Cardiff Architects build ‘impossible’ eco-house

Architectural whizzes at Cardiff University have designed and built a zero carbon house.

George Osborne had originally called the project “impossible” and discarded a requirement which stated that all new builds were to be zero carbon by 2016, arguing it would prove to be too expensive.

However, Cardiff University’s Welsh School of Architecture have built one such house near Bridgend which exports more power to the grid than it uses and, more importantly, falls within the confines of the government’s social housing budget.

Nice house. Shit weather.

The government requires social housing to cost between £800 and £1,000 per square metre, and the uni’s eco-friendly house costs £1,000 per square metre.

Professor Phil Jones, a lecturer and the project leader, said: “Using the latest technology, innovation and design, it is indeed possible to build a zero carbon house at low costs, creating long-term benefits for both the economy and the environment.”

A bumbling government spokesman had previously claimed that house builders need to have more time to develop low energy homes.

However the team at Cardiff University proved Osborne and his lackeys wrong once again, the house took just 16 weeks to construct.

The property works by using glazed solar panels on its south-facing exterior and air heating systems that rely on the sun.

The house uses solar generation and battery storage in order to run the combined heating, ventilation and hot water system.

In addition to this it also runs an electrical power system, which includes appliances such as LED lighting and a heat pump.

This results in the property taking energy from the grid in the winter but putting a greater amount than that back in the summer.

The design team believe this will allow residents to profit, by selling their excess energy.

John O’Brien, from the Building Research Establishment said: “The chancellor’s reason for dropping the Code for Sustainable Homes and then the zero carbon homes commitment was because these could not be achieved while still coming in at £1,000 per square metre.

“These homes show that is flawed.”