Buildings Case study
A
ustrians Sigrid Stagl and Peter Kaufmann technical expertise in sustainable building. Coming
transformed their Victorian home in the from Austria where a large number of ‘passive’ houses
Preston Park area of Brighton, UK, despite are already in operation, they felt it must be possible to
the fact it is situated inside a conservation do something similar in Brighton.
area – which meant they had to fight hard for local “Our initial plan to have a passive solar house built was
authority approval. impeded by the lack of affordable building plots in the city
The outcome of the scheme – which won the CIBSE of Brighton,” says Stagl. “Driving by car to an eco-house
Low Carbon Refurbishment Project award for 2009 – outside the city did not seem coherent to us. Hence, we
was a 72 per cent cut in CO2 emissions, using mainly ended up buying a lovely Victorian house where we could
sustainable materials while retaining the original walk to the city centre and cycle to the university. However,
character of the 1887 property. the house was far from our green aspirations and from
“Our project demonstrated that the 40 per cent house our expectations of living conditions.”
scenario – where CO2 emissions are reduced by 40 per The lessons learnt and their subsequent struggles to
cent – is achievable and more,” Stagl says. “Even Victorian transform this end-of-terrace house – with “inappropriate
houses can become sustainable homes using existing heating” including electric storage heaters, minimal
technology.” insulation and dampness in two walls – could considerably
Both Peter and Sigrid are social scientists at the ease the pain for others similarly inspired to reduce their
University of Sussex, and neither has any design or carbon footprint. >
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Simon
www.cibsejournal.com April 2009 CIBSE Journal 33
CIBSEapr09 pp32-33,34,36.indd 33 2/4/09 15:00:06
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