Most modern building codes require new buildings to meet minimum energy efficiency parameters. On the one hand, this increases the cost of design and construction works, on the other hand, significantly reduces the cost of maintaining an already built house. Also, energy-efficient houses use better materials, which makes it possible to give the home additional comfort, and in addition, by reducing heat loss, it helps to reduce the consumption of heat carriers and, as a result, reduce CO2 emissions into the atmosphere.
In some countries, at the state level, they encourage the construction of energy efficient buildings. At the state level, they offer subsidies for the construction of new and reconstruction of old houses, as well as the provision of tax incentives.
Planning for an energy efficient home is a decision that can bring great benefits to you and the environment in the future, including additional financial savings.
If you are planning or have already started building a new house, you can significantly reduce future maintenance costs by applying modern energy-saving technologies and the principles discussed below.
The choice of location can have a huge impact on the performance of your new home in many ways. For example, if the house is located near the place of work, as well as social services (school, shop, hospital), you will save on travel. As a result of this savings, financial costs will automatically decrease. Other factors affecting the correct choice of location and location include the orientation of the windows of the house to the sunny side.
A home with well-placed windows that captures sunlight will have "passive solar heating" that will reduce heating costs during the colder parts of the year, as well as receive sufficient lighting without the use of incandescent lamps. The ideal location would be such that a significant area interior spaces illuminated during the winter day. It should be noted that turning windows to the south is not desirable! The preferred location is when the windows are placed on the west and east sides. This allows you to illuminate the room with the morning sun in the first half of the day, and receive light and heat from the setting sun in the evening.
Locating your home in a location that is sheltered from the wind can significantly reduce heat loss. Natural cover can come from nearby trees, nearby buildings, or surrounding hills. If there are none, it makes sense to plant green spaces around the building yourself - bushes and trees. Preferably, as many plantings as possible were located on the windward side. Also make sure that trees do not create a significant barrier to natural sunlight, otherwise the benefits of solar energy described above will be negligible.
The use of other types of energy other than solar energy - wind energy, geothermal energy, biomass and others. You should pay attention to this point if you own a significant piece of land, for example, a house located in a city has practically no opportunity to receive energy from the above sources. At the same time, at home countryside, often have a significant free area, which allows the use of heat pumps as one of the sources of electricity.
The principle of operation of this system is quite simple, as you know, at a depth of several meters, the soil temperature is above zero and is practically unchanged throughout the year. With the help of a compressor and an extensive pipe system, the device absorbs thermal energy from the ground, and then transfers this energy to heating the house and other household needs.
Well, if the house is located on a hill or in an area with strong wind activity, it makes sense to install a wind generator. Modern devices allow, if not completely getting rid of dependence on external sources of electricity, then to a large extent to minimize consumption.
As mentioned above, depending on the location of the windows in the house and their orientation, significant savings can be achieved through passive solar heating. But during the year, the angle of incidence of the sun's rays can change and then there is a need to prevent excess light from entering. In such a situation, it makes sense to design the canopies in such a way that they prevent direct sunlight from entering the room in the summer. Skylights and light pockets on the roof can also serve as an additional source of light.
But in addition to roof windows, it is desirable to provide for the location of solar panels and collectors. The solar collector allows you to get hot water at almost any time of the year.
The use of solar panels in the design of a modern energy-efficient home is almost a must. Despite the rather significant financial costs at the beginning, over time they fully pay for themselves. For greater efficiency, it is recommended to provide for the installation of solar panels on the southern slope of the roof, so they provide electricity generation almost throughout the day.
One more distinctive feature an energy-efficient home can be used in the construction of natural materials.
This can be critical to the decision to use and accommodate renewable sources during the planning stage of your home. Most often, the annual rate of consumption of heat and electricity by your home is calculated, and based on the data obtained, a decision is made on the use of one or another renewable energy source. Some points (for example, the location of the house) require almost no financial investments. But at the same time, buying and installing equipment and systems can greatly increase the cost of building a home. Therefore, it is best to choose the most rational option in terms of price / quality ratio at the design stage.
A pronounced trend in the private housing market is cottages that do not burden owners with operating costs. Demonstrating the breadth of the Russian soul by burning gas and firewood in cubic meters has become unfashionable in our time. Slowly but surely, modern energy-saving technologies are entering the life of homeowners along with new projects of cottages. However, the construction of houses focused on low energy consumption requires an integrated approach to design and fine-tuning of all engineering systems. The designer must take into account all the needs of the residents, as well as make the sunlight, the wind, and the natural folds of the microrelief “work” for the homeowner. Otherwise, expensive solar systems, heat pumps, heat recovery units and home automation with remote control via the Internet will turn out to be an additional burden on the budget and useless "gadgets" for the home.
