness challenges in a structure that presented
a unique amalgamation of characteristics: open design to a
patio, modest proportions comparable to a family house, and
the complexities inherent to a hotel’s utility demands.
Triana House’s achievement in airtightness underscores its
commitment to both energy efficiency and guest comfort.

7. Mechanical ventilation:
blending novelty with tradition

The hotel features three passive house-certified mechan-

ical ventilation with heat recovery (MVHR) units that
provide filtered, clean, and conditioned air to: 1) the ho-
tel rooms, 2) the basement, and 3) the ground floor’s
entrance hall, reception area, and office.
The decision to install three units stemmed from the
hotel’s compact size, allowing for a distributed ventila-
tion system throughout the building. The passive house
certification required a balancing protocol for all heat
recovery units, encompassing three usage modes: mini-
mum, standard, and maximum.
The MVHR system ensures excellent indoor air quality
while operating quietly. A significant challenge was har-
monizing the novelty of such a system with the hotel’s
traditional design. For example, custom-designed air sup-
ply vents in the ventilation system blend seamlessly into
the room decor, featuring a traditional plaster finish that
complements the overall ambiance of the hotel’s rooms
and spaces. These vents can be seen on the ceiling in this
room’s photograph (left).

14 | passivehouseplus.ie | issue 46
 BIG PICTURE TRIANA HOUSE

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TRIANA HOUSE BIG PICTURE

8. Climate control: heating and cooling

The hotel includes a combined heating According to PHPP calculations, heat- occupancy levels on different days – with
and cooling system composed of air ven- ing and cooling loads are 11 W/m 2, guests who may leave windows open and
tilation post-heating / cooling batteries, but this is predicated on the occupant not be conscious of how to manage the
one for each heat recovery unit and a radi- using the building as intended. But be- rooms, the loads were oversized to 68 W/
ant floor heating / cooling system. cause the hotel may face extremely high m 2 to cover all eventualities. The air-to-
This innovative solution ensures a com- temperatures, and may need to quickly water heat pump installed has a robust 17
fortable year-round interior environment adapt to a wide variety of situations and kW capacity.
with fully automated operation. Seville
experiences exceptionally hot summers
(with maximum temperatures reaching
46 C and mild winters, with minimum
temperatures occasionally dropping to
-5.5 C (averaging 10.9 C).
The cooling strategy includes a low ther-
mal inertia radiant floor system to capi-
talise on Seville’s relatively arid summer
climate. This underfloor system functions
for both heating and cooling, and not
only eliminates the need for in-room ma-
chinery like fan coils or splits, addressing
issues of ceiling height and noise, but also
offers guests rapid temperature control.
Operating at a refreshing 16 C, the cool-
ing floor yields an impressive 41 W/m 2
(with a total cooling floor power of 9 kW)
and boasts an EER of 3.6.
In tandem with this, three support water
coils for post-treatment of ventilation air
contribute approximately 2 kW each (to-
taling 6 kW) with an EER of 2.9. Initially,
the cooling floor system takes charge, only
engaging the water coils in the ventilation
system when the desired temperature is
yet to be reached. These three units, all
passive house certified with an 84 per cent
efficiency rating, work seamlessly to cool
or heat the ventilation air as required.
Room climate control goes the extra
mile, with automated adjustments in place
for vacant rooms or instances of doors or
windows left ajar for extended periods
(monitored through contact sensors).
And for guests, the power to fine-tune the
room’s temperature within a 3 C margin
rests at their fingertips, all masterfully or-
chestrated from the reception desk.

9. Renewable energy solutions in action

The hotel relies on a 17 kW air-to-water heat pump

for heating, cooling, and domestic hot water (DHW).
Additionally, nine solar panels on the rooftop harness
solar thermal energy to warm the water used for both
heating and DHW. In case of heightened demand, the
heat pump seamlessly kicks into action. Moreover, the
system features controlled hot water recirculation. A
pump circulates hot water through highly insulated
pipes a few times a day to minimise the time it takes
for hot water to reach appliances and thereby reduce
water wastage.

16 | passivehouseplus.ie | issue 46

10. Elevating comfort and sustainability
Staying at Triana House Boutique Ho-
tel offers an unparalleled experience in
terms of indoor air quality and comfort.
It is an eco-conscious establishment that
prioritizes the well-being of their guests
by meticulously controlling and filtering
ventilation to ensure a constant supply
of fresh and healthy air. The exceptional
airtightness and sound insulation of pas-
sive house structures create a tranquil and
temperature-stable environment, guaran-
teeing a peaceful night’s sleep and a com-
fortable stay.
What sets this passive hotel apart is
the owner’s commitment to sustainabil-
12. Sustainable hotel and
satisfied customers
Triana House Boutique Hotel seamlessly
blends sustainability with luxury, redefining
the concept of hospitality in a historic city.
With a meticulous focus on energy effi-
ciency and environmental consciousness,
this architectural gem effortlessly combats
Seville’s sweltering summers and ensures a
cozy winter refuge. Harnessing clean en-
ergy via air source heat pumps and solar
panels for hot water and heating genera-
tion, it’s a beacon of sustainability.
This hotel is efficient, comfortable,
healthy, and environmentally committed,
reducing 30 tons of CO2 emissions annu-
ally, equivalent to planting 3,000 trees
each year. Triana House Boutique Hotel
invites guests to indulge in sustainable
opulence, ultimately leaving guests with a
memorable and environmentally responsi-
ble experience.
Discover more about this remarkable oasis
in the Passive House Database, ID: 7174.
BIG PICTURE TRIANA HOUSE
ity in every aspect. From the materials
used in construction to the furnishings
and amenities, Triana House prioritizes
eco-friendly options. You’ll find bed lin-
ens and towels made from sustainable ma-
terials, locally sourced products, and high
energy efficiency throughout the hotel in
all its uses.
This dedication to environmental respon-
sibility not only enhances the guest experi-
ence but also contributes to a greener future
for the planet. Staying at this hotel means
enjoying the highest standards of comfort
and well-being while minimizing your eco-
logical footprint.
11. Passive house certification
The official passive house classic cer-
tification of this hotel is a triumphant
step towards sustainability and energy
conservation. It proudly champions
reduced energy consumption, slashing
operational costs and carbon emis-
sions. It champions unmatched indoor
comfort, ensuring guests experience a
space of pure serenity. Sustainability
lies at its core.
This commitment translates into sub-
stantial, long-term savings, amplifying
the hotel’s environmental responsibility
and attracting eco-conscious guests. It
stands as a beacon of change, a testa-
ment to a future where energy conser-
vation is not a choice but a necessity,
and where the comfort of guests and the
planet coexist harmoniously.
SELECTED PROJECT DETAILS
Passive house assessment: Juan
Manuel Castaño / María Vico -
Castaño & Asociados Passivhaus.
www.castanoyasociados.com
Architects: Imago Arquitectura
Builder: Construalia
Hotel website: trianahouse.com
ph+ | triana house big picture | 17
NEWS PASSIVE HOUSE+

NEWS
#BuildingLife series: Addressing
the environmental impacts of
buildings across their lifecycle
(above) Marlet Property Group CEO Pat Crean
What are you hoping to achieve with
the #BuildingLife campaign?
PC: For Marlet, much of our focus is on
reducing scope 3 category greenhouse gas
emissions. These emissions result from ac-
tivities in assets we own and manage. We
are a developer of a number of build to
rent schemes and this includes the embod-
ied carbon of the buildings we construct,
as well as the operational emissions of the
buildings. The #BuildingLife campaign is
the first programme that recognises this
challenge. It is encouraging the industry,
suppliers and regulatory bodies to acknowl-
edge and address where carbon starts and
ends when it comes to construction and
building performance. The leadership that
the IGBC has shown in working with
people across the industry to develop the
introduced waste compactors at our St
Clare’s development, and this has reduced
the number of waste collection journeys
required by our waste disposal contractor.
Marlet is also moving towards taking
a biodiversity net-gain approach on our
schemes, even bringing biodiversity into
our buildings. This is great for the envi-
ronment and for the people who live and
work in these buildings. We measure the
biodiversity of a site at the very beginning
of a project before design, and we then
design in added diversity, so we not only
maintain what is there but add to it. This
is new but is now being incorporated into
all of our early scheme designs.

I n this #BuildingLife Ambassador Spot-

light Series, Passive House Plus is pro-
filing leaders who have endorsed the Irish
Green Building Council’s (IGBC) call
to address the environmental impacts of
buildings across their lifecycle.
In this issue, Pat Crean, CEO of the
Marlet Property Group tells us more
about his work and why he is supporting
the #BuildingLife Campaign.
Why did you choose to become a
#BuildingLife ambassador?
Pat Crean: Marlet is a large-scale residen-
tial developer, predominantly operating in
Dublin city, and what we do impacts estab-
lished communities. We aim to build devel-
opments that, in addition to being healthy,
are also sustainable places for our tenants
to live. As a result of the positive work by
bodies such as the IGBC, there is now a
growing appreciation and understanding
of the critical importance of reducing the
embodied carbon of the buildings we con-
struct and that they should also perform
in carbon terms as one would expect an
A-rated building to perform.
Building a Zero Carbon Ireland roadmap
to decarbonise Ireland’s construction and
built environment sector has resulted in a
massive change in the sector. The industry
is now transitioning to a point where we
are beginning to measure the impacts of
buildings, not just during operation but the
whole process of how they come into being
and this is positive.
Can you explain a few ways in which
you are working towards a sustainable
built environment?
PC: In all of our contracts, we have a
requirement for a minimum number of
products with Environmental Product
Declarations (EPDs) to be met. If we
are to progress carbon reduction in con- About #BuildingLife
struction, EPDs for all products must be #BuildingLife is a project led in Ireland
brought on-stream. One of the biggest by the Irish Green Building Council. The
challenges in preparing carbon figures initiative aims to achieve the mix of pri-
during assessments is the huge level of vate sector action and public policy nec-
approximation we still carry out. We essary to tackle the whole-life impact of
need better data to make more specific, buildings. Learn more and endorse the
informed choices on what products we Building a Zero Carbon Ireland Roadmap
are using. at www.igbc.ie/building-a-zero-car-
Through work with Bord na Móna, we bon-ireland/. •

18 | passivehouseplus.ie | issue 46

EU agrees “Blueprint for the world
to decarbonise building stock”
ZERO EMISSION BUILDINGS AND RENOVATION OVERHAUL AGREED IN
RECAST EPBD
T he next version of the EU Directive on
the Energy Performance of Buildings
(EPBD) has been provisionally agreed
– including proposals for zero emission
buildings, building renovation passports,
a phase out of fossil fuel boilers and the
introduction of whole life carbon calcula-
tion for buildings.
The text of the proposed directive was
agreed by the European Parliament and
Council on 7 December, with a final vote
due in the new year.
Dublin Green MEP Ciarán Cuffe, who led
the negotiations with EU member states and
the Commission on behalf of the European
Parliament, described the agreement as a
“blueprint for the world” for decarbonising
building stock.
The EPBD is one of the final pieces of leg-
islation to close from the EU’s Fit for 55 or
‘European Green Deal’ package, that aims to
cut the bloc's CO2 emissions by 55 per cent
by 2030 when compared to 1990 levels.
In light of the enormous challenge posed
by emissions and energy use from Europe’s
existing building stock, the revised EPBD
contains measures to improve the strategic
planning of renovations and the tools to
ensure such renovations will happen. Under
the agreed provisions, member states will:
• Establish national building reno-
vation plans to set out the national
strategy to decarbonise the building
stock and how to address remaining
barriers, such as financing, training
and attracting more skilled workers.
• Set up national building renovation
passport schemes to guide building
owners in staged renovations to-
wards zero emission buildings.
• Establish one-stop-shops for home-
owners, SMEs, and all actors in the
renovation value chain, to receive
dedicated and independent support
and guidance.
In addition, the deal will help the EU to
gradually phase-out fossil fuel boilers. Subsi-
dies for the installation of stand-alone fossil
fuel boilers will not be allowed as of 1 Jan-
uary 2025. The revised directive introduces
a clear legal basis for member states to set
requirements for heat generators based on
emissions, type of fuel used, or the minimum
share of renewable energy used for heating.
Member states will also have to set out mea-
sures with a view to a complete phase-out of
fossil fuel boilers by 2040.
The revised directive will mandate zero
emission buildings for new buildings.
Under the agreement all new residential
and non-residential buildings must have zero
on-site emissions from fossil fuels, as of 1 Jan-
uary 2028 for publicly owned buildings and as
of 1 January 2030 for all other new buildings,
with a possibility for specific exemptions.
Member states will also have to ensure that
new buildings are solar-ready, meaning that
they must be fit to host rooftop photovol-
taic or solar thermal arrays. Installing solar
will become the norm for new builds. For
existing public and non-residential build-
ings, solar will need to be gradually installed,
starting from 2027, where technically, eco-
nomically and functionally feasible. Such
provisions will come into force at different
points in time depending on the building
type and size.
Energy performance certificates (EPCs)
will be reformed based on a common EU
template with common criteria, to better in-
form citizens and make financing decisions
across the EU easier.
Whole life carbon
By 1 January 2027 member states will be re-
quired to publish a roadmap on whole life
carbon emissions, described in the proposed
text as cumulative life-cycle global warming
potential (GWP). The roadmap must detail
the introduction of limit values on life-cycle
GWP of all new buildings, and set targets
for new buildings of over 1,000m2 from
2028 and all new buildings from 2030, with
a requirement to introduce a progressive
downward trend, as well as maximum limit
values, detailed for different climatic zones
and building typologies. The maximum limit
values shall be in line with the EU’s objec-
tives to achieve climate neutrality.
Each member state will adopt its own
national trajectory to reduce the average
primary energy use of residential buildings
by 16 per cent by 2030 and 20-22 per cent
by 2035, allowing for sufficient flexibility to
consider national circumstances. Member
states are free to choose which buildings to
target and which measures to take, though
at least 55 per cent of the decrease of the av-
erage primary energy use must be achieved
through the renovation of the worst-per-
forming buildings. Given the rate at which
the primary energy of electricity is falling as
PASSIVE HOUSE+ NEWS
generation switches to renewables, it’s likely
that a key measure for member states to cut
primary energy will be to replace fossil fuel
boilers with heat pumps.
For the non-residential building stock, the
revised rules require to gradually improve
primary energy use via minimum energy
performance standards. This will lead to
renovating the 16 per cent worst-perform-
ing buildings by 2030 and the 26 per cent
worst-performing buildings by 2033.
To fight energy poverty and bring down
energy bills, financing measures will have to
incentivise and accompany renovations and
be targeted in particular at vulnerable cus-
tomers and worst-performing buildings, in
which a higher share of energy-poor house-
holds live.
Member states will also have to ensure
that there are safeguards for tenants, to
help tackle the risk of eviction of vulnerable
households caused by disproportionate rent
increases following a renovation.
The deal will also boost the take-up of sus-
tainable mobility thanks to provisions on
pre-cabling, recharging points for electric
vehicles and bicycle parking spaces.
Buildings are responsible for approxi-
mately 40 per cent of EU energy consump-
tion, more than half of EU gas consumption
(mainly through heating, cooling and do-
mestic hot water), and 36 per cent of the
energy-related greenhouse gas emissions. At
present, about 35 per cent of the EU's build-
ings are over 50 years old and almost 75 per
cent of the building stock is described by
the commission as energy inefficient. At the
same time, the average annual energy reno-
vation rate is only about 1 per cent.
Commenting on the agreement, Ciarán
Cuffe said: “We have achieved something
remarkable this evening: created a blueprint
for the world to decarbonise its building
stock. With this plan, we add an essential
pillar to the EU’s decarbonisation plans and
begin the long journey towards reducing 36
per cent of Europe’s CO2 emissions.
“That journey will begin with the build-
ings that are wasting the most energy. En-
ergy wasted is money wasted on bills. We
must help citizens to save money and pro-
tect them from volatile energy prices. That
is why we have chosen a route that can lower
energy bills for everyone, homeowners and
renters alike, and addresses the root causes
of energy poverty.” •
ph+ | news | 19
NEWS PASSIVE HOUSE+
Planning guidance to cut
carbon emissions previewed
at IGBC conference
(above) Pictured are (l-r) Ramboll lead designer Neil Mclean Goring, Trinity College Dublin
assistant professor in Engineering for Climate Action Julie Clarke, and IGBC CEO Pat Barry.
T he implications of planning on Ire-
land’s carbon emissions and the impor-
tance of building climate-safe homes were
discussed at the Irish Green Building Coun-
cil’s (IGBC) annual residential conference,
Better Homes.
While Ireland’s carbon emissions keep
increasing and with 400,000 homes to be
delivered in the next decade, the IGBC
presented a sneak peek of a new guidance
document for planners. The document, de-
veloped by Construct Innovate in partner-
ship with the Irish Green Building Council
and University College Dublin, includes rec-
ommendations to better address emissions
caused by the construction of new housing
developments. More specifically, it shows
that significant decreases in carbon emis-
sions could be achieved by rethinking the
use of carbon-intensive construction mate-
rials in our dwellings, and by adopting plan-
ning approaches that minimise car-parking,
new roads, and infrastructure.
The insights show that greenfield housing
developments outside towns and cities can
contribute up to 30 per cent more embod-
ied carbon per home than equivalent infill
developments that use existing infrastruc-
ture. These embodied carbon emissions
are generated from the production of con-
20 | passivehouseplus.ie | issue 46
struction materials, transport of materials,
construction process, maintenance, repair,
and demolition of buildings. The document
recommends prioritising housing develop-
ment on empty or under-utilised lands in
existing urban centres and building con-
nected neighbourhoods with minimised
parking areas. Both planning actions could
play a significant role in reducing emissions
associated with the built environment. They
are also crucial to addressing transport emis-
sions since they reduce dependency on cars
and car use. Furthermore, the guidance doc-
ument highlights that connected dwellings
such as terraced houses, lead to a consistent
reduction in terms of carbon emissions. A
side gable wall, which is typically found in
semi-detached houses, generates approxi-
mately 4-5 times more embodied carbon
per square metre than a party wall between
dwellings on a terrace.
IGBC CEO Pat Barry said: "The next de-
cade is critical in our battle against climate
change, and we need to remember that em-
bodied carbon emissions cannot be retrofit-
ted. We must get our homes right from the
beginning. The encouraging thing is that
implementing these principles won't just re-
duce emissions, but it will enable us to deliver
much-needed homes with limited financial
and human resources. It also presents a fan-
tastic opportunity to build vibrant communi-
ties and to enhance our quality of life.”
Over 150 building professionals, from
across the value chain, gathered for Better
Homes 2023. In addition to the importance
of getting planning right, they heard that
homes built today must be climate-proof
since the impacts of climate change are par-
tially already irreversible.
Julie Clarke, assistant professor in Engi-
neering for Climate Action at Trinity Col-
lege Dublin said: "The need to ensure the
resilience of residential buildings to climate
change impacts has become apparent in re-
cent years as we have witnessed some of the
devasting impacts that our changing climate
is having on our homes. We need to think
about where we build our homes given sea
level rise, flooding, and coastal erosion. We
also need to think about what we are build-
ing and how we can retrofit existing homes
to adapt to our changing climate. For ex-
ample, is there a risk of overheating in our
homes in the future?”
A notable example of actions that can be
taken to adapt to a changing climate is rep-
resented by the “Sponge City”. This concept
has been successfully implemented in Co-
penhagen and presented at the conference
by Neil Mclean Goring from the engineer-
ing & architecture consultancy Ramboll:
"Following a devastating storm in 2011, the
Danish capital implemented a comprehen-
sive, catchment-based masterplan of blue
and green infrastructure to protect the city
from episodes of severe rainfall for the next
century. We developed a nature-based and
multifunctional approach, redesigning the
parks and streets throughout Copenhagen
to detain and absorb vast amounts of storm-
water, like a sponge. This proactive and
sustainable approach has already been im-
plemented in cities such as New-York and
Melbourne, and it holds the potential to be
adopted by other towns and cities around
the world, including in Ireland."
The full guidance document will be
released in early 2024 and made available at
www.igbc.ie. •

