Plummerswood
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as PDF Plummerswood sits in a regenerating biodiverse woodland setting overlooking the Tweed Valley in the Scottich Borders.The project embodies Howard Liddells eco-minimalist philosophy and Gaias lifecycle approach to innovation involving research, design, evaluation & feedback, dissemination, training and capacity building.Plummerswood is designed on ecological principles to create a contemporary, healthy, comfortable, energy efficient home. The issues include resource effectiveness, toxicity cycles, indoor climate control, sustainable forestry, modern manufacturing enhancing biodiversity and sequestration.The house is the first passive standard house to be constructed in the UK using Brettstapel - a glueless, dowelled, mass timber system. This construction technique has been pioneered by Gaia to demonstrate the potential for innovative use of the UKs extensive forest resource.
Plummerswood : 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 | - | - | 14 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 whole house calculation method | - |
| Energy target | PassivHaus |
| Other energy targets | - |
| Forecast heating load | - |
Airtightness
| Date | Result | |
| Pre-development air permeability test | - | - |
|---|---|---|
| Final air permeability test | - | 0.6m³/m².hr @ 50 Pascals |
Project description
| Stage | Occupied |
|---|---|
| Start date | |
| Occupation date | 01 November 2011 |
| Location | Innerleithen Borders Scotland |
| Build type | New build |
| Building sector | Private Residential |
| Property type | Detached |
| Construction type | Other |
| Other construction type | Brettstapel - glueless, dowelled, mass timber system |
| Party wall construction | |
| Floor area | 297 m² |
| Floor area calculation method | Treated Floor Area (PHPP) |
| Building certification |  Passivhaus certified building |
Project Team
| Organisation | Gaia Architects |
|---|---|
| Project lead person | Gaia Architects |
| Landlord or Client | Mr & Mrs I Nimmo |
| Architect | Gaia Architects |
| Mechanical & electrical consultant | Mott MacDonald, Harley Haddow |
| Energy consultant | |
| Structural engineer | |
| Quantity surveyor | |
| Consultant | |
| Contractor | Rodger (Builders) Ltd |
Design strategies
| Planned occupancy | Occupied by two persons since November 2011. |
|---|---|
| Space heating strategy | Mechanical Ventilation Heat Recovery (MVHR) unit to provide space heating. |
| Water heating strategy | Passive solar water heating. |
| Fuel strategy | Mains gas and electricity. |
| Renewable energy strategy | Solar thermal hot water panels. |
| Passive Solar strategy | |
| Space cooling strategy | MVHR unit. External blinds to limit direct solar gains. |
| Daylighting strategy | |
| Ventilation strategy | |
| Airtightness strategy | Airtightness membrane. |
| 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 | 2 |
|---|---|
| Volume | - |
| Thermal fabric area | - |
| Roof description | |
| Roof U-value | 0.08 W/m² K |
| Walls description | |
| Walls U-value | 0.12 W/m² K |
| Party walls description | |
| Party walls U-value | - |
| Floor description | |
| Floor U-value | 0.15 W/m² K |
| Glazed doors description | |
| Glazed doors U-value | - - |
| Opaque doors description | |
| Opaque doors U-value | 0.80 W/m² K installed |
| Windows description | |
| Windows U-value | 0.86 W/m² K - |
| Windows energy transmittance (G-value) | - |
| Windows light transmittance | - |
| Rooflights description | |
| Rooflights light transmittance | - |
| Rooflights U-value | - |