This is what a house that stands the test of time will look like | Gadget theory

Colin Heal from Wheathampstead, England shared details of his time-tested home with the BBC. His house has 35 solar panels that produce so much energy that Heal and his wife even sell the excess energy.

Colin Heal with his sustainable home

Their house is fully electric and Mr. and Mrs. Heal are planning to buy solar batteries so that all of their energy is usable. In the surrounding area, flooding is a major concern, but the Heals have bypassed this problem because their house is built on an elevation.

Their home’s driveway has gravel that drains water instead of pooling it, and their green roof reduces runoff caused by rain. As you would expect, even their back garden has a purpose: it acts as a sump, which is essentially a reservoir made up of crates that collect excess rainwater and then slowly drains it into the basement.

Below the surface, pipes connect to a ground source heat pump. This pump takes heat from the ground and brings it to the level necessary to heat the ground and hot water. Heat pumps are much more efficient than boilers, which typically use fossil fuels.

Flooding in Hereford

The Heals’ house has a wood stove which is useful for the time of year when temperatures drop below freezing and the heat pump is not as efficient. Of course, the stove is also very pretty.

With higher energy needs, increased flood risk and changing temperatures, sustainable homes like Mr. Heal’s will become much more needed.

The Climate Change Committee (CCC) concluded that the UK is not well equipped for climate change and issued a stern warning to the UK: that the risk is only increasing and that adaptation measures delay.

Although there have been shifts in climate change mitigation and limiting greenhouse gas emissions, experts say there is a growing need to adapt the world to climate change. more extreme.

Triple glazed windows in Heal’s house