Tommy plans an eco house

THE building star of BBC's Ground Force, Tommy Walsh, has embarked on a new project to build a state-of-the-art eco home in March.

He is building the house in the most environmentally friendly and cost-efficient manner possible, with the team choosing construction materials based on their green credentials. The whole project has a budget of just £60,000.

The construction of the two-bedroom detached house is expected to take little more than 60 days and the progress will be shown on television.

Tommy said: "I am very excited about working on such a challenging project. I hope it will highlight environmental issues surrounding new-build houses and help to pave the way for how houses will be built in the future."

The buyer of the home will benefit from a 10-year warranty from LABC New Home Warranty, which covers new and newly converted properties ensuring the home is built to the highest possible standard.
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Welsh eco-house 'not green enough'

When it comes to "green" living, Tony Wrench and his partner Jane Faith believed they were as enviromentally-friendly as is possible to be.

Built of timber and roofed with turf, their eco-roundhouse in west Wales - dubbed The Hobbit House by locals - appeared to tick all the boxes.

Insulated with straw, its electricity generated by solar panels and wind power, and using water from a mountain stream, it has been home to the couple and their low-carbon lifestyle for ten years now.

Even the toilet is "green", using a composting and reed bed system to deal with waste naturally.

But, apparently, its not "green" enough, according to the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park Authority, who have decided the house in Brithdir Mawr, Newport, does not meet its low-impact development policy.

The couple has now been ordered to demolish the house, which was built on private land at a cost of £3,000 and was unknown to the authorities until it was photographed from the air.

A park planning committee decided the building "failed to make a positive environmental impact" and was "not sustainable".

An ecologist's report to the meeting said it was "likely to have an impact on protected species such as dormice, bats and invertebrates" and concluded that if permission were granted, similiar properties would spring up causing "severe degradation of the National Park landscape."

Now the couple, who make a modest income from woodcraft, woollen rugs and music, have vowed to take their case to the Welsh Assembly in the latest stage of a long-running planning row over the building.

Mr Wrench, 61, said he was "stunned" by the ruling.

The couple grow their own fruit and vegetables, manage without a fridge or washing machine, and a study has confirmed their "carbon footprint" is just a fraction of the national average.

"We are doing everything we possibly can to reduce our carbon footprint. It's about as low as we can get and it demonstrates that an enviromentally sustainable lifestyle is possible," he said.

"So it is complete nonsense what they are saying. We will appeal against it - if not for us, but for all the other people who want to live in a way which is less harmful to the planet."

"There is a need for radical changes in the way we plan for, design and build homes, so we are very disappointed by the decision.

"The house is so beautiful to be in, and the garden so fruitful and bursting with life of all kinds, that I still cannot believe that in a world of such environmental spoilation and with spreading patches of such ugliness, there are still people paid to work on having this home demolished," added Mr Wrench, a wood-turner by trade.

One of the objections to the house was that it was thought that a woodland was not able to provide a sustainable source of fuel and crafts for the couple.

Ifor Jones, the authoritiy's head of conservation, admitted that the rules were strict but they applied to everyone, he said.

"Yes, we do have high hurdles but it is important that any development enhances the environment, rather than detracts from it, " he said. "In this instance the location of the roundhouse and vegetable garden within an area of semi-natural vegetation, comprosing woodland edge and unimproved wet grassland, is considered to have had negative impacts.
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DEVON'S FIRST GREEN TOWN

A Devon community of thousands of new homes will be a prototype for the "eco towns" proposed by Prime Minister Gordon Brown.

Mr Brown has ordered the biggest housebuilding programme since the 1940s - and Government officials believe Cranbrook - which is due to be built on farmland east of Exeter - provides a blueprint for future developments.

Senior Government official Richard McCarthy told a specially invited audience of 300 housing experts in Reading: "We must not overlook the need for good design of both homes and communities, the urgent need for the highest environmental standards and lifestyles, and an innovative approach to transport provision.

"Some of you are already making great progress in these areas. East Devon District Council is blazing the trail with the Cranbrook development east of Exeter, which will serve as a prototype of the new eco towns which the Prime Minister has announced, with challenging targets for energy efficiency and rail links into Exeter".