EPA launches air
quality forecast
T he Environmental Protection Agency
(EPA) has launched a national air
quality forecast to provide greater infor-
mation to the public regarding expected
air quality in Ireland for up to three days.
Forecasts include daily Air Quality Index
for Health (AQIH), particulate matter
(PM), nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and ozone
(O3). PM, NO2 and O3 are the three main
air pollutants impacting human health in
Ireland. All pollutants mapped are pre-
sented on the AQIH scale (1 – 10).
Dr Micheál Lehane, director of the
EPA’s office of radiation protection & en-
vironmental monitoring, said: “Air pollu-
tion can seriously impact people’s health;
the air quality forecast will provide an im-
portant health and air quality resource for
everyone, and will be even more impactful
for those of us who are particularly affected
by poor air quality, including those suffer-
ing from respiratory disease and asthma.
The forecast will also serve policy makers
as a valuable tool for analysing air quality
in Ireland.’’
There are concerning localised air qual-
ity issues in Ireland. Fine particulate mat-
ter (PM 2.5) from burning solid fuel and
NO2 from vehicle emissions are the main
pollutants impacting on people’s health.
This forecast will help people plan their ac-
tivities in line with the AQIH recommen-
dations, such as reducing physical activity
when air pollution levels are predicted to
increase. The forecast maps will be up-
An Post takes top prize at
Energy Awards
T he Sustainable Energy Authority of Ire-
land (SEAI) has announced the win-
ners of the 2023 SEAI Energy Awards while
celebrating 20 years of the event.
This year’s awards attracted 114 applica-
tions and 40 finalists, who collectively re-
duced energy consumption by 16 per cent,
saving €50 million in energy spend. The
renewable energy produced by the 2023
entrants is equivalent to powering over
400,000 homes per year.
The top prize this year went to An Post
for Energy Team of the year, with An Post’s
sustainability team driving a sustainability
programme spanning the whole company,
loaded twice daily.
Eilís Ní Chathnia, CEO of the Asthma
Society of Ireland, welcomed the forecast
launch: "The air quality forecast will be
an important resource for our members
and everyone with respiratory conditions.
Ireland has the highest incidence rate of
asthma in Europe with one in ten children
and one in thirteen adults developing the
condition – with 890,000 people likely to
develop asthma in their lifetimes.’’
The forecast and further information on
air quality and the Air Quality Index for
Health are available on airquality.ie.
The air quality forecast maps are pro-
duced by computer models which have
been developed under the EU LIFE Emer-
ald project. The models use Irish and Euro-
pean data such as air quality measurements,
forecast weather and land cover data. The
EPA has partnered on this with the De-
partment of the Environment, Climate
and Communications, the Health Service
Executive HSE, VITO, a Belgian research
institute, University College Cork (UCC)
and the Asthma Society of Ireland. •
including retrofitting the property portfolio
to at least a B3 BER and building a substan-
tial electric vehicle fleet.
Irish Green Building Council (IGBC)
CEO Pat Barry was given the Chair’s
Award for Outstanding Contribution
to Sustainable Energy, recognising his
work in establishing the IGBC as a hugely
influential organisation in Irish property
and construction.
Hosted by journalist Sinead Ryan, this
year’s ceremony saw a total of thirteen
awards presented to individuals, businesses,
communities, and public sector organisa-
tions in recognition of their commitment
PASSIVE HOUSE+ NEWS
Four passive
house projects
pick up Net Zero
Energy awards
A quartet of passive house projects
picked up awards at the Towards
Net Zero Energy Awards 2023.
Passive House Association of Ireland
chair Barry McCarron won the Housing
Development award for retrofitting his
bunglow in Ballinode, Co. Monaghan to
the passive house classic stadard, and Mul-
larkey Pedersen Architects won the Public
Building award for the passive house pre-
mium certified Erne Campus, South West
College, Enniskillen.
Meanwhile two seasoned Cork-based
passive house architects were highly com-
mended for passive houses in the Housing
Development category: Wain Morehead
Architects for their passive house in the
Cork suburb of Blackrock, and The Pas-
sivhaus Architecture Company for their
Millfield passive house in Cork City. The
McCarron and Wain Morehead Archi-
tects projects are both the subjects of sub-
stantial case studies in this issue of Passive
House Plus.
Meehan Green and Hibernia REG won
the Commercial Building award for 1
Cumberland Place, Dublin 2; Pascall +
Watson won the Retrofit of a Building
award for The Rubrics Building, Trin-
ity College; DTA Architects won the
Design Practice award; and Arup direc-
tor and global climate & sustainability
leader Paula Kirk won the Net Zero
Champion award. •
and dedication to sustainable energy and
climate action.
Environment minister Eamon Ryan said:
“I want to congratulate the entrants and
winners of this year’s SEAI Energy Awards
for their commitment to sustainable energy
and their role in fighting for a cleaner energy
future for us all. The finalists – indeed all the
applicants this year – give an insight into the
technical capacity, the innovation, the drive
and the vision that is powering an energy
transformation right across the country, in
businesses and in communities.”
For full details on all winning projects,
visit www.seai.ie. •
ph+ | news | 21
NEWS PASSIVE HOUSE+
Timber in construction group holds first meeting
I ncreasing the use of timber in construc-
tion is central to the work of a new
steering group appointed by the Minister
of State for Land Use and Biodiversity at
the Department of Agriculture, Food and
the Marine, Senator Pippa Hackett.
Speaking after the first meeting of the
Interdepartmental and Industry Steering
Group on Timber in Construction in No-
vember, Minister Hackett said: “We want
to see more timber used in construction.
Not only is wood a sustainable, home-
grown product, but it can also replace
steel and concrete, reducing the carbon
footprint of our buildings. Timber used in
construction is an excellent way of storing
and locking up carbon and has a positive
impact on our climate. We know our for-
ests bring great benefits for our climate,
water quality, nature and biodiversity –
growing timber as a product for construc-
tion is also central to our climate efforts
and to the future of the forest sector.”
The group brings together industry and
government departments to assess the
needs of the sector and increase timber use
in construction. The group is tasked with
examining potential obstacles to increas-
ing timber use, including regulatory and
standardisation challenges, and to maxi-
Ireland failing to stay within
carbon budgets – SEAI
I reland’s greenhouse gas emissions are not
reducing fast enough to stay within carbon
budgets, the Sustainable Energy Authority of
Ireland (SEAI) has revealed.
Ireland’s total energy demand in 2022 was
4.7 per cent higher than in 2021, while ener-
gy-related emissions were 1.7 per cent lower.
Ireland imported 81.6 per cent of its total pri-
mary energy requirement in 2022.
SEAI revealed the state of play as it published
two separate energy reports, the Energy in Ire-
land 2023 report and the first report from the
Behavioural Energy and Travel Tracker.
The new report on everyday energy be-
haviours shows that worry about climate
change drives efficient energy behaviours
more than worry about cost, and that people
who report strong understanding of how to
save energy at home are more efficient than
others, but overall inefficient behaviours re-
main commonplace.
The annual Energy in Ireland report profiles
trends in the supply and demand of energy
and energy-related CO2 emissions in 2022
and 2023. The Behavioural Energy and Travel
Tracker (BETT) looks at survey responses to
understand people’s energy behaviours and
22 | passivehouseplus.ie | issue 46
mising the use of home-grown timber.
The new €1.3 billion Forestry Pro-
gramme, launched in September, offers
grants and yearly premiums for landown-
ers to plant new forests for timber. Ap-
plicants can receive grants of €4,452 per
hectare, and annual payments of up to
€863 per year for 20 years to plant a new
diverse conifer forest for timber produc-
tion with 20 per cent broadleaf species
through the new afforestation scheme.
The government is committed to in-
crease the number of timber growers in
the state and offers grants to fully establish
new forests and support the management
of the existing forest estate. The govern-
ment’s new Forest Strategy places a strong
emphasis on the use of timber and its sig-
nificant role in reducing the amounts of
concrete and steel in construction.
Group chair Prof J Owen Lewis said: “I
am delighted to see the enthusiasm and
commitment of the steering group at to-
day’s meetings. There is a real urgency to
increase the use of timber in construction,
and I have no doubt that if we work to-
gether we can create the conditions for
positive change.”
The mission of the group is to develop a
forum with government and industry to
the underlying factors behind them.
The Energy in Ireland 2023 report high-
lights the twin dependencies of Ireland’s en-
ergy supply. Ireland imported 81.6 per cent of
our energy in 2022, and 85.8 per cent of our
energy came from fossil fuels. Energy emis-
sions in 2022 were the lowest of any year in
the last quarter century, except 2020 with its
particularly strong Covid impacts. However,
the pace of emission reductions is not suffi-
cient to meet our national climate obligations.
Speaking about the Energy in Ireland re-
port, SEAI’s director of research and policy
insights Margie McCarthy, said: “Despite the
excellent progress made on renewable elec-
tricity, the momentum of our home energy
upgrades, and the uptake of electric vehicles,
Ireland remains highly dependent on im-
ported fossil fuels to satisfy our energy needs.
Our investments in energy efficiency and our
development of indigenous renewable energy
sources are slowly starting to break that de-
pendency. We can point to significant inroads
in biofuel use in transport, in the deployment
of larger solar farms, and the displacement of
fossil fuels through heat pumps. However, it
is all too slow. […] Despite all the evidence,
create the conditions to increase the use
of timber in construction whilst ensur-
ing the highest degree of building safety
and property protection; to examine
regulatory and standardisation standards
challenges; and to maximise the use of
home-grown timber in construction.
Membership of the group includes An-
drew Carpenter, UK Structural Timber
Association; David Browne, RIAI; Der-
mot O’Donnell, ARUP; Des O’Toole,
Coillte; Duncan Stewart, Earth Horizon
Productions; Hugh O’Connor, Building
Materials Federation – IBEC; J Owen
Lewis, chair; Pat Barry, Irish Green Build-
ing Council; Patrick McGetrick, TERG
– University of Galway; Peter de Lacy
Staunton, Irish Timber Frame Manufac-
turers Association; Sarah-Jane Pisciotti,
Sisk; Paul Savage, Department of Agri-
culture, Food and the Marine; Feargal Ó
Coigligh, Department of Housing, Local
Government and Heritage; Brian Carroll,
Department of the Environment, Climate
and Communications; Joseph Cummins,
Department of Enterprise, Trade and Em-
ployment; Ciaran O'Connor, Office of
Public Works; and John Brannigan, City
and County Managers Association. •
we are not yet acting in line with what climate
science tells us, that we are living through a
climate emergency.”
Meanwhile, the first results report from the
Behavioural Energy and Travel Tracker, sets
out analysis of the everyday energy behaviours
of people in Ireland from December 2022 –
April 2023. Among the findings were that
people reported a high understanding of how
to save energy and said they were making a
substantial effort to use energy efficiently.
However, over the study period, more than
one in five participants travelled by car for a
short journey on a given day, and a similar
number used a tumble dryer. Up to 40 per
cent of people heated empty rooms or an un-
occupied home, and a quarter of thermostat
owners had theirs set to 21 C or higher. Less
than half the sample said their home had a
thermostat installed in the first place.
The analysis also found that many Irish
people were at risk of energy poverty last
winter and are therefore likely to be again
this winter, with over a third of the sample
consistently reporting having difficulty pay-
ing their energy bills. •

Green finance products for sustainable homes
must meet new EU rules, experts warn
(above) Pictured at the Covenant of Mayor’s Investment Forum in Brussels are (l-r) consortium lead Monica Ardeleanu of the
Romanian Green Building Council, Iva Merheim-Eyre of Habitat for Humanity International and Volodimir Smolii of Energy Efficient
Cities of Ukraine.
G reen home certifications and mort-
gage products must align with new
EU rules on green finance, the pan-Euro-
pean Smarter Finance for EU consortium
has warned.
In 2022 the EU passed into law the
EU taxonomy for sustainable activities, a
landmark policy which is rapidly moving
the finance industry towards quantify-
ing and reducing environmental impacts
of economic activities. As real estate and
construction are downstream of finance,
the taxonomy has serious ramifications for
these sectors too.
The taxonomy is a classification system
established to clarify which economic ac-
tivities are environmentally sustainable, in
the context of the €1 trillion-funded Euro-
pean Green Deal and its targets to cut net
greenhouse gas emissions by at least 55 per
cent from 1990 levels by 2030.
Smarter Finance for EU spokesperson
and Passive House Plus editor Jeff Colley
said: "In the absence of sufficiently tight
rules and definitions to define greenness,
it has been possible for lenders to develop
ostensibly "green" property finance prod-
ucts which may lack rigour and focus only
on one sustainability feature, such as energy
performance. That won't wash any more,
because of the EU taxonomy."
Supported by the EU Life programme,
Smarter Finance for EU has been estab-
lished to facilitate the uptake of two key
building blocks for decarbonising build-
ings: credible, evidence-based green home
certifications, and tailored green finance
products such as mortgages, loans and
development finance. The project is es-
sentially the second phase in the broader
Smarter initiative. From a standing start
the first phase, Smarter Finance for Fami-
lies, led to €8.5bn worth of investments in
certified green homes, and the development
of 13 green mortgage and development fi-
nance products.
The Smarter Finance for EU consor-
tium's implementing partners include
green building councils and energy agencies
who are defining or finessing green home
certification systems to ensure taxonomy
alignment. The consortium is also develop-
ing plans to establish a European Centre of
Excellence to serve new and existing imple-
menting partners from across Europe.
“We’re also seeking to engage with more
banks, funds, municipalities, developers
and the entire supply chain of designers,
tradespeople and product suppliers re-
quired to deliver green buildings,” said
Colley. “This is an opportunity to do well
by doing good – it’s a multi-trillion-euro
business opportunity, but more impor-
tantly it’s an opportunity to profoundly
improve people’s lives while tackling the
converging environmental emergencies
facing the world.”
Co-ordinated by the Romania Green
Building Council, the partners in Smarter
Finance for EU include the Irish Green
Building Council, Luxembourg-based sus-
tainable finance facilitator EnerSave Capi-
tal, Passive House Plus publishers Temple
Media Ltd, the association Energy Efficient
Cities of Ukraine, Green Building Council
España, Portuguese energy agency Adene,
PASSIVE HOUSE+ NEWS
Habitat for Humanity International, and
the European-Ukrainian Energy Agency.
With energy poverty on the rise across
Europe in the aftermath of Russia’s inva-
sion of Ukraine, the consortium also in-
cludes a focus on developing hybrid green
finance products to help lift vulnerable
people out of energy poverty and provide
healthy, comfortable homes with low expo-
sure to energy price spikes.
The consortium was invited to present on
the project at the EU’s Covenant of May-
ors Investment Forum 2023 in Brussels on
25 October. Consortium lead Monica Ar-
deleanu of the Romanian Green Building
Council described the foundations laid by
the previous Smarter Finance for Families
programme, and Iva Merheim-Eyre of Hab-
itat for Humanity International focused
on the new scheme’s overall aims. Finally,
Volodimir Smolii of Energy Efficient Cities
of Ukraine talked about the specific goals
of Ukraine in the project, where the focus
will include increasing energy security and
ensuring that green building principles are
central to Ukraine’s reconstruction efforts
– with 200,000 homes destroyed or dam-
aged so far during the war. The event was
jointly organised by the European Com-
mission’s Directorates-Generals for Energy
and Climate Action and the European Cli-
mate, Infrastructure and Environment Ex-
ecutive Agency (CINEA) in collaboration
with the Covenant of Mayors.
For more information visit www.
smarterfinance4.eu •
ph+ | news | 23
DR MARC Ó RIAIN COLUMN
Bedding sustainability
into British buildings:
Bioregional’s BedZed
Shortlisted for the Stirling Prize in 2003, BedZed was a prominent example of architecture
starting to pay attention to sustainability. But how well did it work? In the latest part of his series
on the history of low energy architecture, Dr. Marc O Riain looks back at a landmark project.
I
n 2002, as governments across Europe
started to integrate Kyoto protocol tar-
gets into building regulations, a me-
dium sized mixed-use development outside
London aspired to become a seminal low
carbon super sustainable community.
BedZed tested a lot of sustainable concepts
in a real world setting together with human
behavioural change as a central focus. Some
strategies worked better than others, but the
scheme signposted the direction the rest of
us had to take over the following 20 years.
The Beddington zero energy development
was based in the London borough of Sutton,
located close to a train line, including 100
homes, offices, a community centre, play-
ing field, gardens and allotments. BedZed
featured optimal southerly orientation for
winter solar heat gain, a passive ventilation
strategy, an aspect of heat exchange, double
and triple glazed windows, southerly conser-
vatories, super insulation, good airtightness,
stack ventilation, plug load monitoring,
photovoltaic panels and initially a com-
bined heat and power-based district heating
system. Many of the materials used in the
construction of the buildings were reclaimed
or sourced locally, thus reducing the embod-
ied carbon by 20 per cent to 30 per cent.
The overall design resulted in a reported
90 per cent reduction in fixed loads, and a
56 per cent overall carbon reduction when
compared to an average UK home, with all
renewable energy accounting for 20 per cent
of all site electrical demand. Note that at this
time CHP was considered renewable, as the
development intended to use reclaimed tim-
ber – which led to impurities impacting the
performance of the CHP.
The profile of the building is designed to
24 | passivehouseplus.ie | issue 46
minimise overshadowing to the southerly
face of the block to its rear. Passive venti-
lation combined with thermally massive
materials help to offset heating needs. Con-
servatory doors are intended to be opened
during the summer to allow for trapped
heat to dissipate out, and prevent overheat-
ing, and in the winter internal doors with
stack ventilation are intended to draw solar
heat gain from the conservatory through the
building. The CHP plant was less successful
due to maintenance issues and as a result the
company ceasing trading. The 2007 building
occupancy survey showed that 56 per cent
of occupants surveyed complained about
overheating during the summer period. Re-
search indicated that poor user education on
the design principles of the houses and user
behaviour mitigated against passive solar
heat in winter and aggravated heat demand
in the heating season. Looking forward 20
years from 2002, some of the learning out-
comes might include the use of a mechanical
ventilation heat recovery system combined
with an air source heat pump as less compli-
cated solutions to District CHP and natural
ventilation, especially where we have better
airtightness and control.
Other aspects of the sustainable design
strategy included one car parking place per
home, car sharing, free electric car charging
with good links to public transport, and
bicycle storage on site. This resulted in an
average resident’s mileage of 3,138 per per-
son, which would be 64 per cent lower than
the average local area resident. While this
is good, BedZed residents were three times
more likely to fly abroad than local residents,
mitigating against carbon offsetting targets.
The development also used a sustain-
able urban drainage system (SuDS), with
permeable paving, green roofs, and a soak
away ditch. Wastewater was treated with a
mixture of biologically active sludge and
reedbeds, an expensive system to run from
an electrical standpoint. Rainfall collection
is mixed with water to flush WCs, resulting
in a 50 per cent lower use of water when
compared to UK average.
Remotely located shared recycle bins
are less successful because of distance and
human behavioural issues. However, com-
munity composting, helped very much by
peer education and chats with the neigh-
bours, has been much more successful in
local food gardens and allotments. Food
is grown on site and accounts for an 8 per
cent reduction in the total CO2 footprint.
The local organic vegetables are sold on
Sunday and Monday markets helping to
build an inter-reliant community. Inter-
estingly, BedZed residents know 20 peo-
ple in the development by name, which is
double the strong community benchmark
of 10, with one person being able to name
150 neighbours. This is a testament to the
design of the project by Bio-Regional and
ZED Factory with Tom Chance.
BedZed was indeed a ground-breaking
project which field-tested a combination of
design and sustainability strategies, some-
times illustrating limitations, but becoming
very successful in reducing the carbon foot-
print of its residents. It faced problems such
as overheating and having to switch from
CHP to gas which undermined its sustain-
ability targets. That said the rest of us learnt
that we need to depend on more reliable re-
newable energy solutions that are less prone
to variable behavioural conditions. Natural
ventilation is more problematic in urban
contexts where privacy and security are an
issue, leading to windows being closed and
curtains been placed over windows. Even 20
years on we have a lot to learn from BedZed,
in designing for better communities and
delivering real CO2 reductions in terms of
build, operation and lifestyle.
Much of this article is drawn from data
published in a paper written by Tom Chance
in 2009, the BedZed monitoring report by
Jessica Hodge and Julia Haltrecht for BioRe-
gional in 2007, and the findings of a PhD
thesis by Janet Young in 2015. n
Dr Marc Ó Riain is a lecturer in the
Department of Architecture at Munster
Technological University (MTU). He has a PhD
in zero energy retrofit and has delivered both
residential and commercial NZEB retrofits
In Ireland. He is a director of RUA Architects
and has a passion for the environment both
built and natural.
Photo: Tom Chance/BioRegional
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BUNGALOW BILLS CASE STUDY

IN BRIEF
Building type: Retrofit and extension to 188 m2
bungalow
Method: Bone-deep retrofit - floors dug out,
chimney removed, roof replaced. Warm roof,
external insulation, heat pump, MVHR
Location: Monaghan
Standard: Passive house classic

£43
Heating cost: €80/month*
* All energy costs – including heating, hot water,
lighting and plug loads.

per month

26

26
€80
per month

BUNGALOW
BILLS
MONAGHAN RETROFIT TAKES PASSIVE ROUTE TO LOW COSTS
AND HIGH COMFORT

What does it feel like to suffer the cold, mould and discomfort of a 1960s bungalow,
and experience its rebirth as a passive house? The owner of one award-winning
project spills the beans.

by John Hearne
Additional reporting by Jeff Colley

26 | passivehouseplus.ie | issue 46

In the old house when
you got out of the bed
you would have [had to]
hop, skip and jump to
the bathroom because
it was so uncomfortable.
Now when you put your
foot onto the tile it isn’t
cold. The underfloor
heating hasn’t been
on yet
I
t’s now fifty-two years since Jack Fitzsim-
mons’ highly influential book of house
plans ‘Bungalow Bliss’ was first unleashed
on the Irish market. Reprinted ten times, it
sold in excess of 250,000 copies, and bears
much of the responsibility for the fact that 15
per cent of all homes in the country are bun-
galows. The Sustainable Energy Authority of
Ireland estimates that there are 300,000 dot-
ted throughout the Irish countryside, 80 per
cent of which have BERs of low D or worse.
Addressing their energy and comfort short-
comings has of course become one of the
many building stock challenges we face.
Barry McCarron has answered these chal-
lenges brilliantly in the deep retrofit of his
family home in Ballinode, Co. Monaghan.
He monitored the energy performance of the
bungalow for two years prior to beginning
the project. The costs came in at €3,711 in
2020/2021 and €4,773 in 2021/2022 – an
average of €4,242 per year, excluding stand-
ing charges. One passive retrofit later and
predicted annual running costs have dropped
to €1,082, again excluding standing charges,
nearly four times cheaper. The total savings
over the life of the mortgage as a result of the
project come to €91,627, while the payback
period for the additional cost of achieving the
full passive house standard is just four years.
‘There’s absolutely no regret,” says McCar-
ron, ‘I believe we’ve made a great investment
in our family for the years ahead.’
Though this was his first passive project,
Barry McCarron isn’t exactly a stranger to
sustainable building. He is the current chair
of the Passive House Association of Ireland,
is head of business development with South
West College, and for the past eight years has
been teaching on their passive house designer
course. Earlier in his career, he also put in
what he describes as three ‘very very educa-
tional years’ doing BERs.
His first passive project was always going to
be worth checking out.
McCarron says that he and his wife Aisling
had always expected that they would build a
house on the family farm in Ballinode. Then,
CASE STUDY BUNGALOW BILLS
in the lean years following the property crash,
a bungalow opposite the farm came up for
sale. They got it for just €95,000.
‘We lived in it for eight years,’ he explains,
‘but we didn’t really commit to the house. We
only did superficial refurb work. We thought
we would probably sell it and build new, but
the longer we stayed without building, the
more a new build came off the agenda and
retrofitting came on.’
Wouldn’t it have been easier to just demol-
ish and start fresh?
Maybe it would, says McCarron. ‘But I
would have had to apply for full planning
permission, which I probably would have
got, but with the retrofit, I only had to ap-
ply for an extension, and it also avoided the
necessity for an assigned certifier and all that
comes with new build.’
The big attraction of retrofit however was
that it was an opportunity to do something
interesting and relevant. ‘I work in a college,
and that keeps me away from real life, I’m al-
ways on the fringe of projects. This was an op-
ph+ | bungalow bills case study | 27
BUNGALOW BILLS CASE STUDY
portunity to be involved in a real project and
for me, retrofits are a huge part of the picture
going forward. I wanted a retrofit project, I
wanted to learn as much as I could about it.’
The existing house
The McCarron family home, built in 1969,
was a typical bungalow. Long, low and com-
partmentalized, it was rated D2, and had a
space heating demand of 324 kWh/m2/yr. In
addition to monitoring energy costs in the
two years running up to the project, McCa-
rron also monitored temperature and indoor
air quality. The average temperature in the
kitchen was 17.8 C, relative humidity was 61
per cent, while CO2 PPM averaged 1,050.
The living room wasn’t much better.
‘My bald head is fantastic for picking
up drafts. I’m a Liverpool fan, I watch the
Champions League at this time of the year.
And in our old living room, with the stove
on, the temperatures could be as high as
35 C, but the draft from behind the curtains
would turn you into a snowman. So my face
would be melted but the back of my head
would be frozen.’
28 | passivehouseplus.ie | issue 46
It was apparent very early on that this was
going to have to be a very deep retrofit. Like
so many bungalows, the house had two sit-
ting rooms, separated by a chimney breast, on
which the roof was structurally dependent.
Taking down the chimney breast more or less
meant taking down the roof. Once the dem-
olition phase was over, the house had been
reduced to three external walls and the foun-
dation. All internal walls, along with most of
the front wall and the roof had to go.
“In doing that, we saw all the horror shows
that you expect to see. We had built-in wall
cabinets around the bed, and when they
came out, there was mould behind them.
And there was mould behind the units in
the kitchen. We had sagging insulation in
the wall cavities, and when we cracked up
the floor, we found insulation that was the
thickness of a Curly Wurly.’
The new wall build-up mixes old with new:
blown bead into the existing cavity, internal
plastering for airtightness, with external wall
insulation doing the heavy lifting.
McCarron says he did a lot of agonising
over the windows. The cost uplift between
the basic passive house option and the In-
ternorm units he eventually chose was in the
order of €10,000.
‘Looking back, I’m delighted that we went
for those. Once you see the quality of the
product, you can’t unsee it. The handles in
particular were so much better than the han-
dles on the cheaper windows.’
The fact that the Internorm units were
uPVC aluclad as opposed to timber aluclad
was the clincher. The windows were hung on
the outside of the original wall in order to
help preserve thermal continuity.
‘I didn’t like the notion of putting timber
out there, in case there was any unintended
water at play at sometime down the road.’
Decrement delay and overheating
The build-up in the new pre-manufactured
truss roof is also worth highlighting. McCa-
rron points out that rooms in roofs – where
the children’s bedrooms are now situated –
are vulnerable to overheating. His build-up
seeks to mitigate that risk through decrement
delay: reducing the time it takes for external
heat to transfer into the house. There’s no less
 CASE STUDY BUNGALOW BILLS

