Solar energy in Spain: Can you sell electricity back to the grid?
After making the decision to build a home that generates its own solar energy in Spain, it’s important to plan out your system to make sure your home is comfortable year-round. Once you’ve achieved a carbon-zero home, chances are you’ll have some surplus electricity on your hands and you might be wondering if you canContinue reading
Solar Orientation and Mediterranean Villa Design
The Grandfather Approach and Nuca I thought you might be interested to read what Domingo Cardenas, our head architect, recently wrote to one of our clients. It gives you a great insight into how we work and who we are. I have corrected only the odd spelling so, apart from that, these are Domingo’s exactContinue reading
Modern Renewable Energy Systems in Spanish Villas
Renewable energy systems have in the past been associated with being weak, expensive, and unreliable. For many people the concept goes with eco-warriors living off grid in situations where they can’t have all mod cons. Well let me tell you. Things have changed! We are installing a renewable energy system in a modern villa thatContinue reading
Do you NEED the Tesla Powerwall battery?
Under some circumstances you probably do. The key thing about this battery is that it has a high capacity and a high output (so you can run the kettle and the washing machine for example). It’s also small, clean, and easily mountable on the wall. Forget the old days of rows of kind of carContinue reading
How to be Carbon Zero in Spain: Renewable Energy Systems
This is how to be carbon zero in Spain. You can retro fit an existing house or use these principals for your new build. If you want to be green do this. It’s the biggest contribution you can make towards reducing climate change except for stopping flying and we know you’re not going to doContinue reading
Passive House and Airtight Homes in Spain
Passive House (Passivhaus) is probably the worldwide leading standard for energy efficient buildings. It is a concept that has come out of Germany where the principal problem is keeping your home warm in the winter. Effectively no heating is required in a passive house even though it may be minus 10C outside. In Spain thereContinue reading
Energy Efficient Windows in Spain
Getting this right is not only crucial to the energy efficiency of your villa but also to the comfort and appearance of your home. Heating and cooling consume by far the greatest proportion of household energy use. Data from the European Aluminium Association estimates that 40% of the heating energy lost from homes escapes fromContinue reading
This is one important way to improve the energy efficiency of an existing building
The photos below show the Eco Vida Homes VH team applying external insulation to a renovation project in Guadalmina Marbella (SATE: Sistema de Aislamiento Térmico por Exterior). In a conventional building you can typically lose 30% of your heating and cooling energy because of poorly insulated walls. The cost isn’t just financial. Better insulation makesContinue reading
