Bath filled with light

Heritage colours and kerb-side appeal were among the factors that persuaded the planning authorities of Bath that Modus PVCU windows from Eurocell were the appropriate alternative to timber on a prime, exposed location near the Unesco World Heritage Site.

Consisting of 136 upmarket homes selling at up to £1 million apiece, the Ensleigh estate is being developed by Bloor Homes along with another major housebuilder on a former MoD site dating from WW2 that overlooks the Georgian city and is near to its race and golf course.

“The planners originally wanted timber windows but that wouldn’t work for our designs because we wanted to install matching fascias and soffits that fitted beneath considerable eaves. This is on an exposed site at the top of a steep hill so they wouldn’t look great for very long,” explained Paul Baker, regional managing director for Bloor Homes South West.

“Timber windows, fascias and soffits would require expensive maintenance because of the scaffolding required to paint them. These PVCU alternatives not only have kerb-appeal but are maintenance free.”

Bloor Homes South West had also had experience of the product at other developments throughout the region and had found it answered planning department concerns. It worked with the Eurocell New Build division, which supplied four samples to show the various colours that might work on site and to demonstrate the slim, timber-like sight lines of the Modus.

“The foil gives an appearance like timber and the colour palette includes the heritage type colours that fit in with a period environment such as Bath,” Paul said.

Once the Bath and north east Somerset planning department was happy with Bloor’s proposal to use Modus windows in hazy grey, it gave the go-ahead for the same product range, but in agate grey, to be used at an adjacent development from the other housebuilder.

Plans are now going ahead for each housebuilder to construct a further 40 homes on an extension to the original site, with Modus being specified for this development too. Paul Baker says that planners have been visiting the development as Bloor Homes hopes to use Modus in future schemes throughout the south west.

Bloor was supplied by A&B Glass (South West) of Tewkesbury while the neighbouring builder dealt with Leicester-based Unique Windows.

Coming with a 12-year guarantee, the Modus system is available in nine solid and woodgrain-effect colours, all of which are available with white internal finishes. A further range of more than 40 solid and woodgrain effect finishes is available, including colour both sides.

BBA-certified to function satisfactorily for more than 35 years, the Modus range has a U-value of 1.2W/m²K using 4/20/4mm sealed double-glazed units. This effective thermal performance is due to the 75mm six-chamber profile system used in the Modus that enables the range to achieve a U-value as low as 0.7W/m²K by installing triple-glazed units. This led to Modus becoming one of the very first systems to achieve the BRFC Window Energy Rating (WER) of A++. This is only awarded to windows with an energy index value equal to or greater than +20; and Modus A++ designs include casement, reversible and tilt and turn. 

Consisting of 50% post-consumer recycled PVC-U as standard, this range of doors and windows has a smaller carbon footprint than products made or recycled outside of the UK.

Eurocell achieves this by employing dual material extrusion technology (DMET) that layers post-consumer recycled and ‘virgin’ material simultaneously, so the recycled material is concentrated in the central core of the profiles where it cannot be seen once the door or window is installed.