Eco Houses

Eco houses are houses that are built with the specific aim of being environmentally friendly. Many new self build houses that are being built at the moment subscribe to these principles in some way or other.

Eco houses will be constructed to cause as little damage to the environment as possible and they will use various ‘green’ methods both in their construction and in the way that the house produces energy, for example.

So, a house like this may be built from renewable and/or local materials and it may have various adaptations done to it to make sure that it can run on environmentally friendly energy sources and that it produces carbon emissions that are as low as is feasible.

There are various options here. These include:

Using clay, recycled paper and straw for insulation in roofs and walls.
Using solar panels and/or wind power to create an independent energy source (i.e. to run hot water systems and so on).
Using environmentally friendly materials and non toxic paints.
Setting up water conservation systems that collect rainwater for use in gardens.
Using recycled and reclaimed materials in building kitchens.
Using energy saving light bulbs and appliances.
Using ‘green’ roofs with living plants on the roof to help insulate
the building.
Using compost toilets.
Setting up in-built recycling schemes.