My bald head is
fantastic for picking
up drafts. In our old
living room, with the
stove on, my face would
be melted but the
back of my head
would be frozen

than three tons of cellulose insulation in the

roof. It’s got more mass than lightweight, pet-
rochemical-based insulations, so it acts like a
sink, absorbing the heat from the sun rather
than transmitting it into the space.
‘We also have five Velux windows in the
house. They were deliberately chosen so that
we could purge ventilate the house if we
needed to. Over years of observing passive
house projects, I’ve seen that a roof light is an
excellent way of cooling the building if it did
have an overheating issue, which fortunately
we don’t.’
These units are five-glazed – a cassette
of triple glazed and another gap of double
glazed, and remote controlled. Interesting
to note too that PHPP modeling prompted
a reduction in glazing at the front of the
house, and the removal of additional Ve-
lux windows from an early version of the
plan – again to reduce overheating risk. So
far so good: after one summer in the house, embodied carbon is going to be part of the meets the heat load target for the passive
air temperatures never climbed above the story because you’re keeping much of the house standard. This meant that if McCarron
25 C threshold. Staying with PHPP, McCa- existing structure and you’re not building in could secure a small improvement in airtight-
rron notes that the process of designing and a greenfield site, but when you start to use ness, he would achieve full passive certifica-
building his own house opened his eyes to cellulose or wood fibre, you’re going to do so tion for the project.
the power of passive house software. much better.” The airtightness team carried out some re-
‘A lot of people in the construction industry He notes too that choosing natural mate- medial work around screw holes in kitchen
think of them as compliance tools, they think rials didn’t have any adverse impact on cost. units and junctions where the old structure
in terms of ‘What’s my score?’ Really, PHPP met the new, and a second blower door test
is a tool that helps you evolve the design of Exceeding airtightness ambitions confirmed that the target had been met.
the house. It took me a couple of years on Achieving airtightness in a retrofit is often Now, remarkably, the retrofit meets the full
my journey to learn that properly. To see the a major challenge, but thanks to careful de- passive standard.
impact of that in my own house was really tailing and support from professionals, the As part of the process of seeking passive
great, because every decision was educated team achieved the Enerphit standard on the house certification, the project had to be
and backed up by evidence.’ first attempt, with 0.69 air changes per hour meticulously documented throughout, pri-
The other big advantage of using so much (ACH) – well inside the 1 ACH threshold, marily by taking photographs at every stage.
timber-based insulation was a reduction in and right on the cusp of the 0.6 ACH thresh- That’s what put the idea in McCarron’s head:
the building’s embodied carbon score, in old required by passive house. start an Instagram account and share the ex-
particular in the case of the cellulose insu- ‘Roman (Szypura of Clioma House, who perience of building passive with the wider
lation. Because of life cycle assessment rules, did the blower door test) rang me at the time self-build community.
this has little or nothing to do with CO2 and said, “Well done, Barry. You’ve got Ener- ‘It was one way of making sure I didn’t drop
stored in the materials, but all to do with phit. It’s a passive house retrofit. But this is a off on the homework, so every Friday, I did a
the fact that products like cellulose require bad result for you because now you have to go post, I wrote something up and I put up the
remarkably little energy and associated CO2 after a full passive house.”’ photographs. That really kept me on track.’
to manufacture. At the time, the heat load in the retrofitted It also proved to be very popular, and over
“Obviously, when you have a retrofit, your house had been reduced to 10 W/m2 – which the months of the build, picked up over

Photos: Internorm / Stefan Hoare ph+ | bungalow bills case study | 29

BUNGALOW BILLS CASE STUDY

3,700 followers (@bungalow_retrofit). It was,

he says, a very rich and positive experience.
‘There is a huge thirst for independent in-
formation out there…That whole Instagram
self-build community bouncing off each
other, asking questions – it’s amazing how
fertile it is. Of course, the danger is that there
are also people out there who are not con-
struction experts communicating things that
may not be right.’
1 2
As it happens some bona fide construction
experts communicated that things are most
definitely right with this project, with the
house picking up the housing award at the
Towards Net Zero Awards in November.
McCarron pays tribute to the range of
construction professionals that worked with
him on the project, including Ryan Daly of
Daly Renewables, Roman Szypura of Clioma
House, and Seamus Keenan of Positive En- 3 4
ergy Ireland, as well as his contractor, Owen
Treanor. ‘He was excellent. He was really
open and open minded. He had never built
a passive house before, but he kept listening.
And he kept an open mind.”
As Passive House Plus often hears from
builders who have built their first pas-
sive house, Treanor says the process has
changed him.
“Definitely,” he says. “It has given me a
whole new way of thinking in terms of junc- 5 6
tions and detailing and even in terms of mini-
mising waste. I’m working on new extensions
now, and the detailing from Barry’s house Before: 1 The existing house built in 1969; 2 & 3 mould visible in rooms; 4 the red line
is being used again.” Even while still on site indicates a gap in insulation at top of wall; 5 & 6 cavity insulation with massive gap at top
with new projects, Treanor can see signs of including block at wall plate
the benefits his clients will reap. “The heating
isn’t on in the extension yet and it’s warmer
than the house.” come to expect when we walk through the people or young children, whose health is
Treanor says McCarron’s efforts to min- front door of an Irish bungalow. It’s bright more likely to suffer in suboptimal living
imise waste on this project has encouraged and airy, with consistent temperature and conditions. “Doing passive was directly
him to the opportunities to reduce waste perfect indoor air quality. linked to the family motivations,” he says,
disposal costs. This project arguably blurs the Having suffered the house’s discomfort be- referring to his three children, Doireann,
line between a new build and a retrofit, but fore the retrofit, McCarron is acutely aware Daithi and Dylan. “For myself and Aisling
25 per cent of the existing building was re- of the palpable change in living conditions. it was: do this now for them really to get the
tained, including 66 per cent of the existing “One of the great experiences of living in the good out of it from when they are young.”
walls. “All rubble and concrete waste went to house so far has been when you get up in The focus was very much on the living
a project about 400 m from our site to an- the middle of the night. In the old house conditions his children would experience
other site for hard standing and back fill,” you would have got out of the bed and you growing up, and how it might affect their
says McCarron. With waste disposal costs would have [had to] hop, skip and jump to development. “Doireann is seven, Daithi is
becoming an increasing issue, Treanor points the bathroom and back because it was so five and Dylan is three, so that’s 11, 13 and
to less progressive approaches to construction uncomfortable,” he says. “Now you just get 15 years of excellent indoor air quality levels
and demolition waste. “I remember a builder up, and what really strikes you is when you respectively till they turn 18 – sleeping and
saying a hole is a very handy thing,” he says, put your foot onto the tile, the tile isn’t cold. living in CO2 levels below 800 ppm.”
while pointing out that a more circular ap- The underfloor heating hasn’t been on in One issue McCarron thought long and
proach can avoid costs on waste disposal and the house yet. We’re now 12 October. This hard about was kitchen extraction. As Pas-
on acquiring new materials. morning was the first day with frost and still sive House Plus has previously reported , a
this morning I would have got up about number of potentially harmful pollutants
Moving back in 5am to go to the toilet and the tiles aren’t can be released during cooking, meaning ef-
The family moved into the house in May cold underfoot. That level of comfort’s there fective air extraction becomes essential. Mc-
and are loving the new space. While the look even without the heat.” Carron opted for a recirculating extractor -
and feel of the house has been transformed, While healthy adults may be able to grin in light of a paper at the 2023 International
the design team retained that original bun- and bear the discomfort of typical houses, Passive House Conference showing reason-
galow profile. Inside, the double height ceil- it’s a different matter for vulnerable occu- able extract coverage for recirculating ex-
ings in the main living area belie what we’ve pants such as people with disabilities, elderly tractor hoods. But in this case the extractor

30 | passivehouseplus.ie | issue 46
 CASE STUDY BUNGALOW BILLS

2 3

1 4 5

6 7 8

9 10 11

12 13 14

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1 The house stripped back to three external walls and the foundation; 2 first course of Mannok Aircrete blocks on inner leaf; 3 & 4 when heat is
required, it’s delivered via underfloor heating buried in a screed; 5 plastic starter rail to reduce thermal bridging; 6 new Internorm windows hung on
the outside of the wall, sat on Alma Vert structural insulation supports; 7 300 mm cavity wall pre installation of bonded bead insulation, with 200 mm
KORE EPS70 Silver insulation externally; 8 airtightness taping around windows; 9 KORE EPS insulation cut to measure to insulate the eaves; 10 the
new truss roof; 11 Roman Szypura explaining the airtightness work to a team from Net Zero Bau; 12 Pro Clima Intello Plus vapour control membrane
to ceiling; 13 cellulose blown in at high density; 14 Thermafleece insulation in service void; 15 insulated supply and extract ducts from MVHR sealed
to exterior walls; 16 Diathonite cork plaster to window reveals.

ph+ | bungalow bills case study | 31

Do something constructive…
BUNGALOW BILLS CASE STUDY

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32 | passivehouseplus.ie | issue 46
www.ig b c. i e

(above) McCarron’s children Daithí, Dylan and Doireann during the build; a temperature reading
in the children’s bedroom pre retrofit; McCarron using a thermal imaging camera phone in the
finished home.
is integrated into the hob. With ventilation
experts tending to recommend overhead ex-
tractors, McCarron added two extracts for
the MVHR system above the cooker too,
and is replacing filters every three months.
So far so good, he says.
For McCarron, in light of the comfort and
energy benefits families can reap in such high
performance homes, the decision to go pas-
sive should be a no brainer.
“My advice for anyone, if you’re building a
new build or you’re retrofitting would be to
go the whole hog and to do the passive house
thing. I’m forty years of age, and my only re-
gret is I should have done it ten years earlier,
instead of procrastinating. And always build
to the best standard that you can at any given
moment. I don’t think you’ll ever regret it.”
Embodied carbon
The McCarrons’ house is about as deep as a
retrofit can be, and could almost be considered
a new build, given that the floors were dug out
and the building stripped right back to the
walls. The RIAI 2030 Climate Challenge dif-
fers from the RIBA equivalent which inspired
it in one key regard for this project. While the
target for smaller dwellings is 625 kg CO2e/
m2, for dwellings over 133 m2, and low density
dwellings of up to two storeys, that target is
reduced to 450 kg CO2e/m2 – reflecting the
fact that large one off houses tend to bring ad-
ditional environmental burdens.
An indicative analysis of the bungalow’s
embodied carbon carried out using PHrib-
bon showed that the building hit 80.5 tonnes
of CO2e – or 454 kg CO2e/m2, narrowly
missing the RIAI 2030 target for this house.
The biggest contribution came from the
building’s concrete products and large PV ar-
ray, though it’s worth noting that default data
for materials was used in both cases. When
assessed against LETI’s embodied carbon
targets, the building scored 294 kg CO2e/
m2 in terms of upfront emissions – meaning
up to the point of the building’s practical
completion. As per LETI’s approach for up-
front emissions, this figure doesn’t count the
sequestered (or stored) CO2 in the biogenic
products used like timber, wood fibre and
CASE STUDY BUNGALOW BILLS
SELECTED PROJECT DETAILS
Client: Barry & Aisling McCarron
Architect/engineer: Wayne Funston,
Funston Howe Architecture
Mechanical and electrical:
Daly Renewables
Passive house certification: MosArt
Project management: SustainABLE
Builder: Owen Treanor Construction
Electrical: Positive Energy Ireland
Airtightness: Atlantic Air / Greenbuild
Passive house certifier: MosArt
Home Performance Index assessment:
Wain Morehead
EPS/XPS and cavity fill: KORE Insulation,
via Breffni Insulation
External insulation system: Sto
Aerated blocks and roof tiles: Mannok
Thermal breaks: Partel
Airtightness membrane, cork plaster,
woodfibre, cellulose and wool
insulation: Ecological Building Systems
Cellulose and airtight membrane
installer: Clíoma house
Airtight tapes: Ecological Building
Systems / Partel
Windows and doors: Internorm
via Interlux
Roof windows: Velux
Air source heat pump: Eco Forest,
via Daly Renewables
Underfloor heating: Roth, via
Daly Renewables
Heat recovery ventilation: Renson, via
Daly Renewables
Lighting: Mullan Lighting
Sand/cement screed:
Micheal Heeney Flooring
Interior design: Mags McCarron,
Your Home Illustrated
Furniture and carpet: Upstairs Downstairs
Tiles: Irwins Castleblaney
Water conserving fittings:
Grahams Hardware Monaghan
Sanitaryware: My Life
Heat pump: Ecoforest EcoAir PRO 1-7kw
ASHP, via Daly Renewables
cellulose, and it also excludes the PV, as LETI
regard PV as part of the grid rather than the
building, except in cases where the PV ar-
ray forms part of the roof structure, such as
building-integrated PV. The cradle-to-grave
LETI total only marginally increases to 298
kg CO2e/m2. This is for a couple of reasons:
the benefit of the sequestered CO2 in the bio-
genic materials is effectively cancelled out by
the assumption those emissions are released
into the atmosphere at the end of life of the
building. And the assumed carbonation of
the building’s concrete products at end of life
adds a small amount of permanent sequestra-
tion to the results.
ph+ | bungalow bills case study | 33
BUNGALOW BILLS CASE STUDY

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34 | passivehouseplus.ie | issue 46

IN DETAIL
Building type: 138 m2 1969 bungalow retrofitted
and extended to 188 m2
Site & location: Ballinode Village,
north county Monaghan
Completion date: April 2023
Budget: €360,000 / €1,925 per m2
Passive house certification: Passive house
classic (pending)
Embodied carbon total: 422 kg CO2e/m2
(when assessed as per RIAI 2030 Climate
Challenge, including modules A, B1-B5, and C)
Green building certification: Home
Performance Index (pending)
Space heating demand (PHPP): 27 kWh/m2/yr
Heat load (PHPP): 10 W/m²
Primary energy demand non-renewable
(PHPP): 87 kWh/m2/yr
Primary energy demand renewable (PHPP):
50 kWh/m2/yr
Renewable energy generation: 27 kWh/m2/yr
Heat loss form factor (PHPP): 3.9
Overheating (PHPP): 1 per cent
Number of occupants (PHPP): 5.0 for passive
house assessment.
Airtightness (at 50 Pascals): 0.57m3/hr/m2
at 50 Pa / n50 of 0.53
Thermal bridging: First course of Mannok
Aircrete blocks on new inner leaf walls, windows
and doors bracketed into external insulation
line sitting on Alma Vert structural insulation
supports/thresholds, cork plaster to the window
reveals.
Ground floor: 100 mm sand and cement screed,
followed underneath by 180 mm PIR insulation,
U-value: 0.11 W/m2K
Walls: 300 mm traditional cavity wall
construction with 100 mm KORE Fill insulation
in cavity, 200 mm KORE EPS70 Silver insulation,
StoMIX EWI System. U-value: 0.10 W/m2K
Roof: Mannok concrete tiles, timber batten,
CASE STUDY BUNGALOW BILLS
Pro Clima Solitex membrane, Gutex wood fibre
insulation, Dämmstatt cellulose insulation,
Pro Clima Intello airtightness membrane,
Thermafleece sheep wool insulation, 50 mm
service void/air gap, U-value: 0.125 W/m2K
Windows & external doors: Internorm KF410
UVPC Aluclad. Passive House Institute certified.
Overall U-value of 0.84 W/m2K
Roof window: Velux certified passive
house roof light
Heating: Ecoforest EcoAir PRO 1-7 KW
modulating air source heat pump, with
low temperature heat delivered via
underfloor heating.
Ventilation: Renson Endura Delta mechanical
ventilation with heat recovery (MVHR) system.
Passive House Institute certified heat recovery
efficiency of 84 per cent.
Electricity: 5.92 kWp photovoltaic array.
Excess energy is used for electric car charging
or grid export.
ph+ | bungalow bills case study | 35
L E E WA R D CASE STUDY

IN BRIEF
Development type: 269 m2 detached
dwelling
Method: Timber frame, insulated
foundations, brick slips, low carbon
materials, heat pump, PV
Location: Cork City
Standard: Passive house classic (pending)
Heating cost: €12 per month*
* Calculated space heating cost.
See ‘In detail’ panel for more information.

€12
per month

36 | passivehouseplus.ie | issue 46
 CASE STUDY L E E WA R D

HOME FROM HOME

ARCHITECT TURNS CHILDHOOD HOME INTO
CLIENT’S PASSIVE HOUSE

Few architects are tasked with knocking their old family home, but
for John Morehead, once this difficult decision was made, it was a
chance to create a future-proofed new passive house that embraces
its stunning natural surroundings and exhibits remarkable attention
to detail.

Words: Lenny Antonelli

ph+ | leeward case study | 37

L E E WA R D CASE STUDY

Passive house is really

important, but it
comes second to
the architecture
sometimes for us

W
hen passive house architect John
Morehead received an email
from a prospective client, en-
quiring about the prospect of designing a
passive house on the site of Morehead’s child-
hood home in Cork, he assumed it was a joke.
Morehead is a well-known figure in the
passive house community. The house he grew
up in, a 1960s dwelling in the riverside sub-
urb of Blackrock, had recently been sold. “I
thought it was a family friend winding me
up,” he says. But it was not.
The email came from Killian Hurley, a Cork
native who is the chief executive at Mount
Anvil, a housebuilder in central London. Kil-
lian and his wife Maeve had bought the house
in 2018, with a view to building a new home
for themselves on the site. They had turned
up Morehead’s name when looking for a local
architect with passive house expertise.
For Morehead, taking on the project was
an emotional as well as a practical proposi-
tion. His parents moved from Dublin back to
Cork in 1965. They bought the site along the
marina, and had an architect-friend design a
modest brick-clad dwelling, which they called
Leeward. They lived there for almost 40 years.
In 2005, Morehead’s parents divided the site
in two, and Morehead designed a new low
energy house for them on the newly created
site next door.
Morehead’s parents moved into that house,
called Svendborg, in 2007, and sold their old
home. Sadly, Morehead’s father died soon af-
ter. Leeward was rented out for a few years,
but was not looked after, and was empty
when Killian and Maeve purchased it. The
area is now highly sought after and has some
of the highest house prices in the city.
Killian knew about the passive house stan-
dard from his work as a developer and says ovating Leeward, but the ground floor was ficult decision as you can imagine, to demol-
that if he was going to knock a dwelling, quite low-lying, and the house sits less than ish the house,” Morehead says. “It was a very
with the inherent environmental impact of
20 metres from the tidal estuary of the Lee. strange time for me, emotionally.”
doing so, he was keen to make the replace-
The site is on reclaimed slob-land along the But there were good reference points to
ment as sustainable as possible. The couple
were also keen on the promise of good in- river, created during the construction of a guide the design of a new home. The wa-
door air quality. towpath in the 19th century, and will face an terfront location was one, even though the
increased flood risk in the coming decades. estuary views are north-facing. The sunny,
A difficult decision Extending the lifespan of the site meant sheltered, south-facing garden was another.
Morehead and his team at Wain Morehead knocking Leeward and building a new The neighbouring architecture was a third.
Architects examined the possibility of ren- house with a raised floor level. “It was a dif- The house is located in an Architectural

38 | passivehouseplus.ie | issue 46
 CASE STUDY L E E WA R D

Good quality daylighting,

light dancing off things,
good shading, is very
important for the
wellbeing of the person
living there

First Floor Plan

Conservation Area, in a row of a dozen one-

off homes. “There’s a lovely eclectic mix of
architecture along there,” says Morehead.
“They’re very much of their time. There’s
Victorian, Edwardian, early Arts and
Crafts.” He wanted to reference these styles
and embrace their attention to detail while
creating something thoroughly modern.
With its north-facing façade, a back gar-
den that rises steeply at the rear, and lots of
mature vegetation, getting more light into
the house was a priority. For the northern
Ground Floor Plan
rooms and terracing, this was achieved by
introducing a glazed courtyard into the core
of the dwelling, with vertical features to
draw light down. Maeve Hurley took on the old greenheart fenders on the quay wall. It house perspective,” he says. It essentially
role of finishing the design of the courtyard sits in a direct line between the front door turns the house into a doughnut, with one
and selecting a tree to plant at its centre. and the rear sliding door, creating an axis of external envelope on the outside, and an-
light and vegetation running right through other on the inside. This meant more sur-
Doughnut design the house. “The courtyard has been a great face area from which heat could escape, and
The small, partly-glazed courtyard is a work success, it’s just gorgeous, it keeps drawing more junctions to be made airtight.
of art, with vertical larch cladding, a bench you into it,” Morehead says. “Passive house is really important,” More-
for seating, and pedestals referencing the But it was “a nightmare from a passive head says. “But it comes second to the archi-

Photos: Gabrielle Morehead, John Morehead, Owen McSwiney ph+ | leeward case study | 39
L E E WA R D CASE STUDY

WANT TO KNOW MORE?

The digital version of this magazine

includes access to exclusive
galleries of architectural drawings.

The digital magazine is available to

subscribers on passivehouseplus.ie
& passivehouseplus.co.uk
6 12

1 7 13

2 8

3 9 14

4 10 15

5 11 16

1 The original 1960s house; 2 site cleared in preparation for the new build; 3 insulated foundation system prior to concrete pour; 4 foundation
complete; 5 timber frame walls with Smartply Propassiv OSB airtight layer; 6 underfloor heating; 7 Smet Sudanit 280 hemihydrate screed; 8
taping around windows; 9 sill to timber cladding; 10 Gutex wood fibre insulation; 11 Siga Majpell airtightness membrane and taping; 12 brick slip
installation in progress; 13 MVHR ducting; 14 the south terrace; 15 flat roof and solar PV array; 16 arrival of the silver birch tree for the courtyard at
the centre of the house.

40 | passivehouseplus.ie | issue 46
 CASE STUDY L E E WA R D

With the principles of

biophilia, we still have
the same attention
to the detail that the
Edwardians did

tecture sometimes for us.”

