Core77

How German Homes Maximize Energy Efficiency

America's "This Old House" program looks to Deutschland for lessons

By Rain Noe - October 27, 2015

in Sustainable Design | Architecture

We all know that your average American McMansion is a lot bigger than the standard German home. But increased American energy usage isn't just down to size; the very way that we Yanks build our houses leads to inefficiency, a problem that modern German homebuilders have obsessively tackled.

At first glance, it may not be obvious how and why the Germans do things differently from us. Why do the majority of German homes distribute their heat via water, while the majority of Americans use forced air? Why does the house next door to the one shown below have steps built into the roof? How does the German government incentivize homeowners to make their homes more efficient? In this video, the fellas from the American This Old House TV show answer these questions and more:

Enter a caption (optional)

I especially like the "Energy Pass" idea. Even if you were just renting a place, wouldn't you like to know, in advance, how much the utilities would actually run you?

o

Favorite This
Q
4

Comment

Comments

Miguel Marques

9 years ago

Z

Z

Reply

This is more an EU thing than a German exclusive. Some stuff might differ from country to country but in general pretty much all EU countries have the same initiatives and regulations to have energy efficient housing. In my country, for instance, all houses for sale or rent need to have an "energy certification", which rates the house energy efficiency from A to F as if it were a domestic appliance.

!Report as spam
Juan Cano

9 years ago

Z

Z

Reply

Wow, different focus for living. They trust that their government is making decisions to make their lives and their neighbors lives better in the long run. Can you imagine a 'forced' inspection every year into your home? Most people don't have their furnace looked at until it breaks!

!Report as spam
- Rain Noe
  
  Juan Cano
  
  9 years ago
  
  Z
  
  Z
  
  Reply
  
  I love that they keep records of how much energy a particular structure is burning. If they did that in America, I'd love to see, like, an interactive map that you could click on to see usage costs (anonymous by name, specific by geography) both in your neighborhood and across the country, like maybe to a region you were thinking of moving to.
  
  !Report as spam
  - Corey Vaughan
    
    Rain Noe
    
    9 years ago
    
    Z
    
    Z
    
    Me too Rain!
    
    One core group of people who are meticulous about their energy usage are those with solar power. I wonder if we'll see an adoption in the mainstream of their metering techniques.
    
    What really excites me about the featured house is those thick walls!! To the point where the mass and density might actually be retaining heat from the summer to radiate out during winter, and vice versa.
    
    !Report as spam