Heating with gas and solar heat
Eco-friendly family home becomes benchmark for
energy efficient design
Project Overview
Mr and Mrs Terry wanted to build a comfortable home
with minimal energy consumption. The project, overseen
by Passive House architects and regular collaborative
partner of Viessmann’s, bere:architects, was to become
the first certified Passivhaus in London and a benchmark
for comfortable, energy efficient family housing. The
house requires hardly any heating or cooling thanks
to advanced materials and techniques used in its
construction. With only 23.6 kg of CO2 per year (including
unregulated emissions), carbon emissions from the
energy used for the Passivhaus are significantly less
than the average UK property today.
Considered design
Families, especially those with young children, demand
a lot from their homes. With energy costs steadily
increasing at their former property, the Terry family was
keen to save as much as possible through minimal
energy consumption, when it came to developing their
new home.
London’s very first certified Passivhaus.
Architect and consultancy firm, bere:architects, was
enlisted from the very beginning of the project. It was
decided that solar energy should play a significant part
in the hot water system, yet, set in a built-up area of
London, the over-shadowing from adjacent buildings
was an important consideration. As well as determining
the best position for the property, bere:architects used
the Passivhaus Planning Package (PHPP) to develop an
efficient building envelope. By adhering to the Passivhaus
design standard, the property would be erected using
advanced low energy construction, so as to be cool in
summer and warm in winter.
While water and space heating with fossil fuel would
be kept to a minimum, an efficient boiler to support the
solar technology was still required as back up for the
very coldest, overcast winter days.
A fully connected system
Led by project architect, Sarah Lewis, bere:architects
designed and specified a hot water system for the
property in collaboration with low energy services
consultant, Alan Clarke, which the main contractor, Visco
Ltd, installed. The company fitted 3m² of Viessmann
Vitosol 200 T solar thermal tubes to the home’s roof to
supply hot water to the ensuite, family bathroom and
kitchen. The system works together with a Vitodens
343-F solar DHW storage gas boiler, and is managed via
the Vitotronic 200 control unit on the boiler.
The property uses only 23.6 kg of CO2 per year thanks to its’ efficient design and heating
system.
Eco-friendly family home becomes benchmark for
energy efficient design
With an integral, 250 litre DHW cylinder, the Vitodens
343-F is able to cater for all of the property’s hot water
and space heating needs, from one compact unit. A solar
coil fitted inside the cylinder pre-heats water before use.
The boiler provides additional energy through a highly
efficient heat exchanger, acting also as an additional
source of space heat when required, by delivering
top-up heat energy to the air being supplied through a
highly efficient PAUL heat recovery ventilation system
and two small towel radiators located in the property’s
bathrooms.
Warmth in the harshest of climates
Carbon emissions in the Terry’s home are now just 23.6
kg per year, far less than the five tonnes produced by the
average UK household. Energy from Viessmann’s solar
thermal technology recently covered more than 90 per
cent of the hot water demand during Spring 2015.
“In an age when fuel bills are rising, savings like these
make a real difference to our customers,” says Lewis.
“Thanks to Passivhaus design, the property already
uses very little heating, even when it’s subzero outside.
But hot water is something which is always required,
and the efficiency of Viessmann’s products means that
energy savings can still be made when condensing
technology is in use.”
3m² of Vitosol 200-T solar thermal tubes work in conjunction with a Vitodens 343-F solar DHW
storage gas boiler to minimize energy bills.
Commenting on the property on a cold winter’s day, Mr
Terry says, “It’s absolutely beautifully warm in here and
zero degrees outside. And it’s always got that lovely sort
of ambiance in here, it feels really warm and comfortable
and fresh.”
Project details
Project year:2009
Equipment: Vitodens 343-F solar DHW storage boiler
Vitosol 200-T evacuated tubes
Rated output:Boiler 13 kW
Solar thermal 3 m²
Location:
Camden, London
Contractor:
Visco Ltd
Viessmann Limited,
Hortonwood 30, Telford
Shropshire, TF1 7YP
Tel. 01952 675000
Fax. 01952 675040
Email: [email protected]
www.viessmann.co.uk