The courtyard features triple glazed slid-
ing glass doors from Schüco, and on hot
days, these can be opened, along with the
rear sliding doors, to create a stack effect and
cool the building.
Morehead was keen to make sure the
building was fit for a warming climate (it is
interesting to note that, by using site specific
climate data rather than generic data from
Cork Airport, it was easier to meet the pas-
sive house standard. See figures for energy
demand from ‘In detail’).
But he did not want to install active cool-
ing. He was wary that, in our damp climate,
mechanical cooling creates a risk of intersti-
tial condensation, lowering the temperature
of surfaces and triggering the dew point at
which water vapour condenses.
At Leeward, the project team learned the
hard way just how sneaky condensation
can be. When the intermediate floor slab
was slow to dry, the team inserted moisture
probes to find out why. They found the
temperature of the slab was lower than the
surrounding air — water vapour was con-
densing on its underside, soaking into the
Gutex wood fibre insulation beneath. It was “We’ve always had a preference to use OSB array with an average annual output of 1,979
a problem easily solved by cranking up the as an airtight layer,” says Stephen Spillane of kWh — which can be extended further on
underfloor heating, but one that could have Eco Timber Systems. “It’s easy to apply tapes the western monopitch roof — and two elec-
been much more serious. to. It’s very robust, you can even fix electrical tric car chargers.
socket boxes, etc directly to it without any
Attention to detail compromise in the airtightness. A membrane Biophilia
The build suffered from other slowdowns can be damaged much easier and sometimes Killian Hurley praises his architect’s “atten-
— Brexit, Covid, and a difficulty in finding goes by unnoticed.” Spillane says that some tion to minute detail”, and this is perhaps
skilled subcontractors — but the finished of the architectural features, such as cantile- best expressed in the way the house interacts
house scored a blower door test result of 0.45 vered corner windows and doors, required with its environment — its appreciation for
air changes per hour, an exceptional result especially careful detailing. nature, or biophilia, as Morehead likes to say.
given the number of junctions. “The detailing The ground floor, meanwhile, was raised “[Killian and Maeve] were very taken by the
had to be very robust everywhere,” Morehead 310 mm above its previous level. It has an Edwardian houses down the road,” Morehead
says. He praises his builder, Lough Contrac- EPS insulated foundation system from Cavan says. “We were designing a modern house,
tors, for their “top class attention to detail”. manufacturer KORE. Space heating is pro- knowing they love the intricacies of those
The timber frame was built by Eco Timber vided by a Hitachi air-to-water heat pump, properties. With the principles of biophilia
Systems, whose factory is just 15 kilometres ventilation from a Zehnder mechanical venti- that we apply, we still have the same attention
away. And the twin-stud walls feature 300 lation with heat recovery system. There’s also to the detail that the Edwardians did.”
mm of cellulose, manufactured by Ecocel less a Showersave wastewater heat recovery unit This meant embracing views of the water
than three kilometres from the site. — essentially a heat exchanger that recovers and the garden, and retaining the mature veg-
The twin stud was key to ensuring there was heat from wastewater going down the shower etation on site (the build team were careful to
enough insulation to meet the passive house drain, and uses it to warm incoming mains retain the large Scots pines in the front gar-
standard. Airtightness is provided by Smart- water, and the cold supply to the shower den). Maeve Hurley selected a silver birch tree
ply Propassiv OSB, rather than membranes. mixer. There’s also an Amerisolar solar PV for the courtyard at the centre of the house,

ph+ | leeward case study | 41

 L E E WA R D CASE STUDY

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42 | passivehouseplus.ie | issue 46
 CASE STUDY L E E WA R D

and when landscaping is complete, the view
from the front door through the courtyard
will extend out back to a timber-framed path-
way, covered with climbing plants. A winding
path will lead through thick vegetation to the
escarpment at the back of the garden.
The new Leeward sits on a similar footprint
as the original dwelling, but is larger at 269
m2. It embraces the estuary views while keep-
ing the glazing ratio sensible on this north
facade. But there is a new outdoor terrace
here at first floor level, with views over the
river. And there are clever nods to neigh-
bouring properties. The western element of
Leeward is aligned with its neighbour to the
west, Svendborg, while the eastern element is
aligned with Carriglee, to the east. This cre-
ates a slight ‘crank’ in the plan. The house’s
timber and zinc cladding doff their cap to
Svendborg, the brick cladding to the Ed-
wardian dwellings nearby. The steep roof of
the western element also references the gables
of neighbouring homes.
for energy, it’s for humanity as well.”
The more extensively glazed south-façade
looks out into the sunny, sheltered and
lushly vegetated garden, with its outdoor
dining terrace. Downstairs, the main living
and dining areas face south too. A basket
weave oak floor that was salvaged from the
demolished house has been reused here.
Upstairs, the emphasis was on creating
useful, adaptable rooms. There’s a study with
a pull-out sofa for guests, and a family room
with bunkbeds hiding behind a sliding door.
A south-facing, first floor terrace overlook-
ing the garden is accessible from two of the
upstairs bedrooms, with an external spiral
stair connecting to the gardens below.
Killian and Maeve had just moved in as
Passive House Plus went to press, and ac-
cording to Killian they are loving the house,
and especially the courtyard.
“To have a tree in your kitchen or living
room is a nice one,” Killian says. “We’re in
there a couple of weeks. We’re just loving the
space. The light is particularly good. There
are full height windows in a lot of the rooms,
and that combined with the atrium gives a
lovely feel to the house.”

For energy & humanity

Morehead and his team thought hard about
how natural lighting would work in the
space. “Good quality daylighting, light danc-
ing off things, good shading — all of that
stuff is very important for the wellbeing of the
person that’s living there,” he says. “How the
light works around the house — it’s not just

SELECTED PROJECT DETAILS

Client: Killian & Maeve Hurley

Architect: Wain Morehead Architects
Civil/structural engineer: Horgan Lynch
Consulting Engineers
Main contractor: Lough Contractors
Quantity surveyors:
Richard Leonard & Associates
Mechanical contractor:
Robert McGarry Plumbing
Electrical contractor:
Gar Callanan Electrical
Airtightness tester/consultant:
Building Environmental Resources
Build system supplier: EcoHomes
Thermal breaks: Bosig, via Ecological
Building Systems
Roof insulation: Unilin Insulation /
Xtratherm Embodied carbon
Additional roof insulation: Ecocel
Shane Fenton of Wain Morehead Architects calculated the building’s embodied carbon
Insulated foundation system: Kore
using an early iteration of the new Irish national methodology for whole life carbon
Airtight board: Medite Smartply
assessment, which is being developed by the IGBC under the Indicate project.
Airtightness membranes and tapes:
Ecological Building Systems / Siga The scope was as per the EU’s Level(s) framework, and the cradle-to-grave total came
in at 155 tonnes of CO2e, or 594kg/m2. As per the RIAI 2030 Climate Challenge re-
Heat pump and underfloor heating
system: Pipelife Ireland quirements the results excluded emissions from operational energy and water use (mod-
Heat recovery ventilation: Zehnder, ules B6 and B7).
via Clean Energy Ireland As product level embodied carbon data is currently harder to come by for mechanical,
Screeds: Smet electrical and plumbing services, at present the tool uses generic estimates for these
Windows: Zylefenster, via Walter Power elements, based on weight of each material type.

ph+ | leeward case study | 43

L E E WA R D CASE STUDY

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44 | passivehouseplus.ie | issue 46

IN DETAIL
Project name: Leeward
Building type: 269 m2 detached dwelling, off
site timber frame construction
Site type & location: Urban site, Cork
Completion date: 01/08/2023
Budget: Not disclosed.
Passive house certification: Passive House
classic certification pending
Space heating demand: 11.01 Wh/m2/yr (site
specific climate data), or 12.92 kWh/m2/yr (Cork
Data) calculated using PHPP
Heating load: 8.69 W/m2 (site specific climate
data), or 10.11 W/m2 (Cork data) calculated
using PHPP
Primary energy non-renewable: 37.82 kWh/m2/
yr (site specific climate data), or 38.45 kWh/m2/yr
(Cork Data) calculated using PHPP
Primary energy renewable: 20.33 kWh/m2/yr
(site specific climate data), or 20.70 kWh/m2/yr
(Cork Data) calculated using PHPP
Heat loss form factor: 4.05 calculated
using PHPP
Overheating: 0 per cent of year above 25 C
(site specific climate data), or 3 per cent of year
above 25 C (Cork data) calculated using PHPP
Number of occupants: Two adults
Energy performance coefficient (EPC): 0.031
(0.30 threshold)
Carbon performance coefficient (CPC): 0.019
(0.35 threshold)
BER: A1 (4.75 kWh/m2/yr)
Environmental assessment method: N/A
Embodied carbon: 492 kgCO2e/m2, calculated
using PHribbon.
Measured energy consumption: Data not
yet available
Space heating costs: Calculated at €148.91/yr,
based on the calculated space heating demand
of 11.01 kWh/m2/yr and stated heat pump
seasonal performance factor of 569 per cent.
Based on a 24-hour rate of 31.54c per kWh from
Yuno Energy, this figure ignores the contribution
to running heat pump from the solar PV array.
Airtightness:
n50: 0.45 ACH at 50 Pa
AP50: 0.47 m3/hr/m2 at 50 Pa
Thermal bridging: All Psi values calculated.
Insulated foundation system with timber frame
construction superstructure. Thermal bridging
reduced by optimising window junction details,
installation of wood fibre board externally and
Bosig Phonotherm at window sills/thresholds.
Y-value (based on ACDs and numerical
simulations): 0.020 W/m2K
Ground floor: 50 mm Smet Sudanit 280
hemihydrate screed, over Visqueen vapour
barrier, over 90 mm Xtratherm Thin-R XT-UF
(thermal conductivity 0.022 W/mK), over 70
per cent GGBS RC concrete slab, over 350 mm
KORE Airfloor EPS100 insulated foundation
system over, Necoflex RMB400 radon barrier.
U-Value: 0.071 W/m2K
Walls: Factory-built timber frame with 22 mm
larch cladding externally / Likestone Capri
brick slips on Cemrock Extreme carrier boards,
followed inside by 44 x 50 mm treated battens
and counter-batten, Proctor Facadeshield UV
breather membrane, 22 mm Steico Universal
wood fibre board (thermal conductivity 0.040 W/
mK), 2no. 90 x 44 mm twin stud timber frame with
full fill Ecocel cellulose (300 mm overall) (thermal
conductivity 0.032 W/mK), 12.5 mm Smartply
Propassiv OSB taped and sealed (airtight layer),
45 mm service cavity, 15 mm Gyproc Wallboard
internally. U-value: 0.102 W/m2K
Pitched roof: Standing seam VMZinc, 125
x 25 mm rough sawn boards over, 50 x 50
mm battens, over Icopal All Zone breather
membrane, 354 mm open web joists with full fill
Ecocel cellulose insulation (thermal conductivity
0.032 W/mK), 12.5 mm Smartply Propassiv OSB
CASE STUDY L E E WA R D
taped and sealed (airtight layer), 35 x 50 mm
battens, 15 mm Gyproc Wallboard internally.
U-value: 0.15 W/m2K
Flat roof: Sarnafil G410 PVC membrane over,
190 mm Xtratherm Thin-R TR/MG tapered flat
roof insulation (thermal conductivity = 0.024W/
mK), Sarnavap 5000e AVCL adhered to 18 mm
plywood, 219 mm open web joists full filled
with Knauf Loft Roll 44 insulation (thermal
conductivity = 0.032W/mK), Siga Majpell (airtight
layer) with 15 mm Gyproc Wallboard internally.
U-value: 0.081 W/m2K
Windows and external doors: Zylefenster
Europa 92 triple glazed alu-clad timber
windows, Zylefenster Sky triple glazed alu-clad
lift and slide units & Schüco ASE 80.HI aluminium
lift and slide units. Overall Uw: 0.92 W/m2K
Roof windows: Two EOS Rooflights.
Uw: 1.28 W/m2K
Heating system: Hitachi RWD air-to-water
heat pump with SPF of 569 per cent supplying
underfloor heating. Electric towel radiators
to bathrooms.
Ventilation: Zehnder ComfoAir Q600 heat
recovery ventilation system - Passive House
Institute certified to have an effective heat
recovery efficiency of 84.4 per cent
Water: Domestic hot water provided by Hitachi
air-to-water heat pump, Showersave waste
water heat recovery system installed. 3,000 litre
rainwater harvesting tank for use in toilets and
external irrigation.
Electricity: Seven Amerisolar 410W PV Panels
with average annual output of 1,979 kWh. No
storage, electric car charging, and excess
electricity exported.
Sustainable materials: Timber frame using FSC
certified timber, wood fibre board, cellulose
insulation, 70 per cent GGBS cement.
ph+ | leeward case study | 45
E DWA R D S CO U R T CASE STUDY

HANDLED
WITH CARE
EXETER EXTRA CARE SCHEME GOES PASSIVE
TO PROTECT THE ELDERLY

If thermal comfort is important for people of all ages, it’s even more so
for elderly people, for whom the right living conditions can be a matter
of life or death. Passive House Plus visited one award-winning extra care
facility in Exeter to learn how the decision to go passive was working out
for the residents.

Words: Kate de Selincourt

Additional reporting: Jeff Colley

IN BRIEF
House type: 4,457 m2 care home (53 one and
two-bed apartments)
Method: Cavity wall with precast inner leaf. Communal
heating and centralised heat recovery ventilation, with
dynamically modelled summer comfort.
Location: Exeter
Standard: Passive house classic
Heating costs: £11 to £15 per month (indicative space
heating costs for a one-bed and two-bed apartment*)
* see ‘In detail’ panel for more information.

46
£11-15
per month
46 | passivehouseplus.ie | issue 46

It’s unbelievable. My
mother’s only been
here a few weeks and
the change in her is
incredible. This is a
miracle place!
A
s you arrive at the new Edwards
Court Extra Care housing scheme
in Exeter, the entrance is under-
stated, austere even. Go through the doors
though, and you enter a surprising, lovely
space. The foyer is high and airy , with dou-
ble-height glazing looking out onto a gar-
den. Above, a gallery is set into a wall richly
decorated with natural wood fluting. People
are sitting chatting and playing scrabble,
watching the world go by.
Beyond the entrance, the corridors are nat-
urally lit, some with views over the gardens
or towards the river. You pass through daylit
corridors, some with views over the river Exe,
and more attractive communal spaces, again
decorated with an abundance of solid natural
wood and colourful furnishings. The building
is peaceful and fresh, and with a goldilocks
sort of temperature: not too warm, not too
cool, and perfectly even.
What is probably loveliest of all about this
apartment building though is the fact that it
is council-owned and run. It is not a high-
end, eye-wateringly-priced private sector fa-
Photos: Architype
cility. The residents, who are mainly over 55,
with low to moderate care needs, pay ‘afford-
able rent’ to live there.
The quality of the building is really appre-
ciated by residents – and by their families.
“When people come in it’s absolutely ‘wow!’”
one resident told Passive House Plus. “When
my sister-in-law and our niece came to stay,
they were really surprised at how nice it is –
they said ‘Ooh, it looks like a hotel!’”
Design for users
Edwards Court is in many ways quite differ-
ent from a hotel, however. Most hotels fea-
ture long, straight, gloomy corridors, some
enhanced with a hint of stale carpet. Edwards
Court has none of that.
A hotel is built for privacy – however, Ed-
wards Court is very much built for commu-
nity too. To this end it cleverly borrows from
the towns and villages of the outside world.
You have the chance to be among people even
when not actively seeking company, and you
can see what’s going on and who is around. If
you want to socialise, there are places to meet
for chat or a coffee, or to eat together.
This connectedness is achieved by a porous
layout. Window and galleries like the one
above the entrance foyer give views down
from corridors into communal spaces. On
the roof is a cafe serving snacks and hot
meals, and the popular roof terrace has views
over the leafy riverside to the hills beyond.
Individual apartments can be fully private,
or residents can peek out slantways from
their kitchen windows down the corridor.
Once out of the door, each flat has a built in
seat (that some residents have personalised
with ornaments).
The client team at Exeter – in particular,
CASE STUDY E DWA R D S CO U R T
Exeter’s asset management lead Gary Sten-
ning, and Emma Osmundsen, the then MD
of Exeter City Living – visited similar facili-
ties elsewhere to learn what residents did and
didn’t like. Then working with Lee Fordham,
Kirk Rushby and colleagues at Architype they
developed this very effective design.
Residents are full of praise for the facility. As
one resident, Adrian, explained: “Before, we
were in a flat supposedly for over 55’s, but my
wife has increasing mobility problems and
early dementia, and she was really struggling,
even with a stair lift. She was very low, feeling
like her life was over.
“Here everything is level access and with
her wheelchair she can get everywhere in the
building, and go out. She is so much better
here, she settled in really quickly.”
Adrian is active in the community that is
forming here – with chat sessions, board
games afternoons, plus a weekly music eve-
ning that he organises.
Visible, tangible luxury
Adrian’s appreciation of the building is shared
by his fellow residents, Claire Taylor, the
housing manager says: “Everyone finds the
building light, bright and decorated in a very
pleasing manner. They love the terrace up-
stairs and the view.”
The generous design and quality finishes
were not imposed by architects spending
their client’s money unasked. The luxury was
absolutely central to the brief. “Exeter were
very keen to drive the quality so it was the
same as a private sector facility,” architect
Kirk Rushby explains. If anything, Edwards
Court is not only as good as most private
sector facilities: compared to those Passive
House Plus has encountered, it is rather nicer.
ph+ | edwards court case study | 47
E DWA R D S CO U R T CASE STUDY
In the individual flats, the thoughtful lay-
out and beautiful finishes continue. The ce-
ramic tiled floors give off a gentle, even heat
in winter. Every flat is well daylit and has a
balcony big enough to sit out on, plus room
for some pots. The balconies are all angled to
catch the sun for at least half the day.
But the luxury at Edwards Court is
not only the things you can see, as the
residents appreciate.
“The flat is really comfortable, we have ther-
mostats to control the temperature, and can
open the windows or the door to the balcony
when it’s warm,” Adrian says. “We just wear
short sleeves all year round, but it doesn’t
seem to get too hot.”
He explained how his disabled wife has ben-
efited: “We have underfloor heating which is
great. My wife gets up often in the night, so
it is lovely that it stays warm all night too.”
You could say the comfort in the building
is distinguished by what you don’t notice: no
cold or drafty places where you wouldn’t want
to sit, no oppressive heat in summer – and
no smells.
Even at lunchtime, the only noticeable smell
is the faint linseed-y presence of the mar-
moleum underfoot in the circulation spaces.
“The air is always so fresh, you can’t smell any
cooking, even from the café,” Adrian says.
Claire Taylor is experienced with care fa-
cilities and is used to residents being too
cold or too hot. But not here: she has had
not one complaint about indoor tempera-
tures. “We have an age range from 50 to
101 and to never get, even in the depth of
winter, any comments about the heating is
a major compliment.”
48 | passivehouseplus.ie | issue 46
A safer environment
As we know, the older we get, the more sensi-
tive to cold (and excess heat) we become. For
those of us with mobility or cognition prob-
lems – like many residents in Edwards Court
– this vulnerability increases. As experienced
passive house clients, Exeter City Council
were well aware of the benefits passive house
would bring to this occupant group.
The goldilocks conditions inside – not too
warm, and not too cold – are not only very
nice to live in: they keep the occupants safe,
and aligned with the kinds of temperatures
required by EN16798-1, a standard which
sets indoor environmental quality require-
ments for energy calculation methodologies.
“We had in our minds that passive house
would deliver thermal comfort and fresh air,
with extraction where we need it. We are very
pleased with the result,” Gary Stenning says.
The comfort makes life a great deal easier
for the housing manager. “Age Concern rec-
ommends 21 C temperature for extra care
provision,” says Claire Taylor. “People need
to be warm, but if it is much warmer than 21
then you can start to risk issues with dehydra-
tion and stroke. We check the temperatures
to make sure the flats don’t get too much
warmer than this, and I haven’t seen any flats
go above 21, winter or summer.”
Gary Stenning confirms this was the inten-
tion: “The hope was that in winter, with the
warm surfaces including the windows, and
lack of drafts, people would not feel the need
to turn the heating up high. This seems to be
what is happening.”
Older people are also more vulnerable to
infections – not least, to airborne infections
such as covid. Research has shown that the
lower the air exchange rates in a building, the
more outbreaks of respiratory infection you
will have. The centralised passive house heat
recovery ventilation here delivers a steady
stream of pre-warmed air to a set target, with-
out so much as a hum, never mind a draft. As
Hugh Griffiths of E3 Consulting Engineers
explains, the units chosen were from Swegon’s
Gold range. “Plate Heat exchangers for the
kitchen, rotary wheels for the general areas,
chosen because they are passive house certi-
fied and because we have used them on pre-
vious passive house projects,” he says. While
the systems have no recirculation outside of
the air handling units themselves, in the case
of the rotary wheels Griffiths says there can be
a very small percentage of recirculation.
How the passive house standard was met
Edwards Court contains 50 small flats, plus
communal, office and circulation space, over
four storeys. With a building this size, achiev-
ing passive house levels of thermal efficiency
should not be challenging. The team opted
for a layout with apartments on both sides of
a central – albeit daylit – circulation spine.
This gives an excellent form factor (surface
area to volume ratio) of 1.5. As a result Ar-
chitype were able to specify a standard 150
mm cavity construction – cheaper and more
straightforward than a thicker build-up.
The spec at Edwards Court includes a brick
outer leaf, 150 mm cavity with Isover min-
eral wool fill and thermally broken TeploTie
wall ties, albeit with a comparatively modest
U-value for a passive house of 0.249 enabled
by the building’s form factor, and the forgiv-
WANT TO KNOW MORE?
The digital version of this magazine
includes access to exclusive
galleries of architectural drawings.
The digital magazine is available to
subscribers on passivehouseplus.ie
& passivehouseplus.co.uk

ing Exeter climate. Where most cavity walls
have a masonry inner leaf the inner frame is
pre-cast concrete, a decision that helped the
building’s airtightness, albeit at an embodied
carbon cost. Precast concrete tends to have
high embodied carbon, given the typical
spec of high cement content and steel rein-
forcement used for precast concrete. Early
on, Architype explored the option of reduc-
ing the embodied carbon of the concrete via
substituting cement for ground granulated
blast-furnace slag (GGBS), a low carbon by-
product of the steel smelting process. “We
started with a high GGBS specification for
the concrete but this was removed due to
the availability of GGBS due to high market
demand,” says Kirk Rushby. “We were also
therefore concerned about the actual sustain-
ability of this.” The embodied carbon of the
building wasn’t calculated, Rushby explains,
because although Architype had helped de-
velop Eccolab, a design tool which calculates
embodied carbon, staff hadn’t been trained in
the use of the tool when this project was at
design stage.
To offer the depth of reveals needed for
controlling summer solar gains, the windows
and doors are not set in the line of the insu-
lation, but rest on the inner concrete frame,
with the insulation line kept continuous by
the addition of a Compacfoam “frame round
the frame” overlapping the cavity insulation.
“This was fiddlier to design, but actually, it
was easier to build, as the weight of the doors
and windows sits over the structure,” Kirk
Rushby explained.
To avoid thermal bridging, balconies are
self-supporting vertically, but still have to be
tied in to the wall behind for horizontal sta-
bility. The ties had to be carefully designed to
ensure there was no thermal bridge back into
the building. And of course every balcony has
a door, requiring a robust threshold (that can
take feet and mobility aids).
As Kirk Rushby put it: “The inclusion of
balconies immediately means 50 extra door-
ways. And you need to find a way to support
them that does not form a thermal bridge. In
passive house, balconies are a nuisance tech-
nically, but they were absolutely essential. The
whole country learned this during lockdown
– there was no question we would not include
them. You can see from the way people use
them that they are well worthwhile.
With such a good form factor, passive house
heat demand could be met without the need
for a south orientation. This was a great ad-
vantage, as to give equal access to sunshine
for occupants on either side of the building,
an east-west orientation worked a lot better
– and fitted better with the shape of the site.
The alternative would have been two nar-
row wings of apartments, but this would
have been an inefficient shape with a much
bigger envelope, all needing a higher fabric
specification, greatly pushing up the con-
struction cost.
Of more concern perhaps was controlling
CASE STUDY E DWA R D S CO U R T
overheating. “You do need to take care to
control gains, with the lower morning and
afternoon sun, so we paid a lot of attention
to the glazing design. We were careful not to
over-glaze, sizing the windows so they were
well shaded by the reveals.
Chamfered inner reveals both increase the
daylight indoors, and enable more effective
ventilation even with window restrictors. The
opening windows in the corridors are also
useful in summer, Claire Taylor adds.
It was important to control internal gains
from services – both to limit overheating,
and to meet the passive house primary en-
ergy targets – not least because at the time
of the design, back in 2017, the standard
low cost choice for heating was gas. Gas has
a high impact on the primary energy totals
compared to heat pumps, in spite of the fact
that gas has a lower primary energy score
than grid electricity. The reason: fossil fuel
boilers are less than 100 per cent efficient,
whereas heat pumps are typically 300 per
cent efficient or more.
Why was a fossil fuel source chosen for the
project? “The project has been in the working
for a long time and the design information
for the project was being developed in 2015,”
says Kirk Rushby. “At this time, we were en-
couraging clients to focus more on reducing
demand rather than spending on any form of
renewable. If we were to look at this today
we would certainly take a different view, es-
pecially considering how appropriate a heat
pump would be with a low temperature un-
derfloor heating system.”
Communal hot water circulates at 60 C
to avoid legionella risk to such a vulnerable
population. But the circulation is confined to
short loops that do not enter the apartments.
Separate small-bore spurs supply the shower,
washbasin and kitchen to minimise losses
into the occupied spaces. The communal
underfloor heating circuit meanwhile runs at
around 30 C, so again losses are very low.
Overheating risk was checked by IES dy-
ph+ | edwards court case study | 49
E DWA R D S CO U R T CASE STUDY

50 | passivehouseplus.ie | issue 46
 CASE STUDY E DWA R D S CO U R T

People need to be
warm, but if it is much
warmer than 21 then
you can start to risk
issues with dehydration
and stroke. We check
the temperatures, and
I haven’t seen any flats
go above 21, winter
or summer

namic thermal modelling as well as in PHPP.

