         
Welcome to the February Oxfordshire Eco-renovation Update. We’ve got case studies online, some upcoming open homes events, requests for help and your ideas, and details of relevant eco-renovation events, courses and seminars.
1. Oxfordshire Open Eco-Homes 2011A year of sharing ideas. Homes will be open on dates through the year for you to visit and discuss your ideas with those who have taken some steps already. Upcoming dates and details below, with the first one this coming Saturday. To find out more and to book a visit, go to http://climatex.org/articles/eco-renovation/2011-open-eco-homes/ , and if you need a hand with booking please contact Malcolm on 01865 351984 / malcolmcro[at]aol.com. Upcoming events: Sat 26th February 2011: 10am – 4pm Windmill Cottage (North Leigh): General renovation. A wealth of tips for lower carbon living in a part-listed 17th century building. Measured improvements have been made with little inconvenience. In a 99 square metre house we now use 23000 kwh of gas and 2500 kwh of electricity in the year. 12 inches of loft insulation, secondary double glazing, a new gas condensing boiler, draught-proofing and curtains and blinds combine to achieve the savings (see case study below). Sat 6th March 2011 2-6pm Marchwood Eco-house, Horton Cum Studley. Focus on general renovation Extensively Renovated 1968 Link Detached House. We needed to convert our house to the most efficient use of electricity for heating and lighting to prepare for inevitable carbon rationing. We installed ground source heating, heat recovery ventilation A rated appliances and LED lighting as part of an extensive renovation whose market value would exceed its cost (see case study below). Sun 13th March 10am – 4pm Windmill Cottage, North Leigh. Focus on general renovation. Weds 16th March 4pm-7pm, Marchwood Eco-house, Horton cum Studley. , Focus on Heat Recovery Ventilation Sun 27th March 2-5pm, Marchwood Eco-house, Horton cum Studley. Focus on Underfloor Heating.
2. Spring Open DaysA host of Eco-renovated homes are open across the Country as part of the Old Home Super Home network ( SuperHomes having saved at least 60% of their carbon emissions). Spring Openings; from 27th March to 3rd April 2011, see more info here: http://www.sustainable-energyacademy.org.uk/news/we-have-84-but-we-need-14-million
3. New Case studies online1890’s East Oxford Semi: Already an enthusiast in the green lifestyle, insulation, recycling waste, collecting rainwater, growing food and keeping hens. Took the opportunity of roof repairs to install solar PV and gain the grants which are available. Now in the testing phase but happy when the electricity meter runs backwards even in December. http://climatex.org/articles/eco-renovation/1890s-east-oxford-semi/ Case Study: Marchwood Eco-house: Extensively Renovated 1968 Link Detached House. We needed to convert our house to the most efficient use of electricity for heating and lighting to prepare for inevitable carbon rationing. We installed ground source heating, heat recovery ventilation A rated appliances and LED lighting as part of an extensive renovation whose market value would exceed its cost. http://climatex.org/articles/eco-renovation/case-study-marchwood-eco-house/ Case Study - Windmill Cottage: A wealth of tips for lower carbon living in a part-listed 17th century building. Measured improvements have been made with little inconvenience. In a 99 square metre house we now use 23000 kwh of gas and 2500 kwh of electricity in the year. 12 inches of loft insulation, secondary double glazing, a new gas condensing boiler, draught-proofing and curtains and blinds combine to achieve the savings. http://climatex.org/articles/eco-renovation/windmill-cottage/ Windrose, Longworth: An eco-friendly new build in a conservation area http://climatex.org/articles/eco-renovation/windrose-longworth/ 4. Help requested: Windows experience?"In an effort to cut down on heat loss I am planning to replace several old windows in our traditional Cotswold stone cottage with double glazed windows this spring. As well as being high-performance, the new windows need to fit the character of the cottage (it is not a listed property). I am looking for suppliers/installers who have expertise in both the latest energy saving designs and renovation of old ( approx. 200 years) Cotswold buildings. Any comments would be gratefully accepted. Amanda ( the.stibranys[at]virgin.net .