To create a comfortable “weather in the house”, designers are working together with manufacturers and suppliers of a wide variety of equipment - from cable systems heating and micro-ventilation devices to heat pumps. At the same time, each merchant praises his product, offering the most productive and most "advanced" heating equipment, energy-saving windows, a wide range of materials for thermal insulation and home automation elements. But it also happens that by choosing a project that you like, and then - all the best that the suppliers offer, the homeowner may find that heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems are waging an irreconcilable war on several fronts at once: with each other, the environment and the wallet. homeowner. The solar collector and heat pump are doomed to remain “gadgets” without the slightest chance of payback if they are installed in the home energy system unprofessionally or, as they say, “out of business”. Meanwhile, the main task that engineers and suppliers of these products are working on is to reduce operating costs. And at the heart of the modern "intellectual" house - A complex approach to design, which allows you to manage costs both at the construction stage and during operation.
The vast majority of modern private houses are built according to the so-called ready-made projects. Energy-saving cottages in this regard are no exception. As a rule, rational projects with simple pitched roofs and minimal areas of enclosing structures in relation to the living area are taken as the basis here. But even the simplest architectural forms and volumes require, firstly, a site suitable for this project, and secondly, the correct reference to the terrain.
What to consider when designing a low energy home? First of all, a site that is successful in terms of microclimatic parameters is both favorable “weather in the house”, and also the possibility of a significant reduction in operating costs.
After all, sunlight, the water cycle and the natural movement of air masses are the best "air conditioner", and the task of the designers is to make it work. Here, all means are good: the forest along the border should protect from wind and noise, but not create shading and dampness, and the natural slope and relief folds should contribute to natural heating and removal of excess moisture. For example, a site on a slope - headache for both builders and homeowners. But if it has a slight decrease to the south, then cold, moist air "flows" down, helping home ventilation and heating systems. Such nuances, of which a great many pop up when choosing a site for development, affect the comfort of living and the cost of operation.
But what if the site is already available and you don’t have to choose? Second, no less important factor for a "friendly" energy saving project - the correct orientation of the house to the cardinal points and its "landing" on the terrain. If not for this moment, always demanding individual work architects, economical and environmentally friendly low-energy houses - would have become a mass phenomenon long ago.
With orientation to the cardinal points - everything is more or less simple. Adjustment finished project here it boils down to, guided by the requests and wishes of the homeowner and members of his family, to arrange the premises for daytime stay in such a way as to provide them with access to sunlight (after all, we do not have winter all year round), bedrooms with windows to the east, studies and living rooms, in who are usually met in the evening - to the west. The north side is reserved for technical and economic premises. Although such an arrangement is not an axiom, if you need to take into account individual characteristics or beat the "species" features of the site. However, when designing with an eye on energy saving, it is important to remember that the southern slopes of the roof are an ideal place for the location of solar panels and collectors, some models of which are almost indistinguishable from the already familiar skylights.
In accordance with the results of a hydrogeological survey of the site, a decision is usually made on the type and design of the foundation. But if we are talking about a low-energy house with geothermal heating systems, it makes sense to use this data to decide on the possibility of organization, type and design of ground heat exchangers.
We move on. Most modern energy efficient homes are built using frame technologies. Ceramic bricks common in our area (more precisely, its modern variety - porous large-format blocks), as well as cellular concrete, are also “friends” with energy saving, but they definitely require additional insulation. And regardless of which thermal insulation material is chosen (synthetic, based on polyurethane foam, or mineral), in a layered wall structure it replaces at least half a meter of traditional brickwork.
And now the most important thing: due to the use of thin-layer insulation in modern rational houses, the walls are usually light and thin, and they lack the thermophysical “mass”. With "energy-saving" design, this feature must be taken into account. After all, if such a house (if it is supposed to be operated not in summer mode, but all year round) is located on a lightweight foundation, for example, on screw piles, and at the same time it is supposed to be heated with a convection oven, the problem of maintaining thermal comfort will not have an easy solution.
Modern construction, focused on high energy efficiency with low material consumption, requires the use of heat accumulators that compensate for the lack of a wall "array" and smooth out daily and seasonal temperature fluctuations. In a traditional house, a brick oven acted as such, in a modern one, a monolithic slab foundation of the “Swedish stove” type, insulated from the outside, and a concrete screed of the floor of the first floor included in the warm contour.
However, the choice of the type of foundation is a topic for a separate publication. But if the developer, due to problems with "geology", or for reasons of economy, chose a lightweight option (the same screw piles), then for a comfortable stay in both winter and summer, it is advisable to take care of some other heat-accumulating “array”. However, in any case, these are additional costs: a brick oven will also require the preparation of a building base, and the construction of ground heat exchangers is a costly business and not very common in our area. Therefore, a “monolith” with a heat-insulated floor screed is the optimal option for a democratic energy-efficient home, it allows you to organize comfortable and uniform heating without temperature fluctuations.
thermos lidThe fact that the enclosing structures of the cottage (basement, walls, roof) must be insulated - today almost all future homeowners know. Meanwhile, according to the apt expression of the leader construction company, which regularly conducts energy audits of their homes, modern Russian cottages in most cases are a construction of the “thermos without a lid” type. Moreover, this applies to high-quality "skeletons", and to conscientiously insulated houses from aerated concrete blocks.