For a larger building, mechanical and elec-
trical engineer Hugh Griffiths of E3 explains
that dynamic modelling is recommended,
to understand temperatures in individual
spaces and across the day. Minimal overheat-
ing was predicted.
Following Exeter’s well-established require-
ments, indoor conditions were also modelled
for predicted climate in 2050 and 2080.
This did point to a future overheating
risk, so the building was future proofed ac-
cordingly. Rather than spend money adding
shading and space cooling now, when it is not
necessary, provision has been made to retrofit
external shutters if and when the need arises.
Ventilation ducts were pre-insulated to allow
for cooling, on the basis that taking down the
ceilings to retrofit insulation later would be a
horrible job.

Certification
Mike Roe at Warm was the certifier, and
found the project commendably straightfor-
ward to take through the requirements for
passive house.
“It was not that different in the end from
a standard apartment block. The differences
were that the apartments are very small, so
there is a high density in terms of equipment.
At that time PHPP was not as flexible about
primary energy in relation to occupant den-
sity as it is now. The primary energy target
was quite challenging to meet but we just got
through, helped by the clever services design
which really minimised the energy loads.
While the project may have navigated the
rarefied space of passive house and PHPP cal-
culation, how would it fare when put through
the UK’s national methodology, SAP?
Curiously, the apartments received rela-
tively poor Energy Performance Certificate
(EPC) scores of C and in once case B. Kirk
Rushby says this is due to the way that EPCs
are calculated. “Each apartment is assessed as

ph+ | edwards court case study | 51

E DWA R D S CO U R T CASE STUDY

hab

52 | passivehouseplus.ie | issue 46
 CASE STUDY E DWA R D S CO U R T

a separate unit with a nominal U-value given

to party walls. Essentially it doesn’t account
for the efficiency of a large block of apart-
ments huddled together.”

Passive house in Exeter

Edwards Court is another fine feather in
Exeter’s cap, adding to the already excellent
reputation of passive house in the city. Adrian
said his daughter uses the pool at St Sidwells, 1 6
“which is also passive”.
“She finds it really nice at the leisure centre,
and she said to us ‘if your new flat is passive it
should be good’.”
The considerate management and care pro-
visions, the occupant-centred layout, and the
gorgeous fit-out of the building, combined
with its unobtrusive comfort, have worked
wonders for some occupants. The son of an-
other resident told Passive House Plus that
his mother’s wellbeing had transformed since
she had moved in. “It’s unbelievable. She’s 2 7
only been here a few weeks and the change
in her is incredible. This is a miracle place!”

REFERENCES
Cold Truths, Passive House Plus Issue 43.
Passive house Benefits: Health, Wellbeing
& People Performance.
www.passivhaustrust.org.uk 3 8

SELECTED PROJECT DETAILS

Client: Exeter City Council
Architect: Architype Ltd
M&E engineer: E3CE
Civil/structural engineer: Price & Myers
Energy consultant: Elemental Solutions
Project management/quantity
surveyors: Arcadis
Main contractor: Kier Construction Ltd
4 9
Mechanical and electrical contractor:
Whitehead
Passive house certifier: Warm
Windows and doors: Ecowin
Roof lights: Lamilux
Entrance doors: Raico
Wall insulation: Isover
Thermally broken wall ties: Ancon
Thermal blocks: Foamglas
Roof insulation: Bauder
Floor insulation: Foamglas 5 10
Floor insulation: Styrene
Airtightness products: Pro Clima
Bricks: Ibstock 1 Installation of EPS insulation below slab; 2 Foamglas installation below structural walls; 3
Timber flooring: Junckers tight insulation cut to soil stack penetration; 4 edge of ground slab revealed after formwork
Floor tiles: British Ceramitile removed; 5 aerial shot of the precast concrete frame erection; 6 a dedicated mitre jig setup on
Linoleum: Forbo site to cut EPS plinth insulation; 7 neat and tidy plinth insulation install to the building perimeter;
8 weathertight seal between windows and concrete frame; 9 quality control of the mineral
Mechanical ventilation supplier: Swegon
wool cavity insulation with TeploTie basalt wall ties; 10 excellent weatherproofing around the
penetrations for the air handling unit.

ph+ | edwards court case study | 53

E DWA R D S CO U R T CASE STUDY
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54 | passivehouseplus.ie | issue 46

IN DETAIL
The UK’s first and only passive house extra care
apartments. Exeter City Council’s innovative
new Edwards Court Extra Care scheme provides
53 one and two-bedroom mixed tenure
apartments. Designed to encourage community
and companionship among its residents and
neighbours, a variety of communal areas are
interspersed throughout the building, on the
rooftop, and in the garden walkways and terraces.
With in-depth research into dementia support
and new design thinking, Architype has created a
healthy, homely and sociable environment where
residents can safely maintain an independent
lifestyle with various levels of support and care.
Designed specifically to address the mental and
physical needs of an older demographic, these
welcoming ‘homes for life’ encourage movement
and social inclusion, helping relieve demands on
the NHS.
To meet Exeter City Council’s demanding
sustainability and health and wellbeing standards,
the passive house design helps address fuel
poverty by radically cutting heating bills and is
climate-proofed to 2080.
Building type:
A 4,457 m2 care home including 53 one and
two-bedroom mixed tenure apartments.
Site type & location: Suburban brownfield site on
the edge of Exeter City.
Completion date: September 2021
Budget: Final account figure approx £12m.
Passive house certification: Certified passive
house classic
Space heating demand: 13 kWh/m2/yr
Heat load: 9 W/m2
Primary energy non-renewable: 133 kWh/m2/yr
Heat loss form factor: 1.47
Overheating: IES modelling 0.5-1% using current
weather data
Number of occupants: 80
Airtightness (at 50 Pascals): 0.23 ACH
Energy performance certificate (EPC):
Each apartment has a separate figure but all
apartments achieved a C rating between 76-79
with one exception of B (83)
Embodied carbon: Embodied carbon analysis
not undertaken
Measured energy consumption:
Not yet available
Thermal bridging: With a large building and
therefore better form factor the attempt was to
make the building form efficient enough that
a typical insulation of 150 mm thick masonry
cavity fill generally could be used that would
be similar to a more standard construction.
Initially design loads allowed a raft slab on top
of pile-caps by designing the structure to spread
across load-bearing walls rather than having
point loads. Additional loads from the precast
frame manufacturer meant that this could not be
achieved, but Foamglas could be used below
walls to take the loads with an EPS infill which
still made a thermally bridge-free construction.
Parapets were reduced to a minimum but required
to terraces and plant areas. These were thermally
broken with a break designed by the concrete
frame subcontractor similar to a Schoeck type.
Balconies were kept structurally separate from the
building with ties back to remove thermal bridges
and lime mortar with bed joint reinforcement
was used to allow the five storeys of brick to be
self-supporting, thereby removing the need for
structural shelf brackets.
Heating costs: Calculated costs for typical
apartments of £11 to £15 per month, based on
a 45 m2 one-bed apartment, and a 62 m2 two
bed apartment. This is based on a number
of assumptions. First, it’s assumed that each
apartment has the same space heating demand
(13kWh/m2/yr) of the whole building, when the
reality is that some will be above or below this
figure. Secondly, it’s assumed that that the boiler
will be delivering heat in line with the stated
gross seasonal efficiency of 96.5 per cent.
Thirdly, a high unit price for communal gas of
22p is assumed, based on an article from The
Guardian on gas price spikes, “UK households
with communal heating facing 350% rise in energy
costs.” If we instead focus on the whole 4,457
m2 building, the calculated space heating total is
£1,100/month – for 53 flats and all common areas.
Ground floor: 65 mm bonded screed with
underfloor heating with VCL, on 25 mm rigid
insulation, on 300 mm reinforced concrete slab,
on 100 mm of EPS insulation with Foamglas
in load bearing areas. Concrete slab acting as
airtight layer. U-value: 0.206 W/m2K
Walls: 100 mm brick tied back with TeploTie
thermally broken wall ties, 150 mm full fill Isover
CWS 34 glass mineral wool slabs, 200 mm
precast concrete walls with service zone and
plasterboard. Precast concrete with external joints
CASE STUDY E DWA R D S CO U R T
sealed with Pro Clima Aerosana Viscon liquid
sealant. U-value: 0.249 W/m2K
Roof: Bauder bituminous warm roof system with
waterproof layer, 160 mm PIR insulation and VCL
on 150 mm precast concrete planks. VCL acting as
airtightness layer. U-value: 0.131 W/m2K
Windows & external doors: Zylefenster windows
by Ecowin, triple glazed aluclad timber windows.
Average Uw-value: 0.84-0.88 Wm2K. G-value: 0.48
Roof windows: Lamilux FEEnergysave triple
glazed roof lights
Heating system: Two Potterton Sirius 3 90kW gas
boilers with a gross seasonal efficiency of 96.5
per cent distributing through underfloor heating
embedded in the screed.
Ventilation: Four centralised ventilation units,
as follows:
North flats and communal areas: Swegon Gold F
RX (Size 14): Temp efficiency: 86 per cent
South flats and communal areas: Swegon Gold
F RX (Size 12) Top: Temp efficiency: 85 per cent
Fourth floor communal areas: Swegon Gold F RX
(Size 07): Temp efficiency: 84 per cent
Kitchen: Swegon Gold F PX (Size 07): Temp
efficiency: 76 per cent
Water: Low flow fittings as per AECB
Water Standards
Electricity: No renewables on site
Sustainable materials: A priority for Exeter City
Council, the building aligns with the Building
Biology Association’s 25 Guiding Principles of
Building Biology for a healthy, beautiful and
sustainable building in an ecologically sound and
socially connected community.
It reduces physical, chemical and biological
risks and eliminates toxic materials and
electro-magnetic radiation. Materials are as
natural as possible, with particular care made
to avoid skin irritants and ensure optimum air
quality. Paints are natural and timber is lacquered
rather than oiled to reduce VOCs (Volatile Organic
Compounds) which are hazardous to human
health. To keep dust and particulate matter levels
low, surfaces that more easily collect duct such as
carpets have been avoided. Fibre insulation has
been selected on the basis of having the lowest
formaldehyde content possible.
Cellulose insulation to top floor terrace area.
Natural finishes such as oiled timber floors,
linoleum, timber ceiling and wall finishes, low VOC
paints and ceramic tiles.
ph+ | edwards court case study | 55
G O L D F I N C H C R E AT E & P L AY CASE STUDY

PLAY TO WIN
CREATIVE PLAY CAFÉ BRINGS PASSIVE
BENEFITS FOR BRISTOL FAMILIES

A site with a dilapidated building in Bristol has been

transformed into a crucial social space by a husband and
wife team of environmentally and socially engaged
architects, aided by a polymath sustainability consultant.

Words: Jason Walsh

Additional reporting: Jeff Colley

56 | passivehouseplus.ie | issue 46
 CASE STUDY G O L D F I N C H C R E AT E & P L AY

Section A-A 1. Living room

2. Ensuite
3. Stairs
4. Bed 3
5. Bed 1
6. Storage
IN BRIEF 7. Utility
Building type: 150 m2 mid terrace café
and art studio
Method: Timber frame, insulated
foundations, cellulose, heat pump, PV
Location: Bristol
Standard: Passive house classic (pending)
Embodied carbon: £75 / month*
* Calculated total energy costs, including
standing charges and feed-in tariff
income. See ‘In detail’ panel for more
information.

£75
per month

ph+ | goldfinch create & play case study | 57

G O L D F I N C H C R E AT E & P L AY CASE STUDY
W
hen Nicole Strong and Mark
Finney arrived in Bristol they
were seeking a change. They got
one, and a challenge, too.
Coming from Cape Town, the couple, both
of whom are architectural professionals, relo-
cated to England, Finney’s home, and set to
work. Arriving in the city, Strong, who had
been a senior landscape architect for the city
of Cape Town, decided to turn a problem
into an opportunity: having young children,
she found that the city, despite its reputation
as one of England’s most vibrant, was missing
something. But using her background as the
foundation, she set about building it.
“My background is in architecture, urban
design and city planning, and I am inter-
ested in the social side of buildings and the
built environment,” she said.
So what was missing? Strong parlayed her
experience to create a new space that offered
families somewhere to be that was neither
home nor an unsuitable commercial space.
“The coffee shops are very dark and dingy,
and there are not many healthy options in
terms of food. There are play centres but
they can be a little bit overwhelming [both]
for parents and children,” she said.
The end result is Goldfinch, a welcoming
community space designed to give families
the freedom to imagine, create and connect,
beyond the confines of the traditional café
or classroom.
“We wanted to create a space where chil-
dren could be, where adults could be, where
58 | passivehouseplus.ie | issue 46
they could connect in a really beautiful
space. So we found a building,” she said.
The building was far from suitable, how-
ever. The 80 m2 site, located in the Bristol
suburb of Westbury-On-Trym, was home to
a one-storey building in extremely bad condi-
tion that had previously housed a print shop.
Nevertheless, despite this and the bad
luck of beginning the process just as the
Covid-19 pandemic and its attendant lock-
down shut down construction, Strong and
Finney proceeded.
“It was a dilapidated building that needed
to be completely rebuilt. Covid slowed
things down, but we got the planning [per-
mission],” she said.
Planning was approved for a two-storey
– 75 m2 per storey – building to house the
new venture.
Strong’s husband Finney, a partner in Seb +
Fin Architects, took up duties as architect on
the project and, despite the site’s suitability, it
soon became clear that an entirely new build-
ing would need to be designed and built.
While Finney says he prefers to preserve
building fabric when it is possible, his de-
scription of the existing building on the site
makes it clear why the couple did not go
down that road.
“We did look at a retrofit. It was a single
storey, but increasingly dilapidated building
and half of the site was a yard. Part of it had
a corrugated tin roof, which was collapsing,
the walls were collapsing and were covered
in algae and mould, so we had to demolish
The walls were
collapsing and covered
in algae and mould, so
we had to demolish and
start again
and start again,” he said.
“The previous tenant moved out be-
cause the building was so dysfunctional. It
was heated with electric bar heaters [and]
frankly, it was getting dangerous”.
Sustainability consultants Ecospheric, who
provided energy and life cycle assessment
consultancy on the project, did attempt to
see if a retrofit was possible, but the results
were not positive.
“We looked at viability, but it was too
restrictive,” said Kit Knowles, Ecospheric’s
managing director. “First, as an infill site it
was tight, as they always are, but the build-
ing was not really salvageable. It was a case
of too structurally compromised, too much
function required and too little space”.
Skills on site
If the existing building was an inauspicious
start the site at least afforded the oppor-
 CASE STUDY G O L D F I N C H C R E AT E & P L AY

LOBBY
LOBBY STORE

1 1

2 2
18
3 3
17
4 4
CAFE
16
5 5
15 CRAFT WORKSHOP
6 6 F
14
SOFT PLAY
7 7

8
13
8
BIN
STORE
12 CAFE / RECEPTION
9 9
11 F
10 10 2
F
DW2
GW 2
LANDING

ACCESSIBLE WC
& BABY CHANGING
WC LOBBY
PLANT
ROOM

PLANT ROOM /
JANITOR STORE

GSPublisherVersion 560.0.93.26 GSPublisherVersion 560.0.93.26

We had already done

all of the joinery and
then the Russian
invasion of Ukraine
meant birch ply became
much harder to get

tunity for a new beginning. As Seb + Fin

Architects, a specialist in residential archi-
tecture, is enthusiastic about the passive
house and Enerphit standards, building the
new building to passive standard was the
obvious choice.
Finney designed the building with the
ground floor resting on a concrete raft foun-
dation with a 25 mm thick concrete slab,
housed in an Isoquick insulated foundation
system. The walls are made with timber
I-joists with cellulose fibre insulation and an
external render. “Internally, on the walls, we
get good airtightness,” said Finney.
Ecospheric, in its consulting role, took
major steps to ensure that the building
would meet passive house standards de-
spite the difficulty doing so given its use
as a café. Knowles and his colleagues did a
feasibility study to establish how the passive
house standard could be met for a building
with this intended use, given the specific
kinds of loads a café would bring. Accord-
ing to Knowles, other similar UK projects
were thin on the ground at best. “There
are cafés inside a university and a student
accommodation unit, but those are much
bigger, commercial buildings. So, this is the
first time that’s been done in the UK.” This
points to a general truism: while residential
buildings tend to have very similar energy
use profiles, non-domestic buildings are far
more varied, given the broad ranges of uses trical elements. After that, we need to know
they encompass, and the consequent diver- how it is going to fit together: it’s the nitty
gence in terms of impact on energy use. For gritty that gets it right,” Knowles said.
a building where the main function is a café, “Next, we used our detailing methodology
a substantial amount of appliance use in a process, called the ‘thirteen hats’. It’s an anal-
relatively small building pushes up the plug ysis where you put on a different hat and use
loads, and therefore makes it more challeng- that to guide our detailing process. Finally,
ing to meet the primary energy targets for we did the mechanical and electrical, getting
passive house. “We did our modelling and involved with designing that,” he said.
consulted with the passive house certifiers Construction was contracted to Earthwise
[PH Certification],” said Knowles. “The Construction, a Bristol-based specialist in
conclusion is that it would be possible if passive house construction and heat recov-
we drew up a new profile with the Passive ery ventilation.
House Institute.” Both Strong and Finney complimented
Ecospheric also performed a whole life car- Earthwise’s work, noting that few contrac-
bon analysis, a process analysis and engaged tors have the right skills and experience –
with the design of the mechanical and elec- and some of the few that do only work on
trical systems. massive projects.
“Carbon analysis was done with the cre- According to Strong, working with Earth-
ation of an ‘optioneering’ engine, looking at wise was particularly reassuring because pre-
the viability and impact on a whole life ba- vious experiences with other builders had
sis, of both the active and passive elements. not always been ideal.
Once we’ve got through that we know all of “Because of our specialist contractor it
the different materials and methodologies went as smoothly as it possibly could. When
we’re using and all the mechanical and elec- we first tried out [passive house techniques]

Photos: Zed Photography / SuperFunkyPenguin Photography ph+ | goldfinch create & play case study | 59
G O L D F I N C H C R E AT E & P L AY CASE STUDY

at our home, with different contactors, there

were some problems, Earthwise knew what
they were doing,” said Strong.
Finney says he was glad to work with
Earthwise because there are few enough con-
tractors in the area with the right expertise.
“In Bristol, you’ve got a little group of about
three people who can do this. One of them,
I don’t think they touch things under half a
million and are looking for more than a mil-
lion: high-end houses, basically,” he said.
Earthwise was also able to make sugges-
tions during the design and build, including
how to meet requirements around heating
and ventilation.
“We were very nervous about meeting
building regulations requirements, but the
contractor suggested using two residential
MVHR units,” said Finney.
“We were incredibly pleased with the con-
As it is not a residential building, however, performance spec – provides heating and
tractor because they were very experienced.
They were good at what they do, and so there there were additional challenges. As a result, cooling, while photovoltaic panels feed elec-
was no need for hand-holding,” he said. the fact that a new build was required had tricity to a battery for storage and later use.
This was also important because one of some significant design benefits. Geopolitical events also had an impact,
the core dreams was for a healthy building “Due to the high occupancy, the ventila- primarily on cost: both the post-pandemic
for the families visiting for classes and social tion rate has got to be really high and that’s supply chain crunch and the Russian inva-
space at Goldfinch. quite challenging to address, but the enve- sion of Ukraine were felt.
“Apart from sustainability, we wanted a lope is new so it was easier to achieve. Work- “We were quite fortunate because the plot
healthy environment with good air circula- ing around things in Enerphit is tricky: you was purchased and was going through the le-
tion,” Strong said. always have cold bridges to address, whereas gal side during lockdown. What we did suf-
In addition to construction and ventilation, we just designed them out of it,” said Finney. fer from was price inflation. We were relying
Earthwise also did all of the internal joinery. A Stiebel Eltron air source heat pump – se- on a lot of timber products, which all went
“That was quite novel, [and was possible] lected by Ecospheric to ensure a low global up by 50 per cent. That has now levelled off
because they are joiners,” said Finney. warming potential refrigerant as part of the but not come down,” said Finney.

WANT TO KNOW MORE?

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& passivehouseplus.co.uk

60 | passivehouseplus.ie | issue 46
 CASE STUDY G O L D F I N C H C R E AT E & P L AY

“We had already done all of the joinery
specifications and design and then the Rus-
sian invasion of Ukraine meant birch ply
became much harder to get,” he said. Never-
theless, the project was completed and signs
of success are visible.
“Because it’s tight and well-insulated we
were able to do all of the hot water, heating
and cooling from an air source heat pump
on the roof and that’s distributed by the
ventilation system. The heat demand should
be pretty low – it’s designed to minimise the
demand,” he said.
Open for around three months at the time
of publication, the next step for Goldfinch is
to see if the building performs as expected.
“What we are keen to do is see how it works
down the road,” said Finney.
“What we often tell clients is that if you
did passive house modelling it should be
pretty accurate – but we want to see just how
accurate,” he said.
Of particular interest to Finney is under-
standing the impact of materials such as
concrete and expanded polystyrene, choices
forced on the design by the site.
“We’re very keen on embodied carbon anal-
ysis. We were keen to use as much timber and
[as many] natural materials as possible, but in
this case we had to use EPS and concrete and

1 2 3

4 5 6

7 8 9

10 11 12

1, 2 & 3 The existing building was in extremely bad condition and structurally compromised; 4 work underway demolishing the building as it had to
be completely rebuilt; 5 & 6 ground floor build-up features a 250 mm deep concrete raft slab with Isoquick 100 mm perimeter insulation upstand;
7 arrival of windows for installation; 8 timber frame structure progressing; 9 Smartply Propassiv OSB, seams fully taped with Pro Clima Tescon Vana;
10 Intello Plus membrane and ductwork for MVHR systems; 11 the Velux roof windows help to bring in more natural light; 12 installation of two 12.5
mm layers of British Gypsum FireLine board on timber battens.

ph+ | goldfinch create & play case study | 61

 G O L D F I N C H C R E AT E & P L AY CASE STUDY

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62 | passivehouseplus.ie | issue 46
 CASE STUDY G O L D F I N C H C R E AT E & P L AY

[petrochemical-based] roof insulation. We

would have avoided that on a greenfield site.
Also, there was zero information on the steel
and that means we have to assume the worst
case scenario and that could knock us out of
the top bracket,” he said.
The experience, largely positive but not
without the unexpected problem of inflation
in the price of materials, has only confirmed
Finney’s view that all construction projects
should be sustainable.
“The government needs to come to the
party and incentivise good building practice.
It should always be the case that choosing
the green option is cheaper,” he said.

