When it comes to making the decision to build a new home many people are now looking to make their new build as eco friendly as possible. It is the opportunity to consider how much energy a house will use and how friendly the materials used to build the house are.

When considering energy efficiency it is important to think about maximising the sources of renewable energy available to you, whilst also considering the best methods of conserving and saving energy as you will be required to have a SAP calculation completed to ensure that your house meets the building control requirements for energy efficiency as well as an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC).

When looking at your plans and designing your ECO house you should think about its position and how you can maximise the solar potential of the plot. This is not just through the use of solar panels but also in considering the building methods you will use e.g. the bigger the mass of the building product the better its ability to store passive solar energy. However, when you are considering what materials to use it is also important to note where the materials are coming from and if they can be sourced locally. You should aim to build a house that is airtight and will conserve as much energy as possible. This can also often depend on budget, resources available and planning permissions. Some grants are available from local authorities for installing energy efficient products into your home. Grants can contribute towards the cost of installing a range of products such as Solar systems, wind turbines and ground source heat pumps.

Everyone can do their bit to help the environment even just by using energy efficient lights and appliances (N.B. Building Control now state that 25% of lights in your home when you are building from scratch should be energy efficient).

Heating systems can be installed into your home and assist your eco project. When deciding on a heating system think about efficient wood pellet boilers or a condensing gas oil or LPG boiler. All of these methods are much more efficient than using electricity to heat your home. If you use electricity the impact on the environment is large due to the amount of CO2 produced. In planning to install your heating system think about positioning parts of the system close to each other therefore using less energy when running the system.