Housing Association Scoops Innovative Solution

Published by Angela May for Glidevale Ltd in Housing

Use of latest sustainable building solutions from Glidevale is helping a Manchester housing association simultaneously improve the living conditions and environment for elderly tenants.

Northwards Housing, which manages city council homes in north Manchester, is undertaking a £1/2m upgrading and refurbishment of Harry Piggot Court, a 1980’s two-storey development of 30 x one-bedroom apartments, with a brief to bring the homes up to, and above, Decent Homes standards using sustainable strategies as far as possible.

As a result, the 15 flats on the second floor now all feature Glidevale’s Sunscoop iPSV combined rooflight and natural ventilation system in the bathrooms. “We have maximized natural daylight and improved airflow in what are quite small bathrooms, without using any electricity. The residents now don’t necessarily have to turn the light on in the bathroom to see as they enter; we have at the same time overcome the potential problem of tenants either turning mechanical fans on and forgetting to turn them off, or not turning them on at all which can cause condensation and damp. The contractor has not had any problem installing them either,” explained project manager Elliot Simm.

Gidevale’s Sunscoop iPSV brings together the established successful Sunscoop tubular rooflight technology with intelligent, demand controlled, humidity sensitive ventilation, which uses neither electricity nor solar power to ensure a dry internal environment is maintained, 24/7 365 days a year.

A roof mounted glazed dome reflects natural daylight down a highly reflective tube through the roofspace to a diffuser mounted in the ceiling. Even the smallest 250mm diameter Sunscoop gives up to four times more light than a single 60W incandescent bulb (13w low energy lamp) on a clear summer day with direct sunlight. Ventilation is achieved via innovative humidity sensitive bands within the ceiling diffuser which react to changes in relative humidity within the room, and harness natural air movement and buoyancy principles, regulating air flow out through separate ducting adjacent to the Sunscoop tubing. Tests by the Building Research Establishment have shown the ventilation system gives a 15-40% saving in ventilation heat loss dependant on occupancy levels.

The Sunscoops are a key measure in the upgrading, which includes further sustainable strategies of PV and solar panels on the roof, and rainwater harvesting. The flats have also been remodeled internally to optimize space, and minimize any institutional ambience.

Glidevale’s Sunscoop iPSV is just part of the Sunscoop range, which encompasses both domestic and commercial options, in domes and ‘in-plane’ versions. Sunscoop itself is part of the company’s comprehensive options for improving a building’s thermal performance, energy efficiency whilst removing any excess moisture via the successful Protect brand of roofing and wall membranes and roof ventilation solutions.