Embodied carbon

Ecospheric’s carbon analysis included a emissions typically aren’t included in em-

life cycle assessment on the building cal-
culated using OneClickLCA. The build-
ing was assessed against the RIBA 2030
Climate Challenge, and compared against
the RIBA 2030 target for schools, as the
closest building use category to the play
cafe. The building met the RIBA 2030
target of 540 kg CO2e/m2 GIA, covering
the RICS life cycle stages A1 through C5,
but excluding operational energy and wa-
ter use (B6 & B7).
The reality however may be better still.
One problem Ecospheric encountered
was the absence of Environmental Prod-
uct Declarations for big ticket items such
as the steel, concrete and rebar. “We have
assumed average UK figures, to be conser-
vative,” said Knowles.
Life cycle assessments cover up to four
modules: A, B, C and D. Module A cov-
ers the carbon emitted in manufacturing
the building’s materials and technologies,
in transporting them to site, and in the
construction process itself. B covers emis-
sions during the expected lifespan of the
building – in the UK a reference life of 60
years is typically taken - including main-
taining, repairing or replacing materials,
and operational energy and water use. C
covers the building’s end of life, including
emissions released by the building being
knocked down (or hopefully taken apart),
including material disposal. D focuses on
potential future uses of materials from the
building in other applications. Module D
bodied carbon targets, but it’s encouraged
to report them separately. Frankly, once a
life cycle assessment moves beyond mod-
ule A, the figures start to become heavily
reliant on assumptions – about how long
a component will last, about how a build-
ing will be maintained, about how pollut-
ing the manufacture of replacement com-
ponents will be, and about how much
care will be taken in deconstructing rather
than just demolishing a building. While
it is important to look at a building on a
cradle-to-grave basis – and to think about
designing the building in such a way as
to minimise emissions down the line –
Knowles makes the point that a particular
focus on upfront emissions is key.
“We feel it is important to list the A1-
A5 figures separately as the next eight
years are crucial for climate change,” he
says, “and trying to predict what the em-
bodied carbon of replacement materials
in 30 years time or the end of life carbon
in 60 years is pretty difficult.”
In this building, Ecospheric calculated a
module A total of 353 kg CO2e/m2 GIA.
If the CO2 stored in biogenic materials
such as timber, wood products and cellu-
lose is factored in, that total drops to 190
kg CO2e/m2 though LCA experts tend to
counsel against netting off in this case,
preferring instead to say that the upfront
total is 353 kg CO2e/m2, with a further
163 kg CO2e/m2 stored in the biogenic
materials in the building.
SELECTED PROJECT DETAILS
Client: Goldfinch Create and Play
Architect: Seb + Fin Architects
Civil / structural engineer: Build Collective
Energy consultant and life cycle
assessment consultant: Ecospheric
Main contractor: Earthwise Construction
Electrical contractor: Electrotech SW Ltd
Airtightness tester/consultant:
Building Analysis and Testing Ltd
Passive house certifier: Zero Energy
Build system supplier: Pasquill
Cellulose insulation: Warmcel, via PYC
Wood fibre insulation:
Pavatex, via Soprema
Floor insulation: Isoquick
Airtight OSB: Medite Smartply
Airtight membrane and tapes: Pro Clima
via Ecological Building Systems
Windows and doors: Viking
Roof lights: Velux
Entrance doors: Velfac
Flooring: Forbo
Roofing: Alwitra Evalon
Rainwater systems: Lindab
Heat pump: Stiebel Eltron, via Green Flare
Mechanical ventilation system:
Zehnder, via Earthwise Construction
Photovoltaic supplier: JA Solar array and
Pylontech battery, via Green Flare
Sanitaryware: Ideal Standard

ph+ | goldfinch create & play case study | 63

 Non-combustible
G O L D F I N C H C R E AT E & P L AY CASE STUDY

mineral clay
insulation

Class A2-s1,d0 Mineral Clay BREEAM

Fire rating Insulation 30 credits

Agrément Thermal For new and

certified conductivity refurbished
0.034W/mK buildings

64 | passivehouseplus.ie | issue 46

IN DETAIL
Building type: 150 m2, mid-terrace two-storey
timber frame café and art studio.
Site type & location: Suburban high street,
Westbury-on-Trym, Bristol
Completion date: July 2023
Budget: Construction cost including fit out and
furnishings of £670,000 (excluding site purchase
and professional fees).
Passive house certification: Passive house classic
(certification pending)
Space heating demand: 3.0 kWh/m2/yr
Heat load: 6.7 W/m2
Primary energy non-renewable: 195.1 kWh/m2/yr
Primary energy renewable: 77.5 kWh/m2/yr
Heat loss form factor: 2.9
Overheating: 0.0 per cent of year above 25 C,
assessed in PHPP
Number of occupants:
Ground floor max: 26 people (20 seated, 2 staff, 4
people queuing for take away).
First floor max: 26 people (12 children, 12
accompanying adults, 2 staff). A realistic average
occupancy would be 20-40 people during daytime.
Airtightness (at 50 Pascals): 0.43 m3/hr/m2 at 50
Pa / 0.40 air changes per hour
Embodied carbon: 540 kg CO2e/m2 GIA for RICS
life cycle stages A1 through C5, but excluding
operational energy and water use (B6 & B7).
Calculated using OneClickLCA.
A1-A5 (cradle to practical completion) = 353 kg
CO2e/m2 GIA excluding biogenic storage.
A1-A5 (cradle to practical completion) = 190 kg
CO2e/m2 GIA including biogenic storage.
Measured energy consumption: Not available
Thermal bridging: Continuous tongue and groove
wood fibre to each façade; Isoquick below slab
insulation with insulated upstands; Insulated reveal
liners (wood fibre for main windows, spacetherm
for roof light windows); Warm roof deck extending
close to the perimeter, with insulated timber ladder
structure to form perimeter edge. Building Y-value:
0.005 w/m2K, based on calculated thermal bridges.
Energy bills (measured or estimated): Estimate
based on PHPP data and assumed levels of
occupancy is £900/yr electricity based on current
typical business energy costs of 30p/kWh and
assuming 80 per cent self-consumption of energy
generated by PV on roof, plus a standing charge
of £200/yr. Export of the remaining 20 per cent is
estimated to generate £200 in income at 15p/kWh.
Ground floor: (Top to bottom) Marmoleum Cocoa
- Earl Grey Chocolate finish; latex self-levelling
compound; 250 mm deep concrete raft slab to
structural engineer’s spec and detail; Isoquick 100
mm perimeter insulation upstand (vertically around
perimeter of the slab), with the top of the insulation
CASE STUDY
level with the top of the floor screed; Isoquick
150 mm grade EPS300; Visqueen Radon R400
membrane with fully taped seams; non-shrinkable
compacted fill; ground. U-value: 0.207 W/m2K.
Walls: (Inside to out) Paint; two 12.5 mm layers
of British Gypsum FireLine board and 3 mm
skim coat plaster finish with all joints taped with
scrim tape; 25x50 mm treated FSC certified pine
battens, running vertically at 400 mm centres
to form services void; 12.5 mm layer of Smartply
airtight board with fully taped seams with Pro Clima
Tescon Vana; 300x90 mm JJ I-joist construction
fully filled with Warmcel cellulose fibre insulation;
40 mm Pavatex Isolair wood fibre insulation board
mechanically fixed to the timber frame; Baumit
render system including 2 mm Baumit SilikonTop
finish render, Baumit premium Primer, 6 mm Baumit
MC55 lime contact mortar, incorporating Baumit
StarTex mesh. Colour Baumit W1208 ceramic white.
U-Value: 0.115 W/m2K.
Where the external wall runs along the external
maintenance access, the render system is replaced
as follows to allow for pre-fabrication of wall panels:
40 mm Pavatex Isolair wood fibre insulation board
mechanically fixed to the timber frame; Pro Clima
Solitex Frontra WA breather membrane, with fully
taped seams using Tescon Vana; treated 44x44 mm
pine battens running vertically at 400 mm centres
(and doubled up at junctions of boards) with Tenmat
FF102/50 ventilated cavity barrier; 3050x1200x8
mm RockPanel. Panels screwed into battens with
stainless steel screws. The top of the panels are
weatherproofed with a PPC aluminium sill (colour
matched to windows external colour) fixed to the
I-joist beyond. The underside of the panels includes
a stainless steel insect mesh to form a continuous
barrier to vermin and insects.
The wall plinth (dense blockwork upstand with
Isoquick insulated upstand externally) clad with
15 mm Wetherby Brick Slip Cladding System in
‘Staffordshire Blue’ colour. U-value: 0.115 W/m2K.
New party walls: (Inside to outside) Paint; two 12.5
mm layers of British Gypsum FireLine board and
3 mm skim coat plaster finish with all joints taped
with scrim tape; 25x50 mm treated pine battens,
FSC certified, running vertically at 400 mm centres
to form services void; 12.5 mm layer of Smartply
airtight board with fully taped seams; 300x90 mm
JJ I-joist construction to structural engineer’s spec
fully filled with Warmcel cellulose insulation; egg
crate tanking system: Delta MS500 (8 mm cavity
drain membrane) with fully taped seams and plugs
to manufacturers spec. Minimum embedment of
plugs in party wall to manufacturers spec. subject
to party wall agreement; Koster Polysil TG500
(anti lime coating) applied to existing wall; existing
masonry party wall; neighbouring building.
U-value: 0.121 W/m2K
Roof: (Outside to inside) Warm roofing system
ph+ | goldfinch create & play case study | 65
G O L D F I N C H C R E AT E & P L AY
including Alwitra Evalon in slate grey (RAL 7015)
with colour matched 75 mm drip trims; 200
mm (100+100 mm) PIR with staggered board
application, secured using manufacturer approved,
thermally broken fasteners; InStar Elotene DSN
self-adhesive total vapour barrier; 18 mm OSB3
T&G board fixed to timber structure below; firring
timbers: ex 47x225 mm C24 timber at 400 mm
centres at minimum 1:60 falls. Timbers trimmed
to a minimum of 70 mm; 300x90 mm JJ I-joist
construction to structural engineer’s specification
/ specialist sub-consultants design to form a level
ceiling; timber battens to form service void and
allow ceiling to extend into window reveal; two 12.5
mm layers of British Gypsum FireLine board and
3 mm skim coat plaster finish with all joints taped
with scrim tape; paint; acoustic panels. U-Value:
0.105 W/m2K
Windows & external doors:
Main entrance door: Velfac Ribo door and top light
window triple glazed aluminium clad timber framed
window and door, with Argon filling and overall Uw
value of 0.89 W/m2K installed.
Windows and fire escape door: Viking triple
glazed aluminium clad timber framed windows,
with Argon filling and overall Uw value range
between 0.74 and 1.4 W/m2K. The lower Uw value is
due to fire-rated glass requirement.
Service access door: Moralt Ferro Passiv Firesafe
FD30 Exterior MDF faced door with laminated
pine frame (no glazing). Ud value of 1.0 W/m2K.
PHI certified.
Roof windows: Two Velux UK08 triple glazed ‘Extra
Heat’ roof lights with Velux UK08.
U-value: 1.01 W/m2K installed.
Heating system: Stiebel Eltron WPL-A 07 HK
Premium Pack consisting of an air-to-water heat
pump with cooling capacity, integral hot water
cylinder with a nominal capacity of 168 L, and a 100
L buffer cylinder. The heat pump refrigerant R454C,
has a global warming potential of 146.
Heating and cooling distributed via two Zehnder
ComfoPost air-to-water heat exchangers
(one per floor).
Ventilation: Two Zehnder Comfoair Q600 MVHR
systems (one per floor). PHI certified. Heat recovery
rate of 87 per cent thermal efficiency according to
EPN standard 97.6 per cent.
Water: Low flush WCs and microbore hot
water pipes.
Electricity:
PV: 21 x JA solar panels JAM60S21-370/MR
370 Watts
Inverter: S5-GR3P8K SOLIS - Ningbo Ginlong
Technologies 8.000 kW
Battery: PylonTech FORCE H2 7.1 kWh
Sustainable materials: Timber frame using FSC
certified timber and I-joists, cellulose insulation,
wood fibre insulation and marmoleum floor finish.
ZERO CARBON INSIGHT

MUCH ADO
ABOUT NOTHING
IS ZERO CARBON CONSTRUCTION ACTUALLY POSSIBLE?

As the world edges ever closer to the precipice of runaway climate change, some
sustainability terms have moved from relative obscurity towards the mainstream
of marketing and public discourse – and none more so than zero carbon. But
is zero carbon construction a real prospect, or is it just wishful thinking?
Words: John Butler and Andrew Simmonds

What is a net zero carbon build-
ing? Attempts at a definition are
underway in the UK and Ireland
In the UK, a proposal for a net
zero carbon building standard
is being developed by a group
of prominent industry bodies.
For more information visit
www.nzcbuildings.co.uk/. A full
list of characteristics and metrics
for this proposed standard are
shown in the technical update and
consultation document, including
limits on embodied carbon and
operational energy, and minimum
targets for aspects such as on-site
renewables, demand flexibility, for
example. You can read the docu-
ment at: tinyurl.com/ysft3aec.
In Ireland, the IGBC recently
held a consultation on a proposed
net zero carbon building definition,
and is processing the results.
This can be read at: tinyurl.com/
IGBCnetzerocarbon.
I
ncreasingly claims are made that some
buildings are zero carbon in their con-
struction (as opposed to being opera-
tionally zero carbon). The incorporation of
sequestered biogenic carbon in large quan-
tities of plant-based materials (carbon that
has been removed from the atmosphere and
stored in the structure of plants while they
grow) is seized upon as evidence that the
resulting building is zero carbon or even
‘carbon negative’.
Such claims are usually based on the idea
that more carbon is stored in the materi-
als used to construct the building than was
emitted to create those materials and as-
semble them into the building.
While this feels like it might make sense
the reality is much more complex, making
such claims deeply problematic.
Is guidance aligned with standards?
In some areas planning requirements or
guidance are being developed to encourage
zero carbon development, in both opera-
tional and embodied terms. It’s a laudable
aim. However, poorly worded guidance can
lead to increased misunderstanding of what
is really entailed in attempting to achieve
genuinely low carbon construction.
The main standards setting out how to
calculate the carbon emissions of products
and whole buildings state with increasing
clarity that the ‘negative emissions’, i.e.,
the sequestered carbon of biogenic materi-
als, may only be reported for projects when
the whole carbon life cycle is accounted for.
These key documents are:
• EN15804+A2 ‘Sustainability of con-
struction works: Environmental pro-
duct declarations - Core rules for the
product category of construction
products’.
• RICS ‘Whole life carbon assessment
(WLCA) for the built environment’.
In fact, EN 15804+A2 puts it the other
way around: if a product contains bio-
genic carbon, then you must account for
the whole life cycle. Additionally, it states
that the stored carbon cannot be reported
for products coming from native forests
(carbon emissions resulting from harvest-
ing such resources are reported under “land

66 | passivehouseplus.ie | issue 46 Photo: Black Salmon / Shutterstock.com

 INSIGHT ZERO CARBON

There is confusion around the impor- pose, reuse or recycle!

(above) A strong carbon buffering argu-
ment can be made for systems such as
the Ecococon modular straw bale system,
which use straw, an annual rotation crop.
use and land use change emissions”), and
the RICS methodology requires that in the
case of timber, only stored carbon in FSC
or equivalent certified sustainable forestry
can be counted.
Creative accounting
Sticking to the approach set out in the stan-
dards is crucial to avoid misrepresenting
projects and downright creative account-
ing. What do we mean by ‘creative account-
ing’? For example, suppose the negative fig-
ures for stored carbon are added together
with the upfront carbon emissions , and it
happens to be the case that more carbon
is stored in the building than was emitted
in delivering the building – as can happen
in buildings where there’s very high use of
biogenic materials. The stored carbon may
appear to cancel out the emissions, and
may even be used to claim the building
is ‘carbon negative’ – perhaps evoking an
emotional concept of it actively sucking
carbon out of the sky? While this may look
appealing to marketing departments, it
simply doesn’t reflect reality. The reality is
that the manufacture of any product (in-
cluding those made from plants) results in
some emission of carbon now.
Sticking to a standard approach is also
the only way any comparison can be made
between projects to aid more focused
and effective research and development in
the industry.
tance and timing of emissions. Carbon We must accept that we can’t know what
stored in timber materials will have been will happen however well we design – but
absorbed over many decades of growth, and that is no excuse not to think long term. Ac-
it will take many decades of growth to re- cess to resources appears almost certain to be
peat the process after the timber has been much more difficult in the years ahead.
felled, extracted, and used in a building. By Clearly, to limit the worst impacts of an-
contrast, in the case of fast-growing crops thropogenic carbon emissions on climate
used in construction such as straw, seques- change and make wise use of resources over
tration takes place over the previous annual time, we need to make the fastest reduc-
growing season and is regrown just as fast. tions in emissions now, and now means
As electricity grids and manufacturing within the next ten years. But we still can-
industries decarbonise (decarbonising the not ignore future emissions. It is essential
UK electricity grid is progressing faster that the potential release of carbon at the
than the manufacture of common build- end of life is considered.
ing materials) then the level of emissions
from the manufacturing and processing Genuine low carbon construction means
of material for construction may reduce. now and in the future
But again, that decarbonisation process is The LETI approach to embodied carbon
happening over decades, and much is still targets and benchmarking is useful here,
uncertain – bringing us back to the point where a building must meet targets both
that right now pretty much all construction for upfront and life cycle embodied carbon.
causes immediate emissions to a heavily They suggest that by 2030 at the latest we
carbon-polluted atmosphere. should be building to their A rating, with
A+ and A++ still to aspire to – arguably
End of life – future planning where we should be aiming already.
It’s also important to note that any biogenic Band A, applied to residential buildings,
carbon in a product or building will eventu- allows up to 350 kgCO2e per square me-
ally be released at the end of the lifecycle of tre of gross internal area (GIA) for upfront
that product or building. Again, on timing carbon and 530 kgCO2e/m2 (GIA) for life
of the carbon ‘leakage’: carbon from badly cycle embodied carbon.
detailed timber cladding or landscaping The lower allowance for upfront emis-
features will find its way to the atmosphere sions addresses the need to reduce re-
quicker than the timber structural elements al-terms emissions right now.
or natural-fibre based insulations or linings The increased allowance for life cycle em-
of a well-detailed and well-built building. bodied carbon reflects not just the poten-
Even if a biogenic material is removed tial future emissions of the stored carbon
from a building and re-used intact in an- from disposal or processing of all materials
other building, from the carbon-account- at the building’s end of life (EOL), but also
ing perspective the carbon is still ‘released’ emissions from product replacements and
from the first building (which is no longer maintenance during a building’s life.
storing its precious carbon-cargo), and
the ‘negative emissions’ value is then rec- Biogenic materials
ognised in the carbon accounts of the new There are many discussions to be had
building. When planning a building we around the storing of carbon long term in
can (and should) design with a clear Upfront building
intent embodied materials,
carbon, but sequestration)
A1-5 (excluding the main issue is
for reuse or recycling of the materials inBand it, that while many
Office tonnes
Residential of carbon
Education might be
Retail
(6+ storeys)
helping future generations (or our future A++ temporarily
<100 locked
<100 up<100
in the plant-based
<100
<225
selves) when the building is ultimately de-
LETI 2030 design target
A+
A
materials
<350 in <200
a building,
<300
<200 <200
<300 they <300
won’t stay
constructed. They won’t thank us for build- B locked up forever. Clearly this practical
<475 <400 <400 <425 re-
LETI 2020 design target C <600 <500 <500 <550
ings and materials that are hard to repur- D ality<775
is in direct
<675conflict with the<700
<625 simplistic
E <950 <850 <750 <850
F <1100 <1000 <875 <1000
G <1300 <1200 <1100 <1200

Upfront embodied carbon, A1-5 (excluding sequestration) Life cycle embodied carbon, A1-5, B1-5, C1-4
Residential Residential
Band Office Education Retail Band Office Education Retail
(6+ storeys) (6+ storeys)
A++ <100 <100 <100 <100 A++ <150 <150 <125 <125
A+ <225 <200 <200 <200 A+ <345 <300 <260 <250
LETI 2030 design
LETI 2030 target
design target A <350 <300 <300 <300 A <530 <450 <400 <380
B <475 <400 <400 <425 RIBARIBA
20302030 build
build target
target B <750 <625 <540 <535
LETI 2020 design
LETI 2020 target
design target C <600 <500 <500 <550 C <970 <800 <675 <690
D <775 <675 <625 <700 D <1180 <1000 <835 <870
E <950 <850 <750 <850 E <1400 <1200 <1000 <1050
F <1100 <1000 <875 <1000 F <1625 <1400 <1175 <1250
G <1300 <1200 <1100 <1200 G <1900 <1600 <1350 <1450

