Grove Cottage energy savings highlighted in The Independent
The Independent recently ran an article titled 'Passivhaus: the home that can cut your heating bills by 90%' which looks at how Andy and Lorna Simmonds refurbished Grove cottage to the EnerPHit standard with the help of a discounted residential mortgage with the Ecology Building Society, and significantly slashed their energy bills.
The Ecology Building Society promote Passivhaus by offering a mortgage discount scheme- homes which achieve the Passivhaus or EnerPHit standards qualify for a discount of 1.25 per cent off the mutual's standard variable mortgage rate. The discount currently reduces the cost to 3.9 per cent APR.
Excerpts from the article:
"Passivhaus has been adopted widely across Europe, with more than 30,000 properties built to the standard," says Jon Bootland, chief executive of the Passivhaus Trust.
"We've been slower to pick up on Passivhaus in the UK, but even so we now have more than 100 homes built to the standard and have completed the first schools and offices too," he added.
Despite the larger space – the couple had extended their home by 45 metres and also need to heat the home office – they managed to cut their gas usage by 70 per cent. Meanwhile, their fuel bills have halved.
"We get both gas and electricity from Co-operative Energy and our bills have consistently been about £625 a year," Andy says. "We also feel much safer in a house that is so comfortable, quiet and cheap to run."
Grove Cottage was shortlisted in the Retrofit category at the UK Passivhaus Awards 2012.
Read the full article on The Independent's website here.
2nd April 2013
Get involved with the UK Passivhaus community
 |
 |
 |
 |