At Cranbrook, 40 per cent of the first 2,900 homes will be "affordable" and around 16.7 per cent of its energy will come from renewable sources. The new town - in which public buildings such as schools will be powered by biomass boilers - will also conform to the latest regulations on water use, building materials and waste.

The conference was told Cranbrook will have its own railway station, and developers will have to abide by government requirements for sustainable homes, which includes a range of standards in terms of energy use, insulation, water use, materials, surface water run-off and waste.

But the details of how the new town will meet its environment targets have yet to be finalised.

Campaigners said labelling Cranbrook an eco town was an attempt to "greenwash" a development that would needlessly damage the environment.


The consortium behind Cranbrook, East Devon New Community Partners, said no homes or buildings where people worked would be built on land with anything greater than a "one in 1,000 year" flood risk. The current requirement is that homes should not be built in an area with a "one in 100 year" risk.
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Tri Iso Super 9 - Heat Insulation and Thermal Reduction System

Tri-iso super 9 is a very reductive heat insulator, excellent for domestic application.

The Product is easy to install and works very effectively. You can buy the product in rolls of 10m2 or 20m2.

Because of the way Tri-iso super 9 is installed it means that the product is able to: Stop the cold in winter and reflect the heat of rooms back inside.
Reflect solar radiation back outside in Summer, thereby preventing overheating of attic rooms.
BENEFITS
Seals roof against wind and damp, whilst retaining ventilation.
Retains more warmth in winter.
Prevents lofts overheating in summer.
Saves valuable living space.
Beams and rafters may be left exposed.

SANDWICH COMPRESSION CHARACTERISTICS
14 alternating layers.
2 tear-resistant reinforced reflective films.
2 layers of soft, flexible wadding.
6 layers of closed cell foam.
4 internal reflective films.
Characteristics
Uncompressed thickness: 25mm

Equivalent to 200mm of traditional thick insulation.

Acoustic reduction:
RW:61 db
Fume classification:F1
(NF 16-101).

Roll size: 1.58m x 6.33m long = 10m2

Weight: 7kg

Roll size: 1,58 x 12.66m long = 20m2

Weight: 14kg

Applications
Over/Under rafter.
Loft conversions.
Unconverted lofts/wWalls

The product can be used for wall insulation, roof insulation, and floor insulation.
Roof
For roof use you can use either under rafter or over; depending on
your particular circumstances wall Tri-iso super 9 can also be used for wall insulation.

There are two types of installation for roof application: Under Rafter & Over Rafter. Over Rafter application involves rolling out the thermal insulation martial vertically from top to bottom of the roof. And then staple to the joists every 50cm. You then need to ensure that the overlay widths are overlaped by 5cm to 10cm. Then cover the joists with jointing tape. Fix the cross battens, breathable roof underlay, counter battens and tile battens before attaching final covering.



Under Rafter application involves rolling out the thermal insulation martial vertically from top to bottom as with the over rafter. Then staple to the joist every 50cm on the underside of the rafter, Then ensure that the overlap is between 5cm to 10cm and then tape the joints. At the bottom of the roof pitch , staple the insulation directly onto the timber wall plate.

For plasterboard lining nail cross battens to the rafters through the insulation and then attach the plasterboard.

Wall installation is similar to roof application. You will need to batten the wall with a minimum batten that will allow a 20mm air gap. The battens will need as an example could be paced 600 centers apart. Then unroll the heat insulation martial from top to bottom of the wall. Staple the insulation product at 50cm intervals on the battens. The overlap required is between 5cm and 10cm and needs to be taped as well for maximum insulation results. To apply plasterboard you will need nail across the battens through the insulation martial to another layer of battens and then attach the plaster board.

Floor application requires a batten frame to be built. This is needed as the product requires a 20mm air gap. This is an important factor so to ensure any heat exchange is made through radiation.

Then staple the insulation product using corrosive resistant staples at 50cm intervals onto the battens & make sure the overlap is between 5cm and 10cm and taped. Then attach the 2nd layer of battens directly above the 1st layer of battens. Then attach the flooring.