Life cycle embodied carbon, A1-5, B1-5, C1-4

Residential
Band Office Education Retail
Figure 1: LETI’s upfront and cradle-to-grave carbon targets
(6+ storeys)
A++ <150 <150 <125 <125
A+ <345 <300 <260 <250
A <530 <450 <400 <380
RIBA 2030 build target B <750 <625 <540 <535
C <970 <800 <675 <690
D <1180 <1000 <835 <870
E <1400 <1200 <1000 <1050
ph+ | zero carbon insight | 67
F <1625 <1400 <1175 <1250
G <1900 <1600 <1350 <1450
ZERO CARBON INSIGHT
Whatever type of
material is used it is
vital to use the smallest
amount necessary to
safely, effectively and
durably achieve the aim
notion of zero carbon construction.
With plant-based materials (and many
non-plant-based ones) there are further
emissions associated with land use and land
use change. Another welcome addition to
EN15804 +A2 is that these emissions must
now be accounted for and stated separately.
Carbon stored in soil can be released by
cultivation. Any existing vegetation re-
moved to make way for crops will result in
carbon emissions, and there are also poten-
tial biodiversity impacts from land use and
land use change.
Carbon release buffer
However, there is a case to make that the
biogenic carbon in building materials can
provide a useful carbon release buffer. Using
materials made from plants that reduce the
amount of carbon in the atmosphere – and
then storing that carbon in buildings even
temporarily – may be beneficial as it slows
the rate of release of that carbon. The exact
length of storage is uncertain, tied to the fu-
ture life of that building and any decisions
or disasters that may befall it. But when left
to decompose, the plant material releases its
carbon back to the atmosphere within a few
years. Incorporated into a building, it could
be locked up for anything from a couple of
decades to hundreds of years.
Quality of construction also plays a signif-
icant role here, to ensure a building that can
last for the longest time possible, and with the
fewest product replacements during its life.
Ultimately, it will still be released but there is
large potential to slow and delay that release
in real terms.
Using resources efficiently
As has been clearly written about before this
does not mean we should use as much plant-
based material as possible. Sensible and effi-
cient use of any resource is critical, to avoid
the immediate impacts caused by its produc-
tion. The potential biodiversity impacts of
any material must also be considered; the less
material is used, the lower those impacts are
likely to be.
68 | passivehouseplus.ie | issue 46
Using recycled materials – and designing
buildings to enable re-use of materials – also
plays an essential role in reducing carbon
emissions and extraction of new material.
Whatever type of material is used it is vi-
tal to use only the smallest amount necessary
to safely, effectively and durably achieve the
aim, whether that is structure, insulation, or
weather proofing.
Speed of sequestration
The speed of growth of a plant used to make a
building material needs to be considered, and
whether that plant would be more effective at
storing carbon if it remained a growing plant.
The common example is timber, or as it’s
known before it becomes a building product:
trees. A tree is most effective at storing car-
bon while it remains alive and growing. Only
around 50 per cent of the carbon stored by
a growing tree is contained within the part
of the stem used to produce timber prod-
ucts. The rest is released back into the system
through decomposition or combustion after
harvest, though there does also appear to be
a degree of increased carbon storage in rota-
tion-cropped forest land over time. The car-
bon that is stored in trees has been absorbed
slowly over decades – but can all be released
in one burst at the end of life of a building.
This points strongly to the use of annual –
or perennial but annually harvested – crops
wherever possible (with longer rotation crops
such as trees only used where necessary, such
as to provide structure, and in the smallest
quantity necessary to safely and effectively
do the required job). Such annual crops have
stored all their carbon in the growing season
immediately preceding their harvest. The car-
bon stored in the residue from these crops is
frequently released back to the atmosphere
within a short cycle – for example where the
residue is allowed to rot or is burned (or used
as animal bedding and then allowed to de-
compose, etc.). Locking such plant materials
in a building prevents that release and keeps
the carbon stored for the life of a building.
Where a building efficiently uses plant-
based materials from annual-growth crops
in place of non-plant-based materials, it has
maximised the storage of recently and rapidly
absorbed carbon. Such a building is making
the most of its potential to contribute to that
useful buffering of atmospheric carbon. Ul-
timately though, it isn’t, and can’t be. That
stored carbon will always be released from the
building in the end.
There is no zero impact building
We need the construction sector to get better
at understanding this. Any building results
in emissions and biodiversity impacts. We
should always seek to minimise those first
and foremost.
We need to think in terms of carbon stew-
ardship in building design and material
choices. The choices we make need to reduce
atmospheric carbon now, and consider what
will happen to stored carbon throughout the
life cycle of a building and beyond.
Only once that is done can the amount
of sequestered carbon be stated as a separate
figure (an indicator of the amount of atmo-
spheric carbon buffering that building pro-
vides), with the understanding that however
large a negative number it may technically be
– and whatever the lifespan of that building
– the carbon is only held temporarily within
its structure.
What about offsetting?
This understandably remains a controversial
area. Even if the principle of offsetting (ab-
sorbing carbon in one place to offset or bal-
ance carbon emitted elsewhere) is accepted,
it must never be used to excuse excessive re-
source use. But, if resources have been used as
efficiently as possible and plant-based materi-
als are used, is there a case for then offsetting
the residual emissions that do occur?
As laid out above, storing carbon from rap-
id-rotation plant materials in a building can
provide a useful delay to that carbon’s release.
It cannot be used to offset the emissions
caused by its construction, as that stored car-
bon will ultimately be released.
Unrealistic scale
A residential building of 120 m2 GIA achiev-
ing a LETI ‘A’ rating for both upfront and life
cycle embodied carbon would result in emis-
sions of around 42 tonnes of upfront carbon,
with a further 21.6 tonnes emitted by the end
of life of that building.
Across Europe and the UK, the average an-
nual carbon sequestration rate across different
types of forest is 3.2 tonnes CO2 per hectare
per year.
So, it would take a hectare of average Eu-
ropean forest 13 years to absorb the upfront
emissions of the relatively low carbon house
described above. In case that doesn’t sound
too bad, consider that 204,530 houses were
built in the UK in 2022. Even if all of these
were somehow achieving LETI ‘A’ rating
for upfront carbon emissions, that would
amount to 8.6 million tonnes of CO2 released
in one year. To sequester those new emissions
within the same 13 years would require one
hectare of new forestry per house – or rather
an equivalent amount reaching sufficient ma-
turity every year to provide the required level
of sequestration.
That’s an area 1.3 times the size of Greater
London requiring forestation every year, just
to ‘keep up’ with the annual upfront emis-
sions of housing. And that’s ignoring emis-
sions resulting from external landscaping,
access, infrastructure etc., which could be sig-

nificant in their own right – not to mention
non-domestic construction.
This is absolutely not to suggest that we
shouldn’t plant trees or increase other crucial
means of drawing carbon from the atmo-
sphere such as peat bog restoration or rewil-
ding (which also increase biodiversity), but it
highlights the scale of offsetting necessary.
Uncertainty
Calculating the type and size of forestation
needed in this theoretical scenario is compli-
cated. The figures above are based on average
sequestration rates across Europe, and forestry
of average age. Outside the averages, generally
the rate of tree biomass growth – and of car-
bon sequestration – increases with the size of
tree but there is some evidence that the rate
of sequestration is reduced in forests of ma-
ture big trees , partly due to there being fewer
trees per area of mature forest. In theory there
may come a point in the life cycle of a tree in
a managed forest whereby it will continue to
store a greater amount of carbon if removed
from the forest, making way for new younger
trees at a greater density. But cutting that ma-
ture tree down also causes carbon emissions,
from the unused biomass (roots, offcuts) and
from disturbed soil.
There is other evidence that reducing for-
est, management increases the amount of se-
questration in that forest however the same
study found that ceasing all management of
forests would only offset four years of global
carbon emissions.
The situation is further complicated by a
changing climate affecting the stability and
predictability of carbon stored in land and
forestry. As figure 2 shows, removals of car-
bon from all land-based sources in the EU
(figure below the line) have been falling over-
all in recent years with a marked decrease in
carbon sequestered in forest land. Currently
this trend is predicted to continue, though
perhaps with different management and
planting policies it could be improved.
The Czech Republic has been hit by
what the UNFCCC describes as “extreme
drought-induced accelerating bark-beetle
outbreak calamity (since 2015)”, resulting in
land-use, land-use change, and forestry (LU-
LUCF) emissions going rapidly from 6,964
tonnes of CO2e stored in 2015 to 11,268
tonnes emitted in 2020.
Other countries have seen an increase in
bark beetle activity too, and with changing
climatic conditions it could spread further.
It’s complicated
The point is: it’s complicated and problematic
to assess how effective offsetting is, or how
much offsetting is required. Basic calculations
indicate huge areas of forestry would be nec-
essary just to provide carbon sequestration fa-
INSIGHT ZERO CARBON
cilities. Although management of these areas efficiently as possible.
could provide some timber for construction, Offsetting at the speed needed to avoid
presumably further additional areas would be
emissions now and within the next 10 years is
required to provide for increasing use of tim-
ber in construction. unrealistic. Which leads to difficult questions
Again: any materials we use must be used as about what we should be building, and how.
200
Million tonnes of CO2 equivalent (Mt CO2e)
100 Other land
Settlements
Wetlands
0 Grassland
Cropland
-100
Harvested wood products (HWP)
Forest land
Other
Projections with existing
-200 measures (WEM)
Projections with additional
measures (WAM)
-300 Land use, land use change
and forestry (LULUCF)
-400
Approximated emissions
for LULUCF
-500
1990 1995 2000 2005 2010 2015 2020 2025 2030 2040 2045 2050
Figure 2: EU emissions and removals of the LULUCF sector by main land use category.
Source: EEA
Our recommendations
• Carbon emissions at any life cycle stage must be reported in line with existing
standards: EN15978, EN15804+A2, RICS Whole Life Carbon Assessment in the
Built Environment.
• Report kg CO2/m2 and total tonnes emissions. Additionally reporting tonnes
emissions per occupant would encourage efficient sufficiency and sensible use of
space.
• Stored carbon must never be included in a net figure when reporting upfront carbon
(life cycle stages A1-A5, or ‘cradle to practical completion’ of a building). It must
only be reported as per the standards/guidance above, i.e.: as a separate figure only.
• There should be targets for upfront and life cycle carbon in any local or national
guidance, with both targets requiring to be met.
• These targets should be rapidly reduced to the smallest level to ensure the most rapid
decarbonisation possible.
• LETI A+ and A++ should not be considered future aspirational targets but as a rep-
resentation of where we urgently need to be.
• Retrofit before newbuild. Where demolition is proposed, whole life carbon calcu-
lations (combined embodied and operational emissions) must be able to clearly
demonstrate that a new building will have a lower carbon impact than a retrofit of
the existing building to provide the same floor area as the proposed newbuild.
• Report rapidly sequestered biogenic carbon separately from that in timber products.
• Rapid growth biogenic materials should substitute higher carbon materials effec-
tively, not be used in excessive amounts just to claim a greater stored carbon credit.
• Explore ways of rewarding carbon release buffering resulting from use of rap-
id-growth/rotation biogenic materials and their associated carbon storage – whilst
ensuring that materials are only used as efficiently as possible.
• Operational energy and resulting emissions must be reduced radically alongside re-
ducing embodied emissions.
• External offsetting should never be used as a substitute for reducing actual emissions
from construction to the lowest level possible. Whilst there are planting, land use,
and forestry practices that can increase stored carbon, there are many uncertainties
involved. Such schemes need to be carefully planned to ensure they are genuinely
effective (e.g., tree planting in the right place, on poor quality land with low prior
carbon retention; compared to tree planting in the wrong place where it can lead to
increased emissions from land that previously had high carbon storage value.
• Maximise potential to use recycled materials in new construction or retrofit and to
enable reuse and recycling of building components at the end of life of a building.
ph+ | zero carbon insight | 69
CARBON FIRST INSIGHT

Carbon first, fabric second

HOW TO DECARBONISE THE UK’S HOUSING STOCK

Rapidly decarbonising our cold, leaky dwellings is the greatest challenge facing the building
industry, one fraught with complexity and risk. Given that the UK faces similar challenges to
Ireland – in a similar climate, with similar housing stock – what can we learn from British efforts to
meet this challenge? Leading UK green building association the AECB has put forward a proposal
that could help to chart a new course through these choppy waters.

by Lenny Antonelli for the Association for Environment Conscious Building (AECB)

W hat is the best way to decarbonise

the UK’s homes? This question has
sparked heated debate over the past year.
On one side are those who believe we
should deep retrofit dwellings through insul-
ation and airtightness measures, slashing
their energy demand and making them more
resilient, more comfortable, and less vulner-
able to fuel poverty. In other words, put
building fabric first.
On the other side, those who say retrofit is
simply too slow and complex, that we should
worry less about energy efficiency and priori-
tise getting low carbon heat — in particular,
heat pumps — into homes as quickly as
possible. So, who is right? Arguably, both are.
The evidence shows that, done well,
deep retrofit shrinks energy demand and
improves the lives of building occupants.
But so-called ‘heatpumpification’ is a faster
and cheaper way to reduce the carbon
footprint of buildings.
Now, the AECB is aiming to forge a middle
way, creating a pathway for homes to get a
heat pump and shallow retrofit now, but
prepare for a deep retrofit in future. The
group has relaunched its CarbonLite (Carbon
Literate Design and Construction) standards,
providing three pathways to better buildings.
CarbonLite Retrofit step-by-step
In the new step-by-step approach to Carbon-
Lite Retrofit (CLR), the home is fitted with a
heat pump and good ventilation initially and
receives just enough insulation and draught-
proofing to ensure the heat pump operates

70 | passivehouseplus.ie | issue 46 Photos: Trystan Lea and Glyn Hudson

 INSIGHT CARBON FIRST

(Opposite, clockwise from top) Two ‘heat-

pumpification’-based retrofits in Llanber-
is, Gwynned. The exterior of Tystean Lea’s
Figure 1: Retrofit scenario - two waves
house, which he did not insulate; Lea in- Figure 1: Retrofit scenario - two waves
stalled some large surface area radiators; 1,400,000
and retrofitted a Mitsubishi EcoDan heat
pump; Glyn Hudson’s house features a 1,200,000

number retrofitted/yr
CLR step-by-step
Samsung Gen 6 air source heat pump. Both
1,000,000
homes are listed on heatpumpmonitor.org,
with 30 day mean COPs of 4 or over at the 800,000
time of writing in December. CLR completed
600,000
400,000 CLR step-by-step → CLR completed
efficiently and affordably (step one). A
sensible plan is developed for the building 200,000

to reach the full CarbonLite Retrofit 0

standard in future (in a single second step, 2010 2020 2030 2040 2050 2060 2070 2080 2090 2100

or multiple steps).

CarbonLite Retrofit completed

A whole-house deep retrofit standard,
designed to dramatically cut energy use,
with a maximum space heating and cooling
demand of 50 kWh/m2yr (by compar-
ison, the Passive House Institute’s Enerphit
standard requires 25 kWh/m2yr).
Figure 1. An AECB stock model scenario showing two retrofit waves to the English hous-
ing stock. In the first wave, 50 per cent of stock takes the step-by-step approach to Car-
bonLite Retrofit, while 25 per cent of stock goes straight to full CarbonLite Retrofit. In
the second wave, the projects which had already started the step-by-step approach are
upgraded to full CarbonLite Retrofit by the middle of the century.

CarbonLite New Build

A rigorous new build standard, with a space Figure 2: operational & embodied carbon of retrofit
Figure 2: operational & embodied carbon of retrofit pathways
heating and cooling target of 40 kWh/m2yr pathways
(by comparison, the passive house classic 15
14 Embodied carbon: CLR completed
standard requires 15 kWh/m2yr). 13 Embodied carbon: CLR step-by-step
The CarbonLite standards are all based on
tonnes CO2e per year

the rigorous passive house methodology and
require energy modelling using the Passive
House Planning Package (PHPP). Carbon-
Lite standards can also be applied to non-do-
mestic buildings.
Fabric first or fabric second?
The AECB has a long history with building
standards. The group first launched its
CarbonLite Bronze, Silver and Gold standards
in the mid 2000s, to reflect UK-specific
building types and the skill profile of the
UK’s building industry. It then launched
the Passivhaus Trust in 2010 to mainstream
radical energy efficiency, leveraging the
international momentum that had built up
around the German standard. The Carbon-
Lite Retrofit standard was launched in 2021.
But the latest incarnation of CarbonLite
Retrofit marks a shift from the AECB’s fabric-
first roots. The CLR step-by-step approach
prioritises quick and effective climate-action,
putting the low-carbon heating system first
(including the heat emitters, e.g., radiators
or underfloor heating), enhanced by modest
fabric and ventilation measures. Chief
executive Andrew Simmonds is pragmatic
about why the AECB has changed its
approach.
“Our culture and institutions are not
changing fast enough to safeguard society
from peak oil and the shockingly fast effects
of ever worsening climate breakdown,” he
says. “There is a profound failure of national
political leadership, a lack of science-based
policymaking, and a desperate shortage of
the necessary skills — all necessary to deliver
12
11 Operational carbon: CLR completed
10
9 Operational carbon: CLR step-by-step
8 Operational carbon: existing house
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
0
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 65
Time, years
Figure 2. This graph gives annual emissions from space heating, embodied carbon and
thermal comfort data across different phases of an existing house. For the first five years
the house remains heated by gas, and is heated to 17.8 C. After five years a CLR step-by-
step retrofit is done, including switching from gas to an air source heat pump, and a slight
increase in thermal comfort to 18.1 C. The annual emissions decline for the next 17 years,
as the heat pump benefits from decarbonising grid electricity. When the heat pump is
due for replacement after 17 years (in year 22) a CarbonLite Retrofit is completed includ-
ing deeper fabric measures and a smaller heat pump - and lifting the temperature to 20 C.
For the full retrofit the figures are for external wall insulation (but internal wall insulation
gives similar figures. Standard occupancy of 2.4 people per house was assumed.
healthier new and retrofitted low carbon just 54,000 were installed in 2022. The heat
buildings at a meaningful scale and pace. pump rollout has been plagued by stories
Even without cultural and institutional of high running costs and poorly designed
inertia, and the dangerous and short-sighted systems, but some of this is simply malicious
delay from heavily vested interests such as misinformation. The primary aim of the
the fossil fuel industry, such change takes CarbonLite Retrofit step-by-step approach
decades, and we have kicked the can down is to ensure heat pumps run efficiently, and
the road for too long. Hence, we are forced to do not increase energy bills, allowing fast and
rethink previously hard-won positions.” deep decarbonisation of a building’s space
and water heating.
CarbonLite Retrofit step-by-step: Heat “Our housing stock modelling looked at
pumps now for rapid decarbonisation space heating emissions from UK housing,
The UK government is aiming to install and also incorporated upfront carbon
600,000 heat pumps a year from 2028, but emissions from building materials and

ph+ | carbon first insight | 71

CARBON FIRST INSIGHT

Figure 3. Cumulative greenhouse gas emissions from

heating a typical UK semi-detached home. Business as
Figure 3: Figure
Cumulative CO2e emission
3: Cumulative retrofit
CO2e emission pathways:
retrofit pathways:
Usual is a gas heated, unimproved home – which shows
operative and embodied carbon
operational and embodied carbon
an unrelenting accumulation of greenhouse gas emis-
220
sions into the atmosphere over 60 years, compared to
200 dramatically reduced emissions from both the Step 1 and
180 full CarbonLite retrofitted property. Retrofitted dwellings
160
Full retrofit at A
Full retrofit at B also deliver more comfortable, healthy and climate-re-
Step1 retrofit silient homes – key ‘non-energy’ benefits.Any emissions
Business as usual
140
arising from decommissioning, stripping out, disassem-
tonnes CO2e

120 bly, deconstruction and demolition operations as well

100 as from transport, processing and disposal of materials
80
must be accounted for at the end of the reference study
period, even if they do not necessarily happen at this
60
time. For the purpose of this example, the standard 60
40 year reference period has been set to start at point A (for
20 both full and step 1 retrofits). For the full retrofit starting
0
at point B, we have brought forward end of life emissions
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 50 55 60 so that they appear on the graph and figures are for ex-
Time, years ternal wall insulation, as for the previous graph. (Internal
wall insulation using woodfibre gives an almost identical
result after end of life emissions).

construction. It indicated that a smaller wave
of the deeper CarbonLite retrofits along with
a much larger wave of CarbonLite step-by-
step retrofits over the next few years would
deliver a huge reduction in carbon emissions.
This even factored in the up-front carbon
emissions from manufacturing the heat
pumps,” says Simmonds.
“Also, critically important is to reduce
the performance gap, which leads to
homeowners’ energy bills and greenhouse gas
emissions being higher than expected. Our
step-by-step retrofit standard is designed to
support installers, and ensure excellent heat
pump design and installation quality in these
low capital cost retrofits.”
When the heat pump is due for replace-
ment after 17 years (in year 22) the Carbon-
Lite Retrofit is completed including deeper
fabric measures and a smaller heat pump -
and lifting the temperature to 20 C. For the
full retrofit the figures are for external wall
insulation (but internal wall insulation gives
similar figures. Standard occupancy of 2.4
people per house was assumed.
The AECB stock model looks at elec-
tricity demand in the various scenarios in
addition to carbon. It also considers peak
heating demand on the national grid in
winter. The model reports that a subsequent
wave of CarbonLite Retrofits in about 20
years’ time would help to minimise peak
demand on the electricity grid. This second
wave would include more full retrofits as
well as step-by-step retrofits that are further
improved, following their whole house plans.
Both AECB large scale stock modelling
and individual house type modelling show
‘bumps’ in greenhouse gas emissions at
intervals due to the upfront carbon of retrofit,
with larger bumps for deeper retrofits. But
while important to factor in, these bumps are
dwarfed over time compared to a business-as-
usual scenario (‘do nothing’).
Low bills, good health: The CarbonLite
journey
At the outset, a step-by-step retrofit aims to
improve the building fabric just enough that
the heat pump can operate at a flow tempera-
ture below 50 C – and ideally well below.
This keeps energy bills under control, but
without the need for a disruptive, expensive
deep retrofit now. To provide healthy indoor
air, the standard also requires either mechan-
ical ventilation with heat recovery, or simpler
and cheaper mechanical extract ventilation.
For step-by-step certification, AECB
certifiers must also ensure a longer term
deep retrofit strategy is in place to further
reduce energy use and operational emissions,
and deliver other benefits such as improved
comfort and health. This provides a clear
long-term pathway to a net-zero carbon
home or workplace, without creating a false
choice between either ‘heatpumpification’ or
‘deep retrofit’.
“With this approach, you’re creating a ‘route
map’ for each building, and a journey for the
owners, and saying ‘let’s see how far along the
journey we can bring your building’,” says
Passive House Plus editor Jeff Colley, who is
also chair of the Heat Pump Association of
Ireland, and a board member of the Passive
House Association of Ireland. “I think that’s
really compelling — and with the same
building physics of passive house behind it,
the same rigour.”
Sally Godber of leading passive house certifier
WARM sees CarbonLite Retrofit step-by-step
as a great starting point on the retrofit journey.
“I’m really excited about this approach. In the
void of funding and policy for retrofitting
homes it’s a great solution for homeowners
that want to do something to make a differ-
ence but can’t afford a full Enerphit. It’s well
thought through and ensures that future
measures aren’t compromised.”
CarbonLite Retrofit: a risk reduction-
based approach to retrofit
The full CarbonLite Retrofit standard requires
a maximum space heating and cooling
demand of 50 kWh/m2yr. That usually
necessitates a deep retrofit. A CarbonLite
Retrofit may replace a gas boiler with a heat
pump, but it also allows existing heating
systems to be retained if necessary (for
example if a new boiler was only recently
installed).
“The standard offers a bit more flexibility
than Enerphit,” says AECB certifier Paul
Mallion. “It’s less prescriptive, therefore it
can cope with smaller dwellings, older or
more complicated ones that have a poor
form factor.”
Passive house and AECB certifier Sarah
Price, who helped to develop the Carbon-
Lite Retrofit standard, echoes this. “I think
it’s the best retrofit standard we have in the
UK,” she says. “It’s pragmatic and is going to
be applicable to many more buildings than
Enerphit. I’ve done my fair share of Enerphit
projects, and whilst they do have their place,
and are fantastic projects, they are challenging
and costly, especially in residential where
residents have to, or want to, stay in their
homes during the retrofit.”
Price particularly likes the way Carbon-
Lite ensures the project team considers key
risk factors like building condition, moisture
risks, flooding, fire, and radon, which are
not required for passive house certification.
Certifiers can allow some pre-approved
exemptions from the 50 kWh/m2/yr rule —
up to a max of 100 kWh/m2/yr — for specific
reasons, such as building conservation, fire
or moisture risk. By checking with a fellow
certifier and logging their discussion (the
‘buddy system’), certifiers may also approve
exemptions for other “compelling reasons”.
One such reason might be “if some deeper
retrofit measures would emit significant
amounts of upfront carbon”, Simmonds says.
In such an instance, the AECB encourages
its certifiers to justify the exemption with a
whole life carbon calculation. As the scheme
builds up a body of evidence from the certifi-
cation of more projects, the process should
become simpler and less onerous, with
more approaches becoming standardised or

72 | passivehouseplus.ie | issue 46
 INSIGHT CARBON FIRST

pre-approved. finding that with the AECB standard, the it right.”