5. Low Carbon Oxford North Street ChampionsLow Carbon Oxford North (LCON) is looking for people to join the growing group of Street Champions who have volunteered to do what they can in early March to encourage other people in their street to cut their carbon. Becoming a Street Champion is a fantastic way to help LCON cut carbon (and meet some of your neighbours) and you don’t need any special expertise to get involved. It’s all part of our efforts to raise awareness of LCON and engage with our community. We plan to do this street by street in the first two weeks of March – giving people the information they need to take part in one or more of a range of carbon-reducing initiatives that interest and suit them. On 28 February we will be having a briefing to give people a chance to clarify the role, get some background information about what LCON is offering, raise questions and concerns, and (optionally) practise doorstep conversations. There will be two identical two-hour briefing meetings, one 4.00-6.00, the other 7.00-9.00. Alternatively, street champions can just drop in at any time between 1.00 and 4.00, or between 6.00 and 7.00, to collect a pack and have a chat with one of us. Contact rebecca.nestor@lcon.org.uk if you are interested in becoming a Street Champion or just want to hear more about the role. Or go to our website: www.lcon.org.uk.
6. Community Central Eco-renovation webinarsClimateX and CAG Oxfordshire are working with Community Central to put together a series of online ‘webinars’ (online talks with the opportunity to take part in a discussion session) for the Oxfordshire Eco-Renovation group. For those who don't know Community Central, it is a free online network service for the growing number of UK communities working on sustainable projects (http://www.communitycentral.co.uk/). The Community Central site it open to all sustainable communities from a transition town with a large number of stakeholders to a primary school acting as a green hub for the local community. These communities could be towns, villages, company staff, schools, hospitals or other greening groups and individuals working on a wide variety of low-carbon projects from eco-renovation to waste or food-growing schemes. We would like individual community groups as well as government organisations, advisors, NGOs and businesses involved in sustainability to join the network. This way everyone can easily pool and exchange resources, advice and information. We are going to run a series of webinars this spring for the Oxfordshire Eco-Renovation group and would like your suggestions on the most useful topics to cover. Initial ideas are: building a carbon-zero house; feed in tariffs/funding for eco-renovation projects; and an introduction to different types of alternative energy from an installer. If you would like to a webinar on any particular theme please email your ideas to mailto: georginamatthews[at]communitycentral.co.uk, and we will set up webinars on the most popular topics. The webinars will be about half an hour long with an interactive question and answer section at the end. We thought the best time to run these webinars would be weekly in the early evening and will email you a link to join the webinar (and a simple guide on how to join) when we have the topics and dates confirmed. There will be follow-up forums, resources and links posted on the Community Central site with each webinar. If you have any particular documents or links to share with the group, please email them through and we can also post these up. Please email ideas by through by Friday 25th of February. Look forward to hearing from you. Georgina Matthews, Community Central
7. Eco-renovation related Courses and seminars
7.1 Low Carbon Refurbishment Courses in Oxford run by Parity Projects Every element of building work can impact the householder’s energy bill. Whatever your trade or profession, be amongst the first to offer meaningful services to your clients to help them reduce their energy use and add real value to your offering. See their training details and courses here: http://www.parityprojects.com/training-modules.html 7.2 National Self Build and Renovation Show 10am-5pm, Fri 25 – Sun 27th Feb Swindon @ National Self Build and renovation Centre £10 per person, further details: http://www.buildstore.co.uk/mykindofhome/events/self-build-and-renovation-show-11/index.asp 7.3 Eco-Build 1-3rd March 2011 The Glastonbury of the building world, conferences, events, seminars, small and large installers, marketplaces. All at the ExCel centre in London. Free but you need to register in advance: http://www.ecobuild.co.uk/ 7.4 Hydropower Seminar Tuesday 22 March 2011 River and Rowing Museum, Henley. 10.30am - 12.30pm (coffee from 10am) Appropriately for World Water Day, the Museum will be holding its third Hydropower Seminar to review progress and developments over the previous year and to hear case studies. Speakers to be announced; please contact us if you wish to be added to the mailing list. Tickets £10, to book call 01491 415605 or email edbookings[at]rrm.co.uk http://www.rrm.co.uk/what%27s-on/adult-events/hydropower-seminar-.aspx 7.5 Zero-Wise Free Pre-demolition Audit Training Weds 23rd March 2011 9am-4pm at YHA, Oxford. Further details and to register freely, : email Matt Sullivan at BioRegional matt.sullivan[at]bioregional.com or Tel: 020 8404 4238. http://www.bioregional.com/what-we-do/our-work/zerowise/
7.6 Creating Low Carbon Communities Conference 23rd March 2010 , London Creating Low Carbon Communities is the first national event to bring together community-based project developers with City of London financial expertise and professional support. Article by
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