House Planning Help Podcast

Jon Broome from Jon Broome Architects explains how to create sustainable neighbourhoods and why they make better places to live. He also shares progress on a group self build scheme in Lewisham, London, which is embracing these principles. Check out the show notes for more information.

Professor Phil Jones from the Welsh School of Architecture at Cardiff University explains how SOLCER House exports more energy to the grid than it uses and addresses fundamental issues relating to affordability, buildability and performance. With governments around the world committing to deliver zero carbon housing by 2019, this project has been designed from the outset as a practical solution. Check out the show notes for more information.

Prewett Bizley Architects specialises in low energy architecture and Bob has a particular interest in retrofit. He explains that housing is responsible for around 27% of the UK's carbon emissions, so buildings of all ages and styles have a part to play in terms of energy efficiency. Check out the show notes for more information.

Arun, Nicki, Donal, and Glen share their stories of how they successfully bought their plots of land. With four case studies to evaluate from three different countries, there’s lots to be learned from our guests today. Check out the show notes for more information.

Geoff and Kate Tunstall explain how they were able to create a fantastic Passivhaus in Denby Dale with a modest budget of around £150,000. They also share how they got caught by a 6-inch ransom strip and what options were open to them. Check out the show notes for more information.

The residents of Fintry, Scotland, were approached back in 2003 by a developer that was looking to set up a wind farm in the area and was seeking local support. After years of negotiations the community agreed to the wind farm on the proviso that they install an extra turbine on the site, for the Fintry community. The wind farm developer paid for the additional turbine, which the community are gradually buying back over 15 years, together with paying maintenance, interest and land rental costs. Check out the show notes for more information.

Michaela Benson is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Sociology at Goldsmiths, University of London. She has spent the last three years working on a research project called 'Self-Building - The Production and Consumption of New Homes From the Perspective of Households'. She wanted to understand the diversity of the houses people build, their motivations for doing it and their experiences of the process. Her interviews with twenty individual self-builders and five group projects during that time have led her to notice characteristics that these people share.  Check out the show notes for more information.

We catch up with Alex Baines, a Passivhaus consultant who you may remember from episode 74. We spoke to him then about how gaining support for his semi earth-sheltered rural self-build from his local community helped him achieve the necessary planning permissions. Almost a year on we spoke with him again to see what progress he has made on the build so far. Check out the show notes to see some pictures of the progress.

It has been almost a year since Luke Mahon took ownership of a new-build developer house, which he soon discovered lacked insulation! He talks us through his experience and the ongoing battle to get the house completed. See the full show notes: http://www.houseplanninghelp.com/99.

Architect, builder and Passivhaus Consultant, Christina Snyder shares the story of the experimental zero-energy Passivhaus self-build that she and her husband have undertaken in Michigan, and explains why they are in no rush to complete it.

Peter Warm from WARM: Low Energy Building Practice explains why building to Passivhaus standard is desirable, how certification comes into the equation, and what steps will increase your chances of reaching certification.

Kara Rosemeier from Passive House Academy New Zealand looks at why natural ventilation leads to little control of ventilation. She also shares why the Passivhaus approach is the logical step forwards.

Harold Orr reflects on why the Saskatchewan Conservation House was a landmark on the road to high performance buildings.

Brian Murphy from Green Building Encyclopaedia runs through the most common types of insulation and explains why they each have strengths and weaknesses.

Tad Everhart, an energy adviser from Portland, Oregon, shares his story of building a house . . . which he retrofitted 10 years later after learning about Passivhaus. We find out why he was motivated to take on the challenge, how he went about it and whether all the hard work was worth it.

Professor Tom Woolley from Rachel Bevan Architects explains what hempcrete is, how it is mixed and applied, and what the pros and cons of using it are.

Tomás O’Leary from the Passive House Academy explains why he became an early adopter of the Passivhaus standard and also shares why we need to take every opportunity to retrofit existing buildings, even if it is a phased approach.

Darren Macri from Bleu Nest is a certified Passivhaus builder and consultant, and he explains what this means and how putting together a team who have had training is likely to benefit your low energy build. He also has insights into his own house build which is nearing completion.

Bjørn Kierulf from Createrra explains how you can have the best of both worlds, using almost entirely natural materials to create a house that reaches the Passivhaus Standard.

Jay Shafer from Four Lights Tiny House Company gives us the lowdown of tiny house living. He explains why he initially made the choice, how different life has been since and why he has never looked back. Jay also shares practical advice of what you need to know and do in order to transition to a smaller house.