Montgomery Property Developments Ltd Carnbooth House Hotel, Glasgow. Low Carbon Refurbishment of Listed Building

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1 Montgomery Property Developments Ltd Carnbooth House Hotel, Glasgow Low Carbon Refurbishment of Listed Building

2 Low Carbon Building Design Advice Loans 22,000 annual cost savings 96 tonnes per year of CO2 saved Business focus Despite the restrictions imposed by its status as a listed building, Montgomery Property Developments Ltd (MPD) put energy efficiency at the heart of its refurbishment project. It has developed a low carbon hotel which provides comfortable and sumptuous accommodation in a traditional building. MPD has been operating in Glasgow and the West of Scotland since In January 2007 the company purchased Carnbooth House, a large Victorian villa, together with its surrounding grounds with the intention of creating an eight bed roomed boutique hotel and venue for special events, such as weddings. The house located near Glasgow has solid stone walls and previously the building had no insulation in its roof or floors. In addition, its single glazed sash and case windows were cold and draughty. These factors meant that the house was difficult to keep warm and comfortable as well as expensive to heat. From the outset MPD recognised that significantly improving the thermal performance of the building would be vital to providing guests with the levels of comfort that are expected in a luxury hotel. In addition the company believed that by making the building as energy efficient as possible, they would benefit from reduced running costs year on year and that carbon emissions would be minimised. MPD won Carbon Trust Scotland s Low Carbon Building Award for Building Refurbishment in 2010 for their redevelopment of Carnbooth House into a luxury hotel. Savings at a glance CO2 savings 96 tonnes per year Energy savings 22,000 per year Total loan 80,000 Total cost 130,000 Payback period 6 years Montgomery Developments Ltd Carnbooth House Hotel, Glasgow Low Carbon Refurbishment of Listed Building

3 Technical approach Having used their services on previous projects, MPD requested assistance from the Carbon Trust to obtain advice on achieving the most energy efficient development possible. The Carbon Trust provided a free Low Carbon Building Design Advice report which was used to guide design decisions from an early stage. In addition, the Carbon Trust appointed a specialist consultant who attended design meetings during the construction phase. This meant that energy efficiency remained at the core of the brief as the project progressed. The company also obtained an interest free business loan from the Carbon Trust to pay for some of the investment in low carbon measures. Prior to the re-development, none of the building elements were insulated. This meant that heat could readily escape through the roof, floors and solid stone walls. The large single glazed sash and case windows provided a further source of heat loss. In addition these windows had become poorly fitting due to their age and were draughty allowing the infiltration of cold air into the house and the escape of warm air. The house has grade B listed status which meant that MPD were under a statutory duty to ensure that changes to the building were appropriate and sympathetic to its character. The external walls were insulated by installing rigid panels of insulation material into a new timber frame which was fitted to the internal surface of the walls. A new plasterboard covering was then overlaid on the frame to provide a surface for decoration. To improve insulation even further, the inside walls were coated with paint containing millions of microscopic evacuated hollow beads which created a barrier to heat loss through the wall. Heat losses through the walls were reduced by 80% through the installation of insulation on their internal surfaces, whilst the external appearance of the building was unchanged. 80% reduction in heat loss through the walls New double glazed sash and case windows were installed which had the same appearance as the old windows. The new windows had a low-emissivity coating which allows sunlight to enter whilst inhibiting heat loss from the room. The window frames included closely fitting seals to provide draught proofing in the sliding sections. Overall, the new windows reduced heat losses by over 80% compared to the old units. With insulation installed in the roof spaces and also below the ground floor in several areas, MPD achieved an overall reduction in heat losses from the building of approximately 60%. Carnbooth House was not previously connected to the main natural gas supply and used an oil fired boiler. A new gas supply was installed as part of the development in order to provide fuel for the catering equipment as well as a lower carbon source of fuel for providing space and water heating (natural gas produces about 20% less carbon than oil on a like for like basis). To maximise the efficiency of heat generation, new gas fired condensing boilers were installed to replace the old oil boiler. The Carbon Trust s Low Carbon Building Design Advice report provided the minimum specification for the new boilers. Condensing boilers achieve their highest efficiency levels when the temperature of the water that is returned to them is roughly 55ºC or lower, which allows them to operate in condensing mode. The new heating system at Carnbooth House was designed to complement the condensing boilers by using large radiators which operate at a lower temperature (than UK conventional heating systems) and so circulate reduced water temperatures back to the boilers thus enabling them to run in condensing mode for most of the time. Energy efficient lighting was installed throughout the hotel, using mainly compact fluorescent lamps in table light fittings. In intermittently occupied areas such as public bathrooms, automatic occupancy sensors control the lights so that they only operate when the room is in use. MPD s low carbon ethos extended to the specification of appliances such as bar fridges through the selection of the most efficient (A rated) units. Whilst such models carried a slight capital cost premium over less efficient versions, their lifetime costs are significantly lower due to the reduced energy use. Installing insulation on the internal surface of solid stone walls reduces heat losses without changing the external appearance or character of the building Montgomery Developments Ltd Carnbooth House Hotel, Glasgow Low Carbon Refurbishment of Listed Building

