While the home of the future is a fascinating debate its only relevant to people lucky enough to have one. To meet the annual recommended target of 250,000 homes a year, the UK must build 685 homes a day. Over the past twelve years, UK house builders have fallen short of this target by 210 homes per day at 475, below 70% of the target. So we know what the home of the future looks like but we simply don’t have enough of them.

Homes have come a long way since that 1980s broadcast not only in how we interact with them but how they are built. Below shows the change in U values from the 1970’s to 2019. Heat loss through the building fabric is calculated by taking the u-value of each material used in the house. The u-value, measured in W/m², or Watts per square metre, tells you how much energy is lost for every 1°C difference between the two sides of the material

* Figures for 1970 and 1980 are based on SAP2005 assumptions for homes built 1967-1975 and 1976-1982 using specifications provided by Building Regulations. Assumes uninsulated cavity wall.

So we are building more thermally efficient houses driven by legislation but at what cost? 

To comply with Part L1A my new build comes with a budget range of trickle extract fans that share a similar noise property to that of a plane spotter’s ears on Heathrow runway! We found the solution after partnering with Nuaire last year, we are now suggesting their Faith Extract Fan as a solution, it has a night time delay and intelligent run on timer, this saves energy and prevents noise disturbances in the night

 Part 3 Continues….