The “lid” is, first of all, high-quality windows and ventilation systems with heat recovery, and it plays a key role in the home energy balance system. Proper selection of windows and design of ventilation systems is what turns an ordinary house into an energy efficient one. Meanwhile, in fact, it turns out that these are two very difficult tasks that technologists, engineers and designers have been struggling with for years.
Firstly, the energy-saving characteristics of even the most advanced developments in the field of vacuum insulating glass cannot even come close to the level of thermal protection of an "ordinary" wall sandwich panel. Thus, here you will have to make do with what is on the market, but when designing, remember that not all window profiles widely represented on the market are suitable for low-energy houses, and large glazing surfaces are a double-edged sword. On the one hand, this is additional light, protection from moisture and wind for unheated seasonal premises, on the other hand, heating a veranda (unless, of course, it is a greenhouse with tropical plants) means throwing money out into the street.
When designing windows in residential premises (primarily in bedrooms), it is unreasonable to significantly exceed the glazing standard (10-12% in relation to the floor area). At the same time, for long-stay premises, preference should be given to two-chamber (and in the northern regions - three-chamber) double-glazed windows with glass having an energy-saving coating, or "Scandinavian" window blocks with additional "wind" glass on the outside.
Secondly, traditional systems ventilation - air vents, exhaust and supply units and valves designed to provide air exchange in the room will nullify the attempt to build a low-energy house if it, as a basic configuration, does not provide for a recovery unit, that is, a system that allows the use of heat from overheated outgoing air for heating cold, from the street. But it should be remembered that the design of such a system is always the subject of careful calculations. The real efficiency of such a system (in "laboratory" conditions it sometimes exceeds 90%) depends not so much on the brand of equipment, but on the literacy of designers.
Until recently, in the days of cheap energy carriers, the heating boiler was considered the “heart” of any heating system. And the stronger the radiators were “fried”, the more efficient the system. The constant companions of the traditional high-temperature heating system in our area with hot (do not touch) radiators - "overheating", lack of oxygen, drafts with open windows, as well as temperature and humidity changes that are not very useful either for living organisms or for building structures.
In an energy-efficient “thermos house with a lid”, the usual Russian approach no longer works. Such a cottage can slowly warm up, but its massive elements must accumulate heat and not allow it to cool down instantly during a planned or abnormal shutdown of the heat supply. But if the building envelope is insulated, the recovery system is working correctly, then electric boilers and cable underfloor heating will not be ruinous, and power outages will not lead to accidents. Modern systems heating systems are not equipped with traditional radiators, but with those that are able to work effectively at low coolant temperatures (up to 55 C), or water (more precisely, liquid) "warm floors".
The homeowner, who is a supporter of this approach to construction, reduces his dependence on the energy market conditions, receiving in the form of a "bonus" ample opportunities to install automation elements into the system and different types heating appliances - main, backup and auxiliary. It can receive heat both from an electric boiler, and from a heat pump, and from boilers with replaceable burners for different types fuels (including condensing fuels, the high efficiency of which is ensured precisely in systems with a low coolant temperature). To smooth out temperature fluctuations, systems with batch boilers are recommended to be equipped with additional heat accumulators.
As an auxiliary source of heat, the already mentioned solar collectors are increasingly being built into the system, but so far not in Russia, but in Europe. According to the Baltic designers, the use of solar energy in climatic conditions close to our middle zone can reduce the annual energy consumption for heating and domestic water heating by 30-40%. Apparently, the upcoming increase in tariffs in the foreseeable future will make the solar collector (and it can be built into the existing low-temperature heating system) a profitable purchase for Russian homeowners as well.
In a traditional house, we "manage" the climate ourselves: either we throw firewood into the stove, or we open the windows, doing all this on the basis of subjective sensations of "cold - warm". At the same time, a significant expense item associated exclusively with the human factor is the “forgetfulness” of the owners, who leave the windows open when leaving the house, or do not switch the heating systems to an economical mode.
An important component of the engineering filling of a house that claims to have low energy costs is home automation systems that enable separate control of the indoor climate. Such automation, in accordance with the scenarios set by the installers, will not allow a “struggle of cold with heat”, will avoid “overheating”, will switch the cottage to an economical mode of operation in time, and will also quickly return any room to a “residential” state by order of the owner.
In this case, the homeowner will have to throw firewood on the fireplace in the living room (and what Vacation home without a fireplace), but only to admire the play of flame behind the glass.
Text by Philip Urban
Calculate the approximate cost of building an energy efficient home using the building calculator.
This is a house where:
The fulfillment of the above conditions ensures low and ultra-low energy consumption in the house. In Germany, good indicators of an energy-efficient house are considered when no more than 1.5 ... 3 liters of equivalent fuel is consumed per 1 m2 of heated area per year, i. no more than 15...30 kWh/m² per year.
