The English Style In “Green Architecture”

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green architectureIn England the eco house experiment has become quite a trend. The experts are researching the construction method used to build old houses that have resisted over the centuries and presently are a lot more ecological than the modern buildings.

“Getting the green back”, meaning finding new solutions to use the old ones, is today on many politicians’ agenda. The renovation of the historical monuments so they will respect the standards including the carbondioxide emissions and isolation are a constant concern for the constructors.

It needs to be said that the Great Britain government set a goal that by 2050 the level of the gases responsible for the greenhouse effect will be reduced by 80%. A quarter from these emissions is coming from the house construction area. This is how many house owners received subventions to transform their houses using an ecological pattern.

The solutions they have found and used are extremely simple. Among these are: a supplementary layer of mortar with a higher concentration of lime stone and the raising of the wood floor from the ground and putting under it a polystyrene isolation and ventilation valves that allows the wood floor to “breathe”.

Another structural modification that did not ruin the aspect of the house was the roof. A ventilation system was built under it to allow the better circulation of the air and the elimination of the damp and moisture surplus. With subvention money the owner built a wind mill and installed solar panels for a solar heating system.

All these offered the house all the energy it needs. The energetic surplus was used to “feed” a hydroponic greenhouse. This way the family has fresh vegetables all over the year and the whole investment cost 2.000 English pounds.

The projects continued further and in the south east of London an entrepreneur transformed a 1930 terrace into a family home. The modern materials integrated in the old building created a class A energy efficient living space.

The LED lighting network decreased the energy consumption with 32 kW/h for every square foot built. Another owner used a revolutionary material for the isolation- the Bolix polystyrene that allows the walls to breathe even after they were grouted.

The experts are saying that there are a lot of new materials that can be used for construction and most of them are not expensive. Unfortunately the constructors are not yet familiarized with them and that is why the main task of finding them and introducing them in the construction is the building owner’s responsibility.

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