Keep your costs down without compromising on design
In the Sanctuary article More affordable and more sustainable? Jenny Edwards, a Director and Scientist at Light House Architecture & Science, tests houses to help people tailor their renovation or retrofit budgets for maximum benefit. Here, she provides some tips to keep your costs down without compromising on good design:
Affordability and sustainability fit together perfectly! Through excellent design—use of natural light, connection to outdoors, smart integrated storage–a small footprint home can feel as big as, and function better than, homes with much larger floor areas.
To make a new home more sustainable:
→ The quality of the building envelope is vital. Insulate and draught seal. Do both of these things, as one without the other just doesn’t make sense.
→ Minimise your floor area through excellent design with no dead spaces – maximise space efficiency and functionality.
→ Think hard about how you want to live, what functions you want your home to be able to perform and design to achieve this brief without excess. The smaller the footprint the lower the upfront costs and embodied energy. The smaller the footprint the lower the running costs.