According to the theory of German scientists, any locality has its own specific (for a given locality) natural renewable sources, which, in the case of low energy consumption, can completely replace traditional energy sources and provide comfortable living in a house.
Low energy consumption at home makes it possible to use renewable energy sources of the environment. At the same time, energy sources can be of various types: geothermal energy of the Earth, solar energy, wind energy, water energy. In the coastal zone, for example, wind turbines and tidal power plants. In mountainous areas - wind turbines and geothermal systems. In flat terrain - geothermal, solar installations, etc. Such use of the environment is environmentally friendly, ensures the safety of the environment, and most importantly, provides independence from the ever-increasing prices for energy resources.
Despite the high cost of equipment required to produce heat from renewable energy sources, it is becoming competitive with traditional equipment operating on gas, electricity, wood and coal, since current operating costs are minimal and practically do not depend on price increases. In addition, recently the cost of this equipment, which in the recent past was fantastic, has significantly decreased and continues to decline every year.
At present, individual low-rise energy-efficient houses for the majority of the Russian population are pipe dream. Single copies, built recently, at a cost (more than 100 thousand rubles / m2) significantly exceed the cost of ordinary houses, calculated according to the standards in force in Russia.
The specialists of InterStroy LLC were tasked to develop a project and build a prototype of an energy-efficient individual low-rise building, at a cost not exceeding the average cost of a conventional country house(approximately no more than 60 thousand rubles/m²).
In the future, based on the results of monitoring the operational properties of the building under construction, it is planned to continue optimizing costs and reduce the cost of construction by another 10-15%. Such a condition is necessary for the implementation of mass construction of houses of this class in areas with limited energy resources (lack of electricity, gas).
Prior to the adoption of the main version of the "pilot project" of an individual low-rise residential building, specialists of the Passive House Institute LLC analyzed several options for planning and constructive solutions, as well as preliminary calculations for the selection of types of heaters and their thicknesses.
In order to reduce the cost of the house, it was adopted rectangular shape house in plan, which allowed minimizing the volume of external walls per unit area of the building.
Particular attention was paid to the choice of the design of the outer walls. As a result of comparing various materials (brick, foam blocks, wooden frame, etc.), it was decided to use monolithic reinforced concrete structures as load-bearing and enclosing structures. Concrete walls have a dense structure, which makes it possible to more efficiently perform the required sealing of the internal volume, which is necessary for controlling and controlling air exchange in order to minimize heat losses and maximize heat retention (up to 80%). It also provides high bearing capacity with minimal thicknesses, which significantly reduces the volume of structures and reduces the cost and time of work.
As a heater, among the huge variety of materials presented today (hard, soft, mineral, synthetic, "blowing", etc.), a new generation of slab mineral wool insulation produced by the company "SAINT-GOBAIN". In addition, an agreement was reached on joint development with the company "SAINT-GOBAIN" insulation attachment points (thickness 400 mm or more) to the concrete surface of the outer walls.
The architects adopted a modular concept of building layout, using which it is possible to implement the adjoining of modules in different directions.
The module is a square with internal dimensions of 9.6×9.6 meters with a total area of about 90 m². The square shape was adopted to reduce the material consumption of expensive external walls per 1 m2 of area.
The modular layout makes it possible to build houses with an area of 90 m², 135 m², 180 m², 225 m², 270 m², etc.
The foundation is made in the form of a monolithic reinforced concrete slab 300 mm thick, the walls of the basement are made of monolithic reinforced concrete 150 mm thick.
External walls - load-bearing, made of monolithic reinforced concrete 150 mm thick, followed by insulation with mineral wool boards, with exterior finish ventilated facades and partially plastered facades. Internal walls, except for two walls of the stairs and the first wall of the communication shaft, can be made of any wall materials at the request of the customer (brick, tongue-and-groove blocks, plasterboard, etc.).
Interfloor ceilings - beamless monolithic reinforced concrete, 160 mm thick, supported by external walls, piers of stairs and a communication shaft. A monolithic ceiling with a large span enables architects, when designing an interior, to carry out any individual layout and satisfy the most stringent customer requests.
The roof is accepted as partly unused with a single-pitched radius rounding with an internal drain and partly used with a flat slope. Radius roof insulation is made of ISOVER mineral wool boards 600 mm thick. Flat roof insulation - 450 mm of extruded polystyrene foam. Various decisions were made in order to show the possibility of using various types of roofs in this project (both flat and complex with a curved contour, as well as various types of one, two, four pitched roofs).
Insulation of the building begins from the base under the foundation slab with a 300 mm thick extruded polystyrene foam insulation. Next, the basement walls are insulated with XPS insulation 350 mm thick. The outer walls are insulated with mineral wool boards 400 mm thick. For insulation of roofs, parapets and cornices, heaters with low volumetric weight are used, both dense and loose (extruded polystyrene foam, ISOVER, etc.). The choice of various thermal insulation materials is due to the fact that structures operating in different conditions(foundation, basement walls, exterior walls, roofing).
