Energy efficiency tightened
New buildings in England will have to produce significantly less CO2 under new rules to help the country move towards net zero.
Under the new regulations, CO2 emissions from newbuild homes must be around 30% lower than current standards, and emissions from other new buildings, including offices and shops, must be reduced by 27%.
Heating and powering buildings currently makes up 40% of the UK’s total energy use.
For the fenestration industry, it means that windows and doors (with a glazed area of more than 60%) installed in newbuild homes will need to achieve a minimum U-value of 1.2W/m2K. For home improvement, this raises to 1.4W/m2K, which is WER B (windows) or C (doors with >60% glazed area).
There are also changes to Approved Document F, which apply to trickle vents, and a new Approved Document O, which applies to glazing and overheating.
Nigel Headford, director at Deceuninck Aluminium, said: “Now that changes to Part L have officially been announced, installers and fabricators need to ask if the products they are fitting and manufacturing are fit for purpose. There’s no quick fix to update older systems – and nobody wants the hassle or cost of triple glazing.
“Decalu from Deceuninck Aluminium has been engineered to achieve 0.6W/m2K. That meets the new Part L regulations as well as stricter requirements anticipated for the Future Homes and Future Buildings Standards in 2025.”
Aluk has a dedicated Future Homes Standard web pages at www.alukgb.com/learning/fhs, which will be kept updated.
The changes follow a public consultation, and will come into effect from June 2022.
Housing minister Eddie Hughes said: “The changes will significantly improve the energy efficiency of the buildings where we live, work and spend our free time and are an important step on our country’s journey towards a cleaner, greener built environment.”
Almost half (46%) of the homes in England are now rated C or above for energy efficiency, compared to 14% in 2010.