A ground source heat pump is an energy efficient way to keep your home warm. It draws renewable thermal energy stored in underground pipes and transfers it into hot water for your house - providing warmth for radiators, underfloor heating, hot water cylinders and even taps.

Photovoltaic (PV) panels, which generate electricity, can be found on homes across many of our developments, allowing customers to reduce their energy consumption and associated carbon emissions.

We believe that not only must we strive to build homes that are more sustainable, we must also give our customers the tools and technology they need to operate their homes with lower emissions. Cala will build all homes with EV charging stations, where infrastructure allows, helping our customers who want to buy an electric vehicle to reduce their carbon footprint, and even their fuel costs too.

As well as adopting measures to help our homes run more sustainably, their very fabric is becoming more sustainable. Timber frame construction has less embodied carbon than traditional building methods and is already being used on around 40 per cent of the homes we build each year. We are significantly increasing this proportion as part of our sustainability strategy.

Water supplies across the UK are becoming less predictable and due to the processes involved, every litre of water from our taps has its own carbon footprint, so the need to reduce personal water consumption across the country is becoming ever more important. To allow our customers to increase their water efficiency and help play their part in the fight against climate change, Cala has introduced high-efficiency shower heads, and flow-controlled aerators to taps to help reduce water wastage, and potentially water bills for customers in England.

Underfloor heating is an attractive heating option for your home, with two main forms; electric systems and water-based systems. Electric underfloor heating uses cables to produce gentle warmth that radiates upwards, while water systems use pipes set in the floor which circulates heated liquid throughout - making it ideal as either supplementary or a primary heat source.

An exhaust air heat pump (EAHP) is a highly efficient system for heating your home. It uses the warm, stale air that the mechanical ventilation heat recovery component draws out, to generate energy and bring it around the home via ducting. This eliminates the need for costly, wet central heating such as radiators or underfloor heating. In addition, an EAHP can be used to provide hot water through storage in a cylinder connected directly with taps, showers and baths.