Retroform
Abstract
The problem:
In the UK we have been separated from the acts of physical building, it is wrongly believed that only a selective few have the ability to construct, retrofit or to assist with building: ‘only 10% of the UK’s new homes are self-builds, compared with around 50% in other European countries’[1]. It has got to the stage in the UK where working on one’s home is seen more as a privilege than a necessity. Alongside this issue of disconnection with construction we are facing a climate crisis. ‘The UK has the least energy efficient housing stock in Europe’[2]. The vernacular of brick construction has proven ineffective and currently only 29% of UK homes meet EPC band C. The government is aiming to make all homes band C or above by 2035[3]. However, the government’s green homes grant cannot be obtained by those who wish to do the work themselves. One way to make our existing building stock carbon zero is to retrofit, can retrofit be incorporated within a self-build system?
The platform:
RetroForm is an open source knowledge sharing platform on the topic of retrofitting with an aim to change the current attitude towards self-building. While inhabitant comfort and saving incentive are a few of the main drivers, we believe that household energy consumption reduced by minor energy efficient adjustments to the internal fabric of the dwelling can contribute to achieve the climate just target set by the government. The RetroForm program aims to fill the gap between wanting to retrofit though self-build and the potential apprehensive attitude of the people wishing to do so. The digital platform offers to facilitate an understanding on how various retrofit solutions impact the dwelling, as well as offering a forum to discuss and share projects and ideas. We believe in making self-building approachable.
[1] Wright, O., 2014. Sell off land so people can build their own homes, says Labour minister. The Independent, [online] Available at: <https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/sell-off-land-so-people-can-build-their-own-homes-says-labour-minister-9211137.html> [Accessed 13 March 2020].
[2] Green Alliance, 2020. Reinventing Retrofit How To Scale Up Home Energy Efficiency In The UK. [online] Green-alliance.org.uk. Available at: <https://www.green-alliance.org.uk/resources/reinventing_retrofit.pdf> [Accessed 2 January 2021].
[3] Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy, 2020. Green Homes Grant: Make Energy Improvements To Your Home. London: UK Government.
Essays:
Dominic Oliver, Emily Dawson, Felix Scobie, Raluca Moldoveanu, Alice Prum
Presentation:
In the UK we have been separated from the acts of physical building, it is wrongly believed that only a selective few have the ability to construct, retrofit or to assist with building: ‘only 10% of the UK’s new homes are self-builds, compared with around 50% in other European countries.’. It has got to the stage in the UK where working on one’s home is seen more as a privilege than a necessity. Alongside this issue of disconnection with construction we are facing a climate crisis. ‘The UK has the least energy efficient housing stock in Europe.’. The vernacular of brick construction has proven ineffective at heat retention and leads to large quantities of CO2 being created in the process of heating a home due to a higher energy use. Currently only 29% of UK homes meet EPC band C (which is the energy performance certificate, relating to energy efficiency of buildings). The government is aiming to make all homes band C or above by 2035.
However, the government’s green homes grant cannot be obtained by those who wish to do the work themselves. One way to make our existing building stock carbon zero is to retrofit, can retrofit be incorporated within a self-build system?
RetroForm is an open source knowledge sharing platform on the topic of retrofitting with an aim to change the current attitude towards self building. There is a current demand for retrofit both in the private rented market and the owner occupied market.
While inhabitant comfort and saving incentive are a few of the main drivers, we believe that household energy consumption reduced by minor energy efficient adjustments to the internal fabric of the dwelling can contribute to achieve the climate just target set by the government. To set up the platform, we aim to seek government funding.The RetroForm program aims to fill the gap between wanting to retrofit though self build and the potential apprehensive attitude of the people wishing to do so. The digital platform offers to facilitate an understanding on how various retrofit solutions impact the dwelling, as well as offering a forum to discuss and share projects and ideas. We believe in making self building approachable.
So, How does it work?
When the user first encounters the website a start button invites them to enter into the RetroForm world. This is a world in which an ethos of encouragement has been constructed within the structure of the site. The first stage of participation is to create a user profile which enables engagement with the platform and its other users. The user must read and agree to the sites terms and conditions which have be constructed to allow RetroForm to be an environment in which people can freely share ideas without the fear of being held liable. User profiles let multiple people use the platform while also letting them maintain privacy and personal settings. The user profile function is ideal for families where multiple people use the same set of devices. Each family member can create a new profile that stores everything they could want. One of RetroForms key ambitions is to encouraged a self build mentality across all generations, we believe it is never too early or too late to learn.The user then enters Level one, in which they choose a digital model from a stock of generic housing typologies. The user then has the option to modify this model by adjusting the preferences to best match the digital house to their existing home. The completion of level one results in an energy efficient evaluation of the existing and encourages the user to advance and address ways in which their home could come closer to achieving carbon neutral.Level two breaks down the environmental constraints of a home and the user undergoes a guided process on how to measure and understand how close the stimulated home is to being carbon neutral.
Moving on onto Level 3, which is where you can start planning how you’re gonna improve the energy consumption of your house by designing your own retrofit. By clicking on different building elements of your house you can choose which ones you want to edit. The platform will suggest you different materials to chose from and tools to use. When choosing materials you’re informed about their “cradle-to-crate” carbon emissions, the time it will take to install those changes and the estimated price it would cost. As you make changes to your house or flat you can see the energy performance changing. The learning process is based on the trial and error method, so it is important that you can always go back and undo your actions and try different methods which will equal to different performance results, prices and duration. The idea behind the process in this level is also to understand the technical challenges of some materials and develop an understanding of how you would build them in real life, by allowing you to try different methods of installation. Throughout this process the platform suggest for you to consult the forum in order to see what other with similar technical issues have done. This way you can learn through the common knowledge built up by the group.Once you decide you’re happy with your retrofit, you can click finish and you will enter Level 4. The platform will give you a breakdown fo your retrofit: its environmental impact, the price and duration of installation and how it improves the energy performance of your place, also incorporating a temporal dimension to compare the consumption of existing versus retrofitted version, which might be interesting to people who rent their homes.
The digital wing of RetroForm means it is not limited to homeowners. Users in rental properties, or social housing can explore resources to help them approach their association or landlord with a proposed retrofit. While homeowners can access their local retrofit planning guides and other relevant documents. Level 6 introduces the user to the open source knowledge sharing database. Here they can browse how projects similar to their own were completed in the real world. Crucially, the database can compare the real world performance of completed retrofits with the simulated tests on RetroForm, to improve both the software and future built projects. Level 7: Having tested and discussed their plans online, RetroForm users are encouraged to document their self build retrofit process and upload the results to the site. The cycle continues and the collective knowledge grows.
The overall aim of retroform is to simply create a new consciousness and community around physical building and retrofit, through online trial and error and shared knowledge, that can result in our current building stock being transformed into carbon neutral homes.