4 Financial case The total project cost for the re-development of Carnbooth House into a boutique hotel was in the region of 5 million. The overall expenditure on measures specifically required to reduce energy use and provide a low carbon building was approximately 130,000. These measures provide cost savings of around 22,000 per year (2010 prices) providing a payback period of about 6 years for the investment directly in energy efficiency. MPD obtained an interest free loan from the Carbon Trust to pay for some of the efficiency improvements. The loan application was processed within 24 hours and the loan will be re-paid through the energy savings generated. In addition, the company has taken advantage of Enhanced Capital Allowances to write down the entire investment cost in the first year for some items like efficient refrigeration equipment. Achievements The hotel opened for business in November 2009 and provides a warm and luxurious environment for guests to enjoy. The modifications carried out by the company significantly reduced heat losses from the listed building without compromising the house s appearance or character. Reducing heat losses has improved comfort levels in spaces that previously could not be utilised. One such space is the large bay window in the dining room which, following the installation of the new windows, now provides a comfortable and attractive area for diners. So, in addition to providing energy savings, this efficiency improvement has also improved business potential by increasing the number of customers that can be served in the dining room. Energy efficiency has been integrated into the hotel s whole management philosophy; with operating procedures designed to minimise energy use wherever possible. Energy consumption is also considered as part of a lifetime cost assessment in the purchase of equipment. The resulting low energy costs help the hotel to remain competitive and its environmental impact has been reduced through low carbon emissions. MPD intends to further expand the hotel through the construction of a new guest wing. The new building will be designed to minimise heat losses and ensure that energy is used as efficiently as possible. In addition, the company wish to install a wind turbine to supply the hotel s electricity needs. The expansion may also provide the opportunity to install a biomass boiler to supply the hotel s heating needs. Through the use of both energy efficient design and renewable energy technologies, Carnbooth House Hotel would then be a genuinely low energy and low carbon building. Carbon Trust s assistance at Carnbooth has been an empowering experience for us. It has given us the technical knowledge required to be able to reduce our energy consumption and its associated cost which in turn produces enhanced bottom line profits for our company. Reducing our energy consumption makes sound moral and financial sense. We can let our customers enjoy the level of luxury they expect from a hotel of our quality in the most energy efficient way possible today. We will take the lessons learned here to our other businesses and future projects. Thank you Carbon Trust, you really have opened our eyes. James Montgomery Montgomery Property Developments Ltd

5 60% overall reduction in building heat losses achieved through the insulation of external walls, the roof spaces and below the ground floor in several areas. Highly efficient double glazed windows have also been installed.

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