To fix the semi-rigid insulation on the walls, 2 variants of the ventilated and "wet" facade subsystems have been developed. One subsystem consists of I-beams made of OSB, installed vertically, with filling the space between the trusses with ISOVER insulation. The second one is made of metal brackets and wooden bars, made in the form of a frame, filled with ISOVER insulation. Together with the Saint-Gobain company, the development of other types of unified subsystems is ongoing in order to reduce their cost and improve their characteristics (for the possibility of attaching insulation with a thickness of 400 mm, 500 mm or more).
Due to the fact that the thermal calculation of the experimental house was carried out according to German standards, the architects were given a difficult task. When designing the glazing of the house, the orientation of the house to the cardinal points was strictly taken into account. The minimum glazing is taken on the north side, the maximum - on the south. In hot summer time, an automatic sun protection system is provided on the facade of the house. In order to reduce heat loss, one entrance is provided. The windows and doors used must meet the following project requirements: Ro = 1.19 - 1.20 (m & sup2 C) / W.
There are various technical solutions that allow you to remove the problem of freezing through these elements. However, they are often expensive and their use in construction will lead to an excessive rise in price. Therefore, in this project, the facade finishing elements are various combinations of a ventilated facade and external facade plaster. Currently available on construction market varieties of these materials allow satisfying the taste of the most demanding customer.
A skillful combination of different types of finishing of ventilated facades, the use of different colors of the external painting of wall sections, as well as the use of different roof structures allows architects to offer customers a wide variety of houses that are not similar to each other.
All rooms with the maximum stay of people are concentrated on the south side, where maximum glazing is possible. Premises for technical and household purposes are located mainly on the north side, where there is no external glazing or it is minimal. It was decided to abandon the premises with double light, due to a significant deterioration in the thermal performance of the building.
There is a well on the site. The well provides all the needs of the house. Pump control automation and all water supply equipment are located in a well equipped above the well head.
Inside the building, in the basement, an input unit is provided, equipped with the necessary shut-off valves, fine water filters and water meters.
Hot water is heated jointly using a heat pump and solar collectors, and in the event of a failure of one of the systems, heating is provided using a backup source (in this project, a gas boiler).
In the event of a pump failure, the house provides an emergency supply of drinking water in the amount of 1000 liters.
The roof consists of a flat part with an area of about 45 m² and a shed with a variable slope - 75 m². On a flat roof, water flow is carried out along slopes towards funnels located in the corners of the building. On a sloping roof, water flow is also carried out along the slopes to the drain funnels located at the lowest points in the corners of the building.
All diverted rain and melt water is directed to the drainage wells of the wall drainage of the house.
It is possible to use internal drains on a flat roof with a rainwater storage tank in the basement or a buried tank in the ground (for use for irrigation).
The project provides for two types of sewerage:
1. For the basement, a pressure sewage system is provided using the SOLOLIFT installation (for a bathroom, showers and a drain for collecting water from the floor of the washing room and sauna) and a drainage pump (for pumping water from the pit technical room during operation).
2. For the rest of the house, a gravity sewer is provided with one vertical riser in the technological shaft, horizontal section under the ceiling of the basement and the release from the building in the basement at a height of 1 m from the finished floor.
Gravity sewer leads domestic waste into a septic tank. The septic tank of the brand "Tver", provided for in this project, is located 3 meters from the northern wall of the house.
Initially, this project set the task of using non-traditional, environmentally friendly, renewable energy sources of heat. It was customary to use heat pumps (using the geothermal heat of the Earth) and solar collectors using solar energy as an energy source. The heat generated by these installations, according to the calculations of ENSO INTERNATIONAL Company LLC, is sufficient to heat water and provide the house with heat throughout the year. Due to the fact that the heat loss of an energy-efficient house is much lower than in an ordinary house, the required power of thermal installations does not exceed 10 kW.
Ensuring the receipt of this power is possible from two wells with a total depth of about 200 m (50 W from each linear meter of the well for 200 meters = 10 kW).
A gas boiler was adopted as a backup power plant (other types of power plants are also possible: boilers running on wood, coal, diesel fuel, electricity, etc.).
The heating project with the help of the combined operation of a heat pump and a solar collector was carried out by ENSO INTERNATIONAL LLC.
In this project, a modular system is proposed for heating and hot water TYRRO with geothermal ground (horizontal or vertical) heat exchanger and function "freecooling" in summer time.
Solar collectors are proposed to be installed on special brackets on a flat roof on the south or south-west side of the building. Their area is determined during the design process, based on architectural and engineering considerations. Solar heat in the summer will be used to heat the soil at the installation site of the ground heat exchanger, as well as to heat the water in the pool and water for watering plants. In winter, part of the low-temperature heat will be used to heat the heat pump.
