40% drop in CO₂

Cotteridge Quakers have eco-furbished an all-electric meeting room with three and a half external walls, and a floor to ceiling window, to an energy efficient spec. Some of the hard work was tracking down the right suppliers.

• Lights: Megaman spotlights used to reduce 3.4kW to 1.02 kW – with the addition of wall lights bright enough for fine craft work.
• Argon filled double glazing fitted to existing wooden frames (Bartley Glass stockists)
• Dry lining of solid walls with foam insulation (Minster stockists).
• Air source heat pump fitted to outside wall: uses 1kW to generate 2.5 kW, extracting warmth from cold air and bringing it indoors. It raises the temperature in half an hour.
• Monitoring. Reading the meters frequently and plotting the results has been an important motivation to keep going and encourage people to do the obvious: switch things off when not in use. They have available a tailor made version of the DEFRA environment survey, which allows churches to compare themselves with national statistics.
• Some corrections on your very full report on the Cotteridge improvements:
  Lights: Megaman spotlights used to reduce 3.4kW to 1.02 kW – bright enough for fine craft work.

If you’d like to see the building , there will be a tour on Friday 14th March 2008 – contact in advance. Future plans: to carry on insulating the roof, and the rest of the building to achieve an 80% CO2 reduction, and eventually to generate solar electricity.

They have a cheap and cheerful alternative to cycle stands: a heavy duty chain bolted to the wall for cyclists to lock their bikes to.

More details, and photos: www.cotteridge.quaker.eu.org Address: 23a Watford Road, Cotteridge, Birmingham B30 1JB

Also from Birmingham Quakers: Northfield Eco Centre.