07 / 10 / 24
Energy Efficient Home Features – From Pentland Homes
A huge benefit of buying a brand-new home from a housing developer, is our increasing focus on sustainability and ensuring our homes are energy efficient. The importance of energy efficiency is that it leads to much lower energy consumption and therefore reduces your utility bills, and in a cost-of-living crisis, cheaper bills are a must!
Are New Homes More Energy Efficient?
New build homes tend to be more energy efficient than older, pre-existing homes. This is due to the modern building techniques that take place during construction of new homes compared to older homes.
New homes developers also make use of newer materials such as insulation which is installed better as well as things like windows which tend to be double or triple glazed. The appliances that come as standard with new build homes also help with energy efficiency.
Our Energy Efficient Features
There are a few energy efficient features we include in our builds at Pentland Homes that we are particularly proud of.
Insulation
As previously mentioned, correct installation of insulation and the use of this material can have a huge impact on the energy efficiency of new homes. Our Development Manager Matthew Byatt says:
“As standard, Pentland Homes have built in fabric efficiency, achieving and in some areas exceeding the U value requirements for the 2021 changes to Approved Document Part L of the Building Regulations. This is achieved by boosting insulation levels to meet with the new stringent standards, particularly in the roof and front doors.”
Air Source Heat Pumps
Air source heat pumps are a new way of providing houses with heating and hot water, by using the air from outside your home. Overall, these systems work in such a way that is more sustainable so you can reduce your carbon footprint, but it will also save you on energy costs. E.on energy has shared that an air source heat pump could save you up to £1,410 per year compared to an old LPG boiler!
Matthew Byatt from Pentland Homes has commented: “Pentland Homes has also committed to the future of energy saving for our customers by choosing to end construction with gas boilers following the end of Poppy Fields and The Fairways developments, instead steaming ahead with Air Source Heat Pumps.”
The Air Source Heat Pumps we use come from the well-known brand Mitsubishi, who are also known for energy efficiency and durability of their products.
Solar Panels
Solar Panels are another feature of that help with building energy efficient new homes. They are a great way to be sustainable, but again, they help to reduce the running costs of your home, by reducing your electricity bill. Solar panels can be a great feature on a home as they are viewed as an upgrade, so they can also increase your home value too!
Matthew Byatt says: “On our last remaining gas boiler sites, we are including a PV (Photovoltaic) panel array on each house, of a level that will produce very good levels of electric throughout the year, so our homes will be less reliant on electricity from the grid.
We are preparing to roll PV out on some of our air source heat pump developments in the future before being fully integrated into the Pentland Homes standard design package.”
We are currently using the reputable brand Phono for our solar panels (subject to change site by site) who are fully certified and have strict quality control systems, so we can ensure that we are getting the best product.
How To Make Your Home More Energy Efficient
These are some of the key energy efficient features we add to our homes, however there are even more including underfloor heating and water butts to reuse rainwater!
Many of these features can be put in place for an existing property if you are keen to increase your sustainability at home and help your carbon footprint while lowering your energy bills. They may come with an initial up-font installation cost; however, the long-term benefits are worth it.
However, if you are looking for a change and are interested in buying a new home with energy efficient features as standard, you can get in touch with our sales team, who can go into more detail on some of these features and what is specific to each of our homes and developments.