About a third of energy consumption and CO2 emissions in this country can be traced back to the construction sector. It is therefore important that future builders take climate protection into account when building their dream house and build the house in a climate-friendly manner.
STATE FUNDING FOR CLIMATE-FRIENDLY BUILDING
Formally the matter is clear. Climate-friendly building means that a house meets the requirements of an efficient house 40 in terms of primary energy needs. Specifically, this means that the energy requirement for electricity, hot water, heating, ventilation and air conditioning cannot exceed 40% of the Building Energy Act (GEG) reference building.
Furthermore, the climate-friendly house must not have any heat carrier based on fossil fuels or biomass.
Greenhouse gas emissions during the life cycle of the building must at least meet the requirements of the Sustainable Building Plus (QNG-PLUS) quality seal, unless the house already has the QNG-PLUS or QNG-PREMIUM quality seal. Greenhouse gas emission requirements are based on complex assumptions and calculations about the lifespan and CO2 emissions of the production, use and disposal of building components.
So much for the definition of climate-friendly construction to receive funding from the federal government. Indeed, with the following considerations and measures, every builder can build their dream home in a climate-friendly manner, even without fully meeting the above formal financing requirements.
REDUCE THE SIZE OF THE BUILDING
The size of the house to be built is particularly important not only in terms of construction costs, but also with regard to climate protection. It’s very simple. The smaller the house, the fewer resources needed to build and operate it. If you therefore want to build climate-friendly, plan your personal dream home with realistic needs planning, which is guided by your real need for living space and not just by your wishes and financial possibilities.
This also applies to the implementation of the planning of how many people will belong to the household and when. For example, is it necessary to permanently provide a separate room for the teenager who will leave the house in a few years? Or is a temporary solution also possible in which the future guest room or study is temporarily used as a teenager’s room?
When planning your floor plan, be sure to efficiently divide the necessary rooms and make the most of the available space. For example, circulation areas of the house such as corridors, staircases or passageways should be kept as small as possible. The less space the house takes up, the more climate-friendly it is.
MINIMIZE ENERGY DEMAND AND USE OF REGENERATIVE ENERGY
It goes without saying that the installation of efficient heating technologies, good insulation of the building envelope and the use of energy saving devices reduce the energy needs of a house and thus make it climate-friendly. Ideally, you will build a house that requires almost no heating thanks to excellent thermal insulation and intelligent ventilation technology with heat recovery.
In terms of climate protection, a heating system that uses renewable energy sources such as sun, wind, water or geothermal energy is adequate. Solar heat and solar energy are particularly suitable for climate-friendly housing. You have two options for using the sun’s energy for your home. Thanks to solar collectors to generate heat, solar energy can be used for heating and drinking water. In temperate latitudes, 1.5 to 2 square meters of collector surface per capita are sufficient to heat approximately 60% of the annual hot water requirement.
With a photovoltaic system, electricity is produced from solar energy for domestic use or for feeding into the electricity grid. In combination with battery storage and intelligent control, a degree of self-sufficiency of up to 80% can be achieved, i.e. only 20% of the electricity needed in the home needs to be purchased over the course of the year. This saves money and protects the climate.
USE OF SUSTAINABLE CONSTRUCTION MATERIALS
Thanks to excellently insulated walls and efficient heating technology, we now find ourselves in a situation where the production of building materials and technical systems in a new building leads to a greater environmental impact and CO2 emissions than using the house in 100 years. That is why climate-friendly construction also includes the climate footprint of the building materials used.
At first glance, wooden buildings have an advantage here, since CO2 is stored during the growth of trees, thus reducing the impact on the climate. Additionally, woodworking is not as energy-intensive as making steel and concrete or making bricks from clay or clay.
On the other hand, with every tree cut down, the potential for further CO2 absorption is lost. In this sense, building a solid house is no less climate-friendly. Because for this it is not necessary to cut down trees. The mineral building materials clay and topsoil are extracted close to the surface and in a nature-friendly manner. Their mining areas are close to production sites, while timber often has to be transported long distances. Plus, it’s not just wood that can be recycled. Today even broken concrete and bricks are reused, for example in road construction.
The advantage of a house built with solid walls is the more pleasant indoor climate. The natural moisture balance of solid ceilings and walls prevents mold growth and ensures good indoor air. If the air is too dry, the brickwork releases moisture back into the room. The excellent heat storage capacity of masonry also prevents the house from cooling rapidly in winter and prevents the house from heating rapidly in summer. Bricks thus save energy and are even more climate-friendly than wood-frame buildings.
EXTENSION OF DURATION
The longer a house can be used, the more climate-friendly it is. Because you don’t need resources for renovating or building a new house for that long. So, when building your dream house, pay attention to the durability of the building materials used. An argument that also speaks in favor of building a solid house instead of a prefabricated house with a wooden frame. On average, a solid home survives three generations of residents and lasts more than 100 years. Care and maintenance is limited to weather protection in the form of an occasional coat of exterior paint.
With the right planning and the right approach to building your dream house, you can easily build it in a climate-friendly manner and make your personal contribution to climate protection. Your construction partner will be happy to advise you further.
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