It also provides for air heating through the ventilation system in winter, and cooling in summer. While the heat pump is heating water, the ground will be cooled on the other side of the pump in the evaporative circuit (collector located in the ground), increasing the cooling efficiency in mode "freecooling".
This project of the house provides for forced ventilation using supply and exhaust ventilation units with heat recovery. The use of forced ventilation has both advantages and disadvantages.
The disadvantages of this system, compared with natural ventilation, are:
The advantage is the possibility of high-quality cleaning of the supplied air, which is important indicator for the health of people, especially those suffering from allergic and pulmonary diseases. The purity of the surrounding air, both in the city and in the countryside, leaves much to be desired. In the city - soot, exhaust gases from cars, etc. In rural areas - microparticles from flowering plants that cause allergic diseases, etc.
Control and management of air exchange makes it possible to provide in any room, depending on the situation, the supply of a sufficient amount of air, respectively, and oxygen, which qualitatively improves the functioning of the human body, especially its brain.
The ability to recover heat from the exhaust air provides a major savings in energy consumption. Modern recuperation installations make it possible to recover up to 90% of the heat emitted from the house along with the air in traditional natural ventilation systems. This allows you to significantly reduce operating costs for heat and provides significant budget savings.
To ensure ventilation in the house in the event of a power outage, a natural ventilation system is provided. To ensure its operation and the possibility of air circulation, windows with a micro-ventilation mode are provided.
To remove exhaust gases from the gas boiler, which is a backup source of heat, a separate chimney with access to the roof is provided. The air intake for the operation of the boiler is carried out from the street, and not from the premises.
According to specifications, on the site where the house is being built, 10 kW of electricity has been allocated. The house is connected from a distribution electrical panel installed on a lighting pole.
The house has its own switchboard. A voltage stabilizer is provided. Horizontal wiring cable lines carried out on the ceiling (in cable channels, trays, in HDPE pipes). Vertical wiring of the supply floor cable lines - in the technological shaft in the cable channel, as well as hidden along the walls, in the trench, followed by plastering and painting. A separate power line is adopted to connect the equipment.
A backup power supply is provided from a small diesel generator, which ensures the operation of engineering equipment in the event of an emergency shutdown. Connection and operation of the generator occurs automatically and is designed for 8-10 hours of uninterrupted operation. During this time, all engineering systems must be switched to a special mode or turned off (depending on the purpose of this or that equipment).
The house is provided with grounding, adopted by building codes and regulations.
In the house, for protection from lightning in the summer, lightning protection is provided, which complies with the safety requirements in force in Russia.
Given the ongoing rise in prices for utilities and energy resources in Russia, houses of this class make it much easier for their owners to survive the rising costs of housing and communal services.
The increase in electricity and gas prices presented below, not to mention the increase in the cost of hot water, maintenance and operation of housing, shows that it is several times higher than the statistical increase in the salary of the average working Russian. In the event that the current dynamics of growth in prices for housing and communal services and the growth average salary, for several years, payment utilities amount to a significant, and perhaps the main amount of expenditure in the budget of ordinary Russian citizens.
According to preliminary calculations, additional general construction costs for ensuring the energy efficiency of the building and the costs of using modern expensive engineering equipment using alternative energy sources, at current tariffs, are justified already in 5-6 years of operation. Taking into account the forecasted increase in tariffs, in the near future, the payback period may be reduced to 2 years.
An assessment of the heating costs of a conventional house with an energy consumption of about 150 kWh/m² year and an energy efficient house of 25-30 kWh/m² year allows us to conclude that the costs of various types of energy resources (gas, electricity, etc.) when operating an energy efficient house are reduced by 5-6 times, and in the event that tariffs continue to grow, as evidenced by the last 10 years, saving only on heating will help save your budget.
Below are the heating costs for a conventional house with an energy consumption of 150 kWh/m² year and an energy-efficient house with an energy consumption of 28 kWh/m² year with the same area of 300 m² each, and using different types of power plants (electric boiler, heat pump, gas boiler).
| Year | ordinary house | energy efficient house |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 116 545 | 21 755 |
| 2019 | 45 556 | 8 504 |
| 2014 | 27 303 | 5 097 |
| 2009 | 10 062 | 1 878 |
| 2004 | 5 966 | 1 114 |
In the process of designing an energy-efficient house, engineers and architects of InterStroy LLC studied work experience, consulted with specialists, both domestic and foreign organizations working in this direction. Many of the achievements and recommendations that are worthy of attention were implemented in the development of an individual low-rise residential building of the series "IS-33e".
The construction of energy efficient houses in Russia is at the initial stage of its development. In the process of working on this project, it became obvious that the modern achievements, technological and technical solutions used by us are only a small part of what is currently used in foreign countries.
We have planned a lot of work on the study and implementation of domestic and foreign developments that are most optimally suited to climatic conditions Russia.
InterStroy LLC has planned several directions for the construction of energy-efficient houses. Below are some of them:
.1. Continued search for the most optimal architectural and technical solutions using various types of materials in building structures, both traditional and new, more efficient materials in order to achieve a reduction in energy consumption (below 28 kWh/m² year).
