The Curly House
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as PDF Initial project meetings first started in January of 2008, the clients owned a small cottage on the site which had been extended several times during the 80's and had permission to make further adaptations. The mixture of building standards meant that their home was extremely drafty and very energy inefficient. The site itself is particularly exposed.The client knew from an early stage that they would be using there trusted friend Antoine Costantini of Kithurst Builders for the main contractor on the project. Ecotecture ltd were appointed along side Peter Rainier of DMH Stallard as the planning consultants.Planning was achieved on the site despite its being in an AONB and an area of development restriction. The design which achieved planning permission was a crescent form which steps and slides into the slopes on the site. The crescent formation is in direct response to solar orientation.
The Curly House : Project images
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Energy and fuel use
Measured data from renewable generation is not yet available.
Fuel use
| Pre-development | Forecast | Measured | |
| Electricity use | - | - | - |
|---|---|---|---|
| Natural gas use | - | - | - |
| Oil use | - | - | - |
| LPG use | - | - | - |
| Wood use | - | - | - |
| Other Fuel | - | - | - |
| Pre-development | Forecast | Measured | |
| Primary energy requirement | - | - | - |
|---|---|---|---|
| Annual CO₂ emissions | - | - | - |
| Annual space heat demand | - | 3 kWh/m².yr | - |
Renewable energy
| Electricity generation | Forecast | Measured |
|---|---|---|
| Renewables Technology | - | - |
| Other Renewables Tech | - | - |
| Electricity consumed by generation | - | - |
| Primary energy requirement offset by renewable generation | - | - |
| Annual CO₂ emissions offset by renewable generation | - | - |
Calculation and targets
| Whole house energy calculation method | OTHER |
|---|---|
| Other whole house calculation method | IES thermal model developed by an independent consultant. |
| Energy target | Passivhaus |
| Other energy targets | - |
| Forecast heating load | - |
Airtightness
| Date | Result | |
| Pre-development air permeability test | - | - |
|---|---|---|
| Final air permeability test | - | - |
Project description
| Stage | Under construction |
|---|---|
| Start date | 31 January 2009 |
| Occupation date | 31 August 2011 |
| Location | Chichester West Sussex England |
| Build type | New build |
| Building sector | Private Residential |
| Property type | Detached |
| Construction type | |
| Other construction type | |
| Party wall construction | |
| Floor area | 407.8 m² |
| Floor area calculation method | Treated Floor Area (PHPP) |
| Building certification |
Project Team
| Organisation | Ecotecture Ltd |
|---|---|
| Project lead person | Kithurst Builders |
| Landlord or Client | Not given |
| Architect | Ecotecture Ltd |
| Mechanical & electrical consultant | Kithurst Builders |
| Energy consultant | John Packer Associates |
| Structural engineer | BLB Structural Engineers |
| Quantity surveyor | |
| Consultant | Kithurst Builders - Design proportion allocated in contract documentation |
| Contractor | Kithurst Builders |
Design strategies
| Planned occupancy | The brief was to design a building which would accommodate the family for many years into the future, the planned occupancy would be for 5 adults. Additionally, the home will be used for large family occasions. A requirement was set for a minimum 16 seated spaces to be available for dining during these family occasions. |
|---|---|
| Space heating strategy | The space heating strategy is that of Passivhaus, the primary energy supply from space heating will be from internal heat gains.Thermal modelling shows the property achieve a lower than Passivhaus demand per m2 of space heating. |
| Water heating strategy | Two evacuated tube solar thermal panels are backed up by a small LPG boiler. |
| Fuel strategy | |
| Renewable energy strategy | |
| Passive Solar strategy | |
| Space cooling strategy | |
| Daylighting strategy | |
| Ventilation strategy | The ventilation system is a Paul MVHR system designed and supplied by Green Building Store. |
| Airtightness strategy | Initial tests show the project achieving 0.3m3/m2/hr at 50 pascals. The use of the Nudura ICF in combination with the OpDeck floor system provides excellent base level air tightness, with extremely low movement within the structure itself.The contractor has sourced and installed OptiWin Passivhaus certified windows which are also a key ingredient to the air tightness approach. |
| Strategy for minimising thermal bridges | |
| Modelling strategy | |
| Insulation strategy | |
| Other relevant retrofit strategies | |
| Contextual information |
Building services
| Occupancy | |
|---|---|
| Space heating | |
| Hot water | |
| Ventilation | |
| Controls | |
| Cooking | |
| Lighting | |
| Appliances | |
| Renewable energy generation system | |
| Strategy for minimising thermal bridges |
Building construction
| Storeys | |
|---|---|
| Volume | - |
| Thermal fabric area | - |
| Roof description | |
| Roof U-value | - |
| Walls description | |
| Walls U-value | - |
| Party walls description | |
| Party walls U-value | - |
| Floor description | |
| Floor U-value | - |
| Glazed doors description | |
| Glazed doors U-value | - - |
| Opaque doors description | |
| Opaque doors U-value | - - |
| Windows description | |
| Windows U-value | - - |
| Windows energy transmittance (G-value) | - |
| Windows light transmittance | - |
| Rooflights description | |
| Rooflights light transmittance | - |
| Rooflights U-value | - |