CarbonLite New Build: Closing the
performance gap
CarbonLite New Build, previously called
the AECB Building Standard, is aimed at
new homes. It requires a space heating and
cooling demand of 40 kWh/m2/yr. This
standard is increasingly popular with housing
associations, developers and local authori-
ties seeking to provide healthy low energy
dwellings. Recent projects include a large
social housing estate in Castletown on the Isle
of Man, numerous schemes across the south
of England for Hastoe Housing Association,
and an 88-home development by Stonewood
Homes in Gloucestershire.
In Wales, social housing projects must
achieve an energy performance certificate
(EPC) of A, or be certified to an alterna-
tive low energy standard, to qualify for state
funding. CarbonLite New Build is now
accepted as such an alternative, following
evidence submitted to the Welsh government
by Jonathan Davies and Jaime Moya, two
AECB certifiers with Spring Design Consul-
tancy in Bridgend.
Davies and Moya previously promoted
passive house to housing associations,
housebuilders and government, but say that
most found the standard too much of a leap.
CarbonLite New Build, however, began to
open more doors.
"We’ve been on a major outreach
programme for the CarbonLite New Build
standard to South Wales housing associa-
tions and local authorities,” says Moya, who
is director of architecture at Spring. “We’re
reduction in energy demand, the tangible The CarbonLite standards are still in their
return for tenants, is there for all to see.” infancy and their applicability and effective-
Moya and Davies’s pitch includes modelling ness in delivering better, low carbon, low
which shows that a typical semi-detached energy buildings will continue to evolve
home, built to CarbonLite New Build and as the AECB reflects on a growing amount
with an EPC of B, can achieve half the space of real-world feedback. “It’s an experiment
heating bills of the same house built to a of sorts,” says Andrew Simmonds, “but a
conventional EPC A specification. necessary and urgent one”.
"The CarbonLite New Build standard is “We are looking to help drive up minimum
attractive, and it’s upskilling the supply chain standards, so that the resources we do have
to a level it can deliver now, so we can work — including the time people have available,
towards higher levels of performance, towards the financial capital and materials — are used
passive house as a new building standard for in a way that rapidly reduces greenhouse
Wales,” Moya says. “We firmly believe as gas emissions and improves the health and
architects and passive house designers, that wellbeing of people living in their homes.”
it’s up to us to try to make this happen.” For more see www.aecb.net n
Passive house in new terrain
Ultimately, the revised CarbonLite Retrofit
standard takes passive house into new
terrain, applying it to ‘heatpumpified’ &
lightly retrofitted buildings to leverage the
decarbonising UK electricity grid — arguably
without compromising the rigorous building
physics of passive house, and without
compromising future deep retrofits.
Sarah Price, however, is keen to see the core
focus remain on deep retrofit. “Yes, rapid
decarbonisation is the urgent goal, we need to 2
electrify heating, we need to put heat pumps
in,” she acknowledges. “But equally for me,
we have the worst housing stock in Europe.
We have excess summer deaths, excess winter
deaths. We could be doing so much better
with our houses, and I think we need to be
sending that message out saying look, fabric
retrofit has many and varied benefits if we get

(below) A semi-detached house in Lancaster retrofitted by Coldproof may be the first

project to take the new CarbonLite step-by-step approach. 1 Existing double glazed win- 3
dows were retained, existing cavity was pumped; 2 the outdoor unit of the air source heat
pump; 3 airtightness membrane retrofitted across stud wall and ductwork void created;
4 underfloor heating installed; 5 internal woodfibre insulation was added.

1 5

ph+ | carbon first insight | 73

MARKETPLACE PASSIVE HOUSE+

Marketplace News
Partel launches paper-based
membranes
G alway-based sustainable building
product supplier Partel has launched
two new paper-based membrane products,
Izoperm Plus Eco and Vara Plus Eco.
The company describes Izoperm Plus Eco
as a paper-based sustainable vapour control
layer membrane, and Vara Plus Eco as a pa-
per-based smart ecological vapour control
layer membrane.
The products are intended to provide a
solution for internal applications, improving
indoor air quality and ensuring optimum
protection against humidity in the building
structure, while helping minimise heat loss.
Developed to enhance the sustainable fea-
tures of Partel’s Vara and Izoperm vapour
control layer membranes, the company is
in the process of obtaining Environmental
Product Declarations (EPDs) to quantify
their ecological impacts – and expects to be
able to demonstrate how the use of the prod-
ucts will help achieve embodied carbon re-
ductions.
Composed of up to 60 per cent renewable
FSC-certified paper, the products contain
a three-layer fabric mesh reinforcement for
high tear-resistance, combining strength, air-
tightness and moisture management.
Compliant with the stringent requirements
of the Emicode eco label system, Izoperm
Plus Eco meets the Ecolabel Emicode EC1
PLUS. Driving sustainability for reduced car-
bon emissions where it is primarily used on
internal walls, ceilings, and floors, it prevents
heat loss with an SD value of 20 m for achiev-
ing optimal thermal insulation. Izoperm Plus
Eco is designed to be compatible with all con-
ventional building systems and insulations.
Vara Plus Eco consists of up to 62 per cent
of FSC-certified paper and has been designed
to maintain the optimum airtightness in the
building envelope, while providing active
moisture control via hygro-variable technol-
ogy. Partel said the product can be utilised in
the most demanding of conditions as an inner
airtight membrane and as a vapour control
layer for externally vapour-open build-ups,
ensuring compatibility with all conventional
insulations. •
(right) Izoperm Plus Eco and Vara Plus Eco,
Partel’s new paper-based membranes.

Hevac launches Airmaster decentralised

MVHR for schools
(avove) The Airmaster AM 1000 decen-
tralised MVHR unit, available in Ireland
via Hevac.
schools onto the Irish market – including
a certified passive house unit.
Manufactured by Hevac’s Danish part-
ner Airmaster, the systems are designed to
provide an improved classroom environ-
ment for pupils and staff by bringing the
benefzits of MVHR in terms of air qual-
ity, thermal comfort and energy savings
– without the ductwork that centralised
systems require.
Airmaster’s comprehensive product
range includes 120,000 units installed
worldwide in industrial, commercial and
public buildings – and the Passive House
free, meaning fan power is kept to a min-
imum. A typical classroom installation re-
quires one Airmaster AM 1000 per room,
with intake and exhaust connections to
the outside.
The certified passive house component
can recover up to 90 per cent of a room’s
heat using an aluminium heat exchanger,
reducing the building’s heat load and
heat loss.
The certification of the AM 1000 makes
available an innovative ventilation strat-
egy that can improve indoor air quality
without sacrificing thermal comfort. With

H eating and ventilation specialists

Hevac have launched a range of
decentralised mechanical ventilation
systems with recovery (MVHR) for
Institute-certified Airmaster AM 1000 de-
centralised MVHR unit.
Hevac said that Airmaster units are
growing pressure on buildings to become
energy efficient and comfortable, decen-
tralised MVHR such as Airmaster should
decentralised and air distribution is duct play a vital role in the solution. •

74 | passivehouseplus.ie | issue 46
 PASSIVE HOUSE+ MARKETPLACE

Tackling carbon emissions with Passive EcoWall

C arbon emissions originating from the
construction and operation of buildings
in Ireland constitute a significant portion of
the country’s overall emissions, amounting
to 37 per cent. Of this, 23 per cent can
be attributed to the heating, cooling, and
lighting of buildings, while the remaining
14 per cent represents embodied emissions,
often regarded as the “carbon blind spot”
within the construction industry.
To achieve the ambitious target of halving
national emissions by 2030, as mandated by
the Climate Action Act, it is imperative to
address both operational and embodied car-
bon emissions in the built environment. This
entails adopting strategies such as optimising
existing buildings, prioritising low-carbon
materials and designs, and employing ener-
gy-efficient construction methods.
In response to this challenge, Ecological
Building Systems has introduced the Pas-
sive EcoWall concept, which offers excep-
tional thermal efficiency, exceeding NZEB
requirements, and incorporating materials
with lower, or even carbon neutral emissions.
Passive EcoWall follows proven passive house
principles and includes elements like Gutex
woodfibre natural insulation, Finsa Superpan
VapourStop airtight racking boards, and the
Pro Clima Intelligent airtightness system.
Several certified passive homes and modu-
lar buildings in Ireland have demonstrated
reduced energy consumption and increased
comfort through this system. It can also fea-
ture alternative natural insulation options
such as Thermafleece sheepwool or Thermo
Hemp Combi Jute, a natural insulation made
from upcycled hemp and jute fibres.
Most recently, Roscommon-based timber
frame manufacturer, Lidan Designs, adopted
the Passive EcoWall concept for a 200 m²
school building in Cork which recently fea-
tured in Passive House Plus. This achieved an
impressive embodied carbon score of 249.3kg
CO₂e/m², surpassing targets set by the Royal
Institute of Architects in Ireland and the 2030
Climate Challenge for schools. The building
also received an A+ rating on the Low Energy
Transformation Initiative (LETI) scale for its
up-front and whole life carbon emissions and
meets the requirements for nZEB and hits
passive house airtightness levels. Large scale
projects like this demonstrate the feasibility of
using natural materials, with lower embodied
carbon, for high-performance modular build-
ings in Ireland.
Passive EcoWall offers specifiers and de-
signers a comprehensive, unique, “off the
shelf” specification for timber frame con-
struction. The system is supplied with a clear,
comprehensive set of detailed drawings with a
focus of thermal continuity and optimum air-
tightness and windtightness details. Adopting
such construction techniques and natural ma-
terials ensures industry can effectively address
not only operational emissions, but also em-
bodied emissions, thus playing a pivotal role
in Ireland’s sustainable building future.. •
(left) The Passive EcoWall system combines
excellent thermal performance and em-
bodied carbon properties.

Kildare scheme chooses Grant sustainable heating package

A private housing development in Co.
Kildare has recently called upon leading
heating technology manufacturer Grant to
install its 6kW Grant Aerona³ R32 air source
heat pump as part of a bespoke integrated
heating package, within twenty-two homes
– with a further fifteen more to be built in
the next year.
Grant has developed its integrated heating
packages to offer people building new homes
across Ireland an integrated heating solution
that will increase efficiencies and significantly
reduce carbon emissions.
A typical Grant integrated heating pack-
age consists of a main heat source, water
storage and heat emitters, with the choice
of adding smart controls to each system for
added efficiency.
To ensure long-term heating efficiency, the
homes in Robertstown, Naas, had bespoke
integrated heating packages installed which
were expertly designed by the Grant techni-
cal team. The Grant team collaborated closely
with developer Cappagh Homes and heating
contractor DNA Partners, with specifications
by consulting engineers Waterman Moylan.
For a cleaner, more environmentally
friendly home heating solution, a 6kW Grant
Aerona³ R32 air-to-water heat pump was
installed in each property as the main heat
source, which can achieve high seasonal co-
efficients of performance (sCOPs), especially
if operated at low temperatures. The Grant
Aerona³ range has an ErP of A+++ and is
amongst the most efficient air-to-water heat
pumps in Ireland.
Furthermore, the Grant Aerona³ R32 air
source heat pump range helps to achieve
required compliance under building regula-
tions and when partnered with a renewable
electricity supplier, will generate extremely
low carbon heat for homeowners.
A 210L A-rated Grant pre-plumbed cylin-
der – designed to heat water faster and more
efficiently than standard cylinders – was
chosen to supply each property with 24/7
hot water. To ensure optimum efficiency
across all the homes, the Grant Uflex un-
derfloor heating systems and Grant Afinia
aluminium radiators were also installed as
heat emitters, enabling individual rooms to
be heated efficiently, while offering versatil-
ity to support the overall design and archi-
tecture of the homes. heating, radiators or both – to heatpump@
Grant’s technical team works with build- grant.ie
ing developers, self-builders, specifiers and Visit www.grant.ie for more informa-
engineers daily to design bespoke integrated
tion on Grant’s range of innovative heat-
heating systems for projects ranging from one
off new builds to multi-home developments. ing solutions. Follow Grant on Facebook
The Grant team will design, size and specify and Twitter @GrantIRL or Instagram
individual heating systems free of charge, to @Grant_IRL. •
ensure each property’s heating system per-
forms to its optimum efficiency. (above) Grant integrated heating packag-
To avail of Grant’s heating design service, es were used to deliver sustainable heat
send house plans, contact information and for a Cappagh Homes scheme in Naas,
preferred choice of heat emitters – underfloor Co. Kildare.

ph+ | marketplace | 75
MARKETPLACE PASSIVE HOUSE+

DESIGN | SUPPLY | INSTALL | SERVICE

With over 25 years experience, ProAir is Ireland's only
manufacturer and industry leading specialist of Mechanical
Ventilation with Heat Recovery (MVHR) systems.
Our professional team provide an end-to-end service to
ensure your home will be healthy, comfortable and energy
efficient.

Improved Indoor Air Quality

Commissioning and Certification
Compliance with Building Regulations (Part F)
Warranty, Service and Support

Galway | Dublin | Cork

Tel: 091 739 442
sales@proair.ie www.proair.ie

Greenbuild
test testing & consultancy
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Airtightness Testing - NSAI certified
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Thermography for building applications
Advertise with us.
It is always a pleasure to work
with the Passive House Plus
team. They provide a wealth of
information, support and time to
provide the best advert. Launching
a new product is never easy,
but in the space of only two
months we’ve received over 150
enquiries through two issues of
the magazine and all have been
very fruitful. We have been quoting
straight after the magazine is out.
A lot of the customers enquiring
have genuine current projects
and this is reflected in how many
respond to our follow ups.

It is no doubt in my mind that

this team are one of the best I
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Ventilation Validation
NSAI certified ventilation validator for Part F (2019) compliance
To enquire about advertising, contact Jeff Colley on
Greenbuild +353 (0)1 2107513, or email jeff@passivehouseplus.ie
Inch, Gorey, Co Wexford.
t: 087 252 1032 e: contact@greenbuild.ie
www.greenbuild.ie
www.passivehouseplus.ie
76 | passivehouseplus.ie | issue 46
 PASSIVE HOUSE+ MARKETPLACE

Unilin launches embodied carbon report

L eading insulation manufacturer Unilin
has produced a report on calculating and
reducing embodied carbon while using the
insulation in 2021, introducing several envi-
ronmental improvements to PIR insulation
with the integration of bio-based polyols,
chain, designers, and contractors will be re-
quired to help address the climate crisis. “All
of the manufacturers we engaged with in the
company’s products. more than a 50 per cent reduction in packaging preparation of this report are fully committed
The report, Reduce by Design: Action on waste, halogen-free formulation – and an im- to improving their own EPDs along with the
Embodied Carbon, provides an overview of the pressive thermal conductivity of 0.020 W/Mk. continued decarbonising of the grid, and so re-
process and calculation of embodied carbon in “The ECO360 insulation strategy is a key sults for embodied carbon shown will continue
a study of house types. innovation in our endeavours,” the company to reduce,” the company said. “We hope this
Multidisciplinary consultancy XCO2 was said, in a foreword to the embodied carbon report and accompanying CPD learning will
commissioned to carry out life cycle assess- report. “ECO360 is evidence of our commit- encourage information sharing and engage-
ments (LCAs) for four different dwelling types ment to continually review and improve the
ment with the subject.”
– including typical examples of a detached sustainable credentials of our product offer-
“In line with our sustainability pledge, we
house, mid-terraced house, semi-detached ing and services, as far as technical advances in
are committed to achieving lower embodied
house, and apartment – built using typical ma- manufacturing and circularity allow.”
“The aim is to gauge the impact of our im- carbon in builds.”
terial specifications, to see if they could meet
proving Environmental Product Declarations “It has been independently proven that with
the embodied carbon targets set by organisa-
(EPDs) on a building’s life cycle analysis,” the clever design using high-performance Unilin
tions including RIBA, LETI and the Future
company said. “We worked with industry bod- insulation, we can reduce embodied carbon lev-
Homes Hub. The results also can be taken as
ies and software providers to educate our own els in construction which meet and can exceed
an indication regarding meeting the RIAI tar-
gets. The analysis was cradle to grave, covering team in the conventions and methods related targets set by Future Home Standard 2025,
modules A1-C4, excluding B6-B7, which cover to embodied carbon measurement. This is only LETI and the RIAI 2030 Climate Challenge.”
operational energy and water use, and which the start of a journey.” To find out more, download Unilin’s em-
are customarily reported separately in building Unilin said that strong alliances and co-op- bodied carbon report at unilininsulation.ie/
LCAs in the UK and Ireland. eration between manufacturers, the supply embodiedcarbon/ •
With a scope including all elements of the
building excluding external works, and relying
on products with EPDs where possible, base-
line case scenarios were established, along with
improved specifications in each case, including
measures such as substituting 70 per cent of ce-
ment with GGBS in the concrete slab, switch-
ing to a calcium sulphate screed, and swapping
concrete roof tiles for natural slate – and a shift
from generic PIR to Unilin’s ECO360 PIR.
Three options for heating systems and domes-
tic hot water were included – including an air
source heat pump-based approach, a passive
solar-based design with heat recovery venti-
lation and electric water heater, and a direct
electric system. In the case of the heat pump
baseline and improved cases were included,
depending on the global warming potential
of the refrigerant. The baseline case included a
heat pump with 1.3 kg of R410A, a refriger-
ant with a global warming potential (GWP) of
2,088, meaning each kilo is equivalent to 2,088
kg of CO2 (expressed as 2,088 kg CO2e). The
improved case included 3 kg of R32, which has
a GWP of 675, dropping the embodied carbon
total from 48 to 36 kg CO2e/m2.
In all four house types, the improved speci-
fications met the RIBA, Future Homes Hub
and LETI targets. In one case – the mid-ter-
raced house, the air source heat pump option
brought the building over the target.

Unilin aims for zero carbon

In 2021 Unilin Group launched its sustain-
ability pledge, including an aim to become a
net zero carbon operation by 2030. As part
of the company’s One Home sustainability
policy, Unilin pledged to make environmen-
tal improvements in all aspects of its opera-
tion including the manufacture of insulation
products. The company launched its EC0360

ph+ | marketplace | 77
D R TO B Y C A M B R AY COLUMN

A new energy policy:

give to the frugal, take
from the profligate
Should we look to Robin Hood to help transform energy use in buildings? New proposed
reforms to how energy is priced could hold the key to discouraging excessive energy use,
stimulating retrofit and driving down carbon emissions, argues Toby Cambray.

U Up to a basic
K politics is in a sorry state at the
moment; not only has the current
administration lurched alarmingly
to the right, but it has also poisoned our
discourse with the three Ps of populism,
polarisation and post-truth. Recent by-elec-
tions do however indicate the electorate are
ready for change which in my echo chamber
at least, is to be celebrated. It is therefore
frustrating that we are not seeing more bold
proposals from the presumed government
in waiting, although this does make strate-
gic sense. At the risk of revealing my second
favourite* podcast, Keir Starmer is carefully
carrying the Ming vase of victory across the
marble floor that is 2024. It’s straight for-
ward to make it to the other side, just don’t
do anything silly, like a radical consumer
energy policy.
Fortunately, I have no intention of attain-
ing high office, and no qualms about sharing
with you some thoughts on what might be
done to address fuel poverty, energy security
and climate change simultaneously.
In March, the New Economics Founda-
tion (NEF) published a proposal for a policy
which in my opinion deserves a lot more
press than it has thus far received: a National
Energy Guarantee. The concept is relatively
simple, and there are many variations on the
theme, so it can be refined to get the best
outcomes.
The idea is proposed as a counterpoint to
the existing policy: a subsidy that was intro-
duced to soften the blow of the dramatic
price cap increases we saw in the autumn of
2022, which became necessary in light of in-
ternational price rises. This blanket subsidy
missed several opportunities that the NEF
proposals have the potential to address.
The proposal is that up to some basic level
of energy consumption, the cost per kWh is
either zero or a small amount. Above this,
prices per kWh are higher. The amount of
free or low-cost energy is set at a level that
represents a minimum necessary for a basic
standard of living; extravagant energy use is
therefore costly. A refinement is the addition
of one or more intermediate levels, or per-
haps even a simple continuous function, so
that the increases in cost per kWh is gradu-
ated to some extent. In my version, at the
top end there is no energy price cap.
This is more equitable and sets up more
powerful incentives to avoid unnecessary
energy consumption, without incentivising
inappropriate reductions in energy use, in
particular relating to avoiding heating and
under-ventilating. It therefore tilts the play-
ing field in favour of investment in retrofit
and other energy saving measures, and con-
sequently carbon emissions reductions.
This is obviously an overtly progressive
policy that I’m sure will be dismissed out
of hand by the current administration; but
structured the right way it need not cost the
treasury anything, let alone the £5.5 billion
that the current blanket approach did, be-
cause revenue from the upper tiers funds the
free/low cost lower tiers. Careful setting of
breakpoints and prices would mean the av-
erage consumer sees little or no net change
in their cost, because their higher tier usage
funds all their consumption. If Robin Hood
dealt in electrons he would be taking from
the profligate and giving to the frugal.
As with building physics there are of course
unintended consequences to be mindful of.
One is that some individuals have needs
that dictate high energy use, such as heating
to higher temperatures or large volumes of
laundry for health reasons. People in such
circumstances must be provided with appro-
priate support; several vouchers and benefits
already exist and could be re-calibrated or
integrated with the policy via bespoke con-
sumption thresholds, for example.
A second issue is potentially trickier and
relates to the need to move towards more
flexible models of energy (specifically elec-
tricity) consumption, the icon of which is
the Octopus Agile tariff, effectively allow-
ing consumers to purchase on the half hour
market (and occasionally even ‘sell’ their
consumption level,
the cost of energy
would be zero or a
small amount
consumption). These two types of tariffs can
coexist as happily as they do currently, but
a key rationale with flexible tariffs is that
they implicitly link our consumption less
with the number of kWh, and more with
the infrastructure needed to deliver them.
As we move towards a system dominated by
renewables, heat pumps and EVs, the ability
to match demand to supply, (not the other
way around as is currently the case) will be-
come increasingly important, and the Na-
tional Energy Guarantee in its current form
does not directly address this.
Nonetheless, it would be relatively easily
implementable via smart meters, and an im-
provement on the current policies with re-
gards to equality and incentivisation of energy
sufficiency. You can read the NEF proposal
in full here: neweconomics.org/campaigns
/national-energy-guarantee n
*Favourite isn’t quite the right word
for receiving measured and informed
analysis from some chaps who are quite
so obviously delighted with their own
cleverness, and I’m not talking about Jeff,
Dan or Alex at Zero Ambitions Podcast.
Toby Cambray is a founding director at
GreenGauge and leads the building physics
team. He is an engineer intrigued by how
buildings work or fail, and uses a variety of
methods to understand these processes.

78 | passivehouseplus.ie | issue 46
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