2. Carry out further work on the selection of engineering equipment and systems operating on renewable energy sources, as well as combining them with traditional equipment operating on gas, electricity, diesel fuel, coal, wood, etc.
3. To complete this year the construction of a prototype of an individual low-rise energy-efficient house (28 kWh/m² year), at a cost not exceeding the average cost (in the Moscow region) of an ordinary house.
4. To carry out at this facility (after the completion of construction - the next 2-3 years) a comprehensive monitoring of the performance of engineering systems and building structures, which will allow:
Monitoring data is necessary to optimize and reduce the cost of construction and subsequent costs. In turn, reducing the cost of an energy-efficient house to a cost comparable to the cost of an ordinary house will allow it to take its rightful place in the housing market.
It is obvious that for any Client who is not indifferent to his financial well-being in the future, choosing to build an energy-efficient home will be the right decision.
Developers are increasingly paying attention to costs - not only for construction, but also for home maintenance, because they understand that energy will become more and more expensive. And the cost of maintaining an energy-efficient home is much lower. Mention should also be made of changes in legislation and building codes that establish the obligation to certify buildings. In the future, energy-saving houses, which are characterized by an energy certificate, will be attractive in the real estate market, and their price is higher compared to ordinary houses. Responding to the expectations of investors and developers, our design company undertakes to design energy-saving houses, equipped in accordance with the latest trends in energy-saving houses.
The energy-saving home is not an idealized vision of the home of the future, but a reality that is becoming increasingly popular today. Energy-saving, energy-efficient, passive house or eco-house today is called a dwelling that requires a minimum of expenses to maintain comfortable living conditions in it. This is achieved through appropriate decisions in the field, and construction. What technologies for energy-saving houses exist at the moment, and how much resources can they save?
A dwelling will be as economical as possible if it was designed taking into account all energy-saving technologies. It will be more difficult to remake an already built house, more expensive, and it will be difficult to achieve the expected results. The project is developed by experienced specialists, taking into account the requirements of the customer, but it must be remembered that the set of solutions used must, above all, be cost-effective. Important point – taking into account the climatic features of the region.
As a rule, houses in which they live permanently are made energy-saving, so the task of saving heat, maximizing the use of natural light, etc. comes first. The project should take into account individual requirements, but it is better if the passive house is as compact as possible, i.e. cheaper to maintain.
The same requirements can be met various options. The joint decision-making of the best architects, designers and engineers made it possible to create a universal energy saving frame house (read more -). The unique design combines all cost-effective offers:
Alternatively, it can be used for the construction of load-bearing walls, insulating the structure from all sides and resulting in a large "thermos". Used frequently wood as the most environmentally friendly material.
In order to save resources, attention must be paid to planning and appearance at home. The dwelling will be as energy efficient as possible if the following nuances are taken into account:
Even a house built with all architectural tricks in mind requires proper insulation in order to be completely airtight and not release heat into the environment.
About 40% of the heat from the house escapes through the walls, therefore, their insulation is given increased attention. The most common and simplest method of insulation is the organization of a multilayer system. sheathed insulation, which is often mineral wool or polystyrene foam, a reinforcing mesh is mounted on top, and then - the base and main layer of plaster.
More expensive and advanced technology - ventilated facade. The walls of the house are sheathed with mineral wool slabs, and facing panels made of stone, metal or other materials are mounted on a special frame. A small gap remains between the insulation layer and the frame, which plays the role of a “thermal cushion”, does not allow the thermal insulation to get wet and maintains optimal conditions in the home.
In addition, in order to reduce heat loss through the walls, insulating compounds are used at the junction of the roof, future shrinkage and changes in the properties of some materials with increasing temperature are taken into account.
The principle of operation of a ventilated facade
About 20% of heat escapes through the roof. For roof insulation, the same materials are used as for walls. Widespread today mineral wool and expanded polystyrene. Architects advise making roofing thermal insulation no thinner than 200 mm, regardless of the type of material. It is important to calculate the load on the load-bearing structures and the roof so that the integrity of the structure is not violated.
Windows account for 20% of a home's heat loss. Although better than old wooden windows in protecting the house from drafts and isolating the room from external influences, they are not ideal.
More progressive options for an energy-efficient home are:
Through the foundation and the floor of the first floor, 10% of heat is lost. The floor is insulated with the same materials as the walls, but other options can be used: bulk heat-insulating mixtures, foam concrete and aerated concrete, granular concrete with a record thermal conductivity of 0.1 W / (m ° C). It is possible to insulate not the floor, but the basement ceiling, if such is provided for by the project.
It is better to insulate the foundation from the outside, which will help protect it not only from freezing, but also from other negative factors, incl. the influence of groundwater, temperature changes, etc. In order to insulate the foundation, use sprayed polyurethane, and foam.
