Climate Change Adaptation Case Study: Cooling A Country House
This case study shows how installing awnings to a country house helped cool a home that had been overheating in summer months.
About the property
The property is a Grade II* listed country house located in a small village in Buckinghamshire. The village is a conservation area and sits within an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
The oldest part of the house dates from the 13th century when a manor house was recorded on the site. The property became a parsonage in the 17th century, and significant alteration were caried out in the 18th century. The house ceased to be a parsonage in the 1930’s and is now a private residence.
About the adaptation
The southwest elevation of the house has a lot of windows, which act like a greenhouse. Due to climate change which has recently resulted in record-breaking temperatures in the summer months the temperatures in the south-west facing rooms frequently rise to 40°C in the summer, making it very uncomfortable.
The owners are passionate about the property and want any improvements to be appropriate to its history. The original sun shading on the property were roller blinds that covered the entire length of the windows. The owners decided the most appropriate solution to combat the high summer temperatures inside would be to reinstate them. The owners sought professional advice and did their own extensive research to ensure any modifications or improvements to the design of the new awnings were sympathetic to the building. The proposed awnings were off-white canvas roller awnings, fixed to the head of the window frame with white metal brackets and arms.
What happened during the planning process
The owners applied for listed building consent to reinstate the awnings. They used the same firm of experienced architects who had supported them in previous applications to re-roof the property; this “undoubtedly smoothed the process”. During these previous applications, the owners developed a positive relationship with the local conservation officer, who was pleased to see the property being repaired in a careful, considerate way. This also helped the process of obtaining listed building consent for reinstating the awnings.
The installation process
The owners felt it was important to find a suitable manufacturer able to make awnings that are in keeping with the heritage of the property, however, this was challenging and took a long time. The original awnings had timber and metal fixing brackets, most of which remained in place.
These original fittings had to be removed prior to installation of the new awnings. Unfortunately, many suppliers could only supply aluminium frames, which the owners felt were not suitable as the awnings originally had metal and timber fixing brackets. In 2022 the owners found a manufacturer in the UK who was able to supply and install bespoke electrically operated canvas awnings for the 14 windows. This manufacturer mainly supplies horizontal awnings for hotels, restaurants and shops but was able to engineer a modification to provide awnings with an angle of approximately 160 degrees. This means the awnings would screen out a lot of solar gain but allow daylight into the rooms.
While the process of finding a suitable supplier was time consuming, the owners felt it was worthwhile to get the right solution for their building.
The awnings were fitted in the autumn of 2023. The aim is that they will help regulate solar gain in the south-west facing rooms, significantly improving the comfort. By using traditional methods to combat the problem there is also a carbon benefit.
Impact and lessons learned
- The owners of the property felt the project was “very worthwhile” and are pleased with the outcome. It is already clear that the awnings will make the house much cooler when the sun shines in summer months.
- At cooler times of the year, the blinds can be raised so the rooms can benefit from being warmed by the sun.
- The owners opted for a traditional low-carbon solution to overheating, based on reinstating an original feature of their building. This meant that the harm to the building was negligible.
