Managing Energy
Controlled Domestic Ventilation
Around 90% of our time is now spent indoors which means management of this inside climate becomes ever more important to our health and well being.
The development of the Controlled Ventilation system stems from the 1970’s when early efforts were made to save 
energy.
This resulted in the Construction Industry developing insulation material which was too restrictive on air flow between the outside and inside of buildings creating polluted inside air.
In all buildings there are certain levels of uncontrolled ventilation, for example from pipe ducts, door spacing etc and this is increased by people opening and closing doors and windows.
This type of ventilation also accounts for a great deal of heat loss increasing fuel bills and wasting non renewable energy resources. Controlled Domestic Ventilation tackles this by taking excess heated air in the house and returning it to the pump to be re used in providing further energy elsewhere in the home.
By installing this system in our homes we hope to introduce a system that will ensure efficient air exchange in and out of the house even when doors and windows are closed. This will reduce energy bills and reduce wastage of non renewable energy resources.
Heat Recovery Systems
As we have highlighted elsewhere modern homes particularly in this part of the world are very highly insulated and because they are newly built all window and door seals will be of the highest quality, this results in little natural heat exchange and airflow between the interior and exterior of the home.
Build up of stale warm air can be a problem particularly in bathrooms and kitchens making them uncomfortable to be in for any length of time.
By installing a heat recovery system steps can be taken to ensure excess energy is reused and there is constant replenishment of fresh air in the home.
Heat Recovery Systems can be installed in the loft of a new home and are designed so that a fan will extract warm stale air from the kitchens and bathrooms in your home. This air is passed through a heat exchanger and transferred to air that is being imported into the house. This warm fresh air is then passed into the living areas of the house by a series of vents.
Underfloor Heating
This type of heating will increase a persons feeling of thermal comfort by providing a stable draught free temperature throughout your new home and is a perfect compliment to a Ground Source Heat Pump.
Because Ground Source Heat Pumps raise the temperature to around 40° they are most suitable for under floor heating systems which require temperatures of between 30° and 35° to provide the correct level of heating in your home. Contrast this to a conventional radiator which requires heat of between 60 and 80 degrees to provide adequate levels of heating around the house.
The picture on the right shows how the under floor heating is installed beneath the flooring in a new home at Blairmount. The heated liquid passes through the loops and the following key benefits can be found
- Space
Interior design of your home does not depend on a heating engineers input as you can you use all of the floor space and not worry about positioning of radiators. - Comfort
Radiant heat will provide the highest levels of thermal comfort as the heat will be consistent and stable. - Silence
Compared to conventional systems, there is little noise. - Environmentally Friendly
This system is energy efficient. - Economic
As there is less energy waste so there will need to be less energy use keeping costs to a minimum.
Swedish Wood Burning Stoves
3b construction are able to offer installation of Swedish Wood Burning Stoves.
Specially designed and environmentally certified these stoves have a double convection system which allows heat to be spread evenly throughout the room.
The wrap around window is very large allowing you to enjoy the flickering flames and is complimented by the cast iron exterior which is both elegant and practical.
The wood burning stoves we are able to install can be complimented by additional soap stone on the exterior of the stove. This will absorb the heat whilst the stove is burning then provide heat for hours after the stove has been turned off.