The heat from the house leaves not only through the walls and roof, but also through. To reduce heating costs, supply and exhaust ventilation with recuperation is used.
recuperator called a heat exchanger that is built into the ventilation system. The principle of its work is as follows. The heated air exits the room through the ventilation ducts, gives off its heat to the heat exchanger, in contact with it. Cold fresh air from the street, passing through the heat exchanger, heats up, and enters the house at room temperature. As a result, households receive clean fresh air, but do not lose heat.
Such a ventilation system can be used together with natural ventilation: air will enter the room forcibly, and exit due to natural draft. There is another trick. The air intake cabinet can be moved away from the house by 10 meters, and the duct is laid underground at a depth of freezing. In this case, even before the heat exchanger, the air will be cooled in summer, and heated in winter due to soil temperature.
To make life more comfortable and at the same time save resources, you can and technology thanks to which it is already possible today:
The most economical and environmentally friendly way to heat a room and heat water is to use the energy of the sun. Perhaps this is due to the solar collectors installed on the roof of the house. Such devices are easily connected to the heating and hot water supply system of the house, and Their working principle is as follows.. The system consists of the collector itself, the heat exchange circuit, the storage tank and the control station. A coolant (liquid) circulates in the collector, which is heated by the energy of the sun and transfers heat through the heat exchanger to the water in the storage tank. The latter, due to good thermal insulation, is able to keep hot water for a long time. In this system, a backup heater can be installed, which heats the water to the required temperature in case of cloudy weather or insufficient duration of sunshine.
Collectors can be flat and vacuum. Flat ones are a box closed with glass, inside it there is a layer with tubes through which the coolant circulates. Such collectors are more durable, but today they are being replaced by vacuum ones. The latter consist of many tubes, inside of which there is another tube or several with a coolant. There is a vacuum between the outer and inner tubes, which serves as a heat insulator. Vacuum collectors are more efficient, even in winter and in cloudy weather, maintainable. Service life of collectors is about 30 years or more.
Heat pumps use low-potential heat of the environment to heat the house, incl. air, subsoil and even secondary heat, for example from a central heating pipeline. Such devices consist of an evaporator, a condenser, an expansion valve and a compressor. All of them are connected by a closed pipeline and operate on the basis of the Carnot principle. Simply put, a heat pump is similar in operation to a refrigerator, only it functions in reverse. If in the 80s of the last century heat pumps were a rarity and even a luxury, today in Sweden, for example, 70% of houses are heated in this way.
If a lot of organic waste accumulates Agriculture, then you can build bioreactor for biogas production. In it, biomass is processed due to anaerobic bacteria, resulting in the formation of biogas, consisting of 60% methane, 35% carbon dioxide and 5% other impurities. After the cleaning process, it can be used for heating and domestic hot water. Recycled waste is converted into excellent fertilizer that can be used in the fields.
An energy-saving house should and preferably should receive it from renewable sources. To date, a lot of technologies have been implemented for this.
Wind energy can be converted into electricity not only by large wind turbines, but also by compact "home" windmills. In windy areas, such installations are able to fully provide electricity to a small house; in regions with low wind speeds, they are best used in conjunction with solar panels.
The force of the wind drives the blades of the windmill, which cause the rotor of the electricity generator to rotate. The generator produces an alternating unstable current, which is rectified in the controller. Batteries are charged there, which, in turn, are connected to inverters, where the direct voltage is converted into an alternating voltage used by the consumer.
Windmills can be with a horizontal and vertical axis of rotation. At one-time costs, they solve the problem of energy independence for a long time.
The use of sunlight for electricity generation is not so common, but in the near future the situation is in danger of changing dramatically. The principle of operation of the solar battery very simple: to convert sunlight into electricity is used p-n junction. The directed movement of electrons, provoked by solar energy, is electricity.
The designs and materials used are constantly being improved, and the amount of electricity directly depends on the illumination. While the most popular are various modifications silicon solar cells, but new polymer film batteries, which are still under development, are becoming an alternative to them.
The resulting electricity must be able to spend wisely. The following solutions are useful for this:
Ideally, an energy efficient home should get water from a well located under the dwelling. But when the water lies at great depths or its quality does not meet the requirements, such a solution has to be abandoned.
It is better to pass domestic wastewater through a recuperator and take away their warmth. For the cleaning Wastewater can be used septic tank, where the transformation will be performed by anaerobic bacteria. The resulting compost is a good fertilizer.
To save water, it would be a good idea to reduce the volume of drained water. In addition, it is possible to implement a system where the water used in the bathroom and sink is used to flush the toilet.
Of course, it is better to use the most natural and natural raw materials, the production of which does not require numerous processing steps. it wood and stone. It is better to give preference to materials that are produced in the region, because in this way the cost of transportation is reduced. In Europe, passive houses began to be built from inorganic waste processing products. , glass and metal.
If once you pay attention to the study of energy-saving technologies, think over the project of an eco-house and invest in it, in subsequent years the cost of maintaining it will be minimal or even tend to zero.
