A NEW eco-friendly bungalow being built in south Essex could lead to energy bills of just £200 a year, it is claimed.

Tonbridge Builders, in Hockley, are building what is known as a “passive bungalow”

after the owner wanted to make it as energy efficient as possible.

The bungalow is just one of 22 in the country and will be fitted with solar panels and rain harvesting equipment so rain water will be used to flush the toilet.

Its Spanish owner, Jose Linzasaro, instructed builders to make the property in Merton Road, Hockley, as energy efficient as possible.

Alan Bickford, of Tonbridge Builders, said: “It is really exciting.

I think it’s a great idea.

“The Germans have been doing it for 30 years. We are behind the times and it’s time our country caught up. The current costs of bills and fuel should force people into doing this.”

The bungalow, which will be timber-framed and use little energy. Mr Bickford said there was about an eight per cent increase in overall building costs, but he thinks the savings in the first year alone will make up for this.

The bungalow is built to require 90 per cent less heating than a standard building. It will have a comfortable indoor climate in the summer and minimal heating through the winter months without the need for a conventional heating system.

He added: “This is the first time we have ever built one of these, we had to go on a course to get qualified.”

THE new home boasts many ways of saving energy.

Solar panel electricity systems, also known as solar photovoltaics, capture the sun’s energy using photovoltaic cells.

These cells don’t need direct sunlight to work – they can still generate some electricity on a cloudy day. The cells convert the sunlight into electricity, which can be used to run household appliances and lighting.

Solar panels cut electricity bills and allow you to sell the electricity they generate back to the national grid while also reducing your carbon footprint.

The harvesting of rainwater simply involves the collection of water from surfaces on which rain falls, and subsequently storing this water for later use.

Normally water is collected from the roofs of buildings and stored in rainwater tanks.

Water can also be collected in dams from rain falling on the ground and producing runoff.

All that is necessary to capture this water is to direct the flow of rainwater from roof gutters to a rainwater storage tank.

By doing this, water can be collected and used for various uses.