Green researchers build 1930s house

Researchers from the University of Nottingham have teamed up with energy giant E.ON to build an authentic 1930s semi.

Over three million semi-detached houses were built during the 1930s, and they have become a national icon.

However, the houses are so energy inefficient that the researchers required special planning permission to build the property.

The three bedroomed house, built on Nottingham University’s Green Close, will be lived in by students and used to work out the best ways to make current houses more energy efficient.

Over the next three years features making the best use of natural resources - sun, rain and wind - will be added to the house, bringing it up to the strictest green building standards.

The main addition to the house will be a lightweight extension with solar panels specifically placed to maximise sunlight hours.

The research is important, because although the government is currently planning to build ten new eco-towns, it is expected that 86% of the houses in the UK will still be in use in 2050.

Furthermore, UK households account for 28% of the country’s carbon emissions.

Five other houses are being built as part of the research project.