Suppliers of: Celcon concrete blocks lightweight concrete blocks concrete thin joint system
H+H UK LTD manufacture a wide range of aircrete blocks (AAC), a lightweight Concrete Blocks to suit all types of wall construction.
Useful Resources:
- BIM files available on BPi
- H+H Academy: Online training and resources Click here
H+H is the UK’s largest manufacturer of aircrete products. We manufacture the market leading range of Celcon Blocks, including Foundation Blocks, Plus Blocks and Vertical Wall Panels.
H+H aircrete products offer a complete building material that meets the requirements of the Building Regulations, with the flexibility to offer solutions to hospitals, schools, offices, industrial warehouses and housing (social and private).
Used in partition, separating and external walls (solid or cavity), firewalls and as an infill to framed construction, our products provide durability and fire resistance as well as superb thermal and sound insulation.
Main Product Ranges:
Celcon Blocks
Celcon Blocks in Solar, Standard, High Strength and Super Strength Grades are the most commonly used aircrete block in the H+H range. All Celcon Blocks are BBA certified, are fire resistant (100mm walls, up to 4 hours, 2 hours if loadbearing) and have been classified 0 surface spread of flame and non-combustible to Class A1 (the highest class).
Celcon Block Solar Grade
Celcon Blocks Solar Grade is principally used where enhanced thermal performance is required. With superior thermal conductivity Solar Grade Celcon Blocks are suitably loadbearing for two storey buildings and can be used below DPC.
Celcon Block Standard Grade
Celcon Blocks Standard Grade is BBA certified and has a compressive strength of 3.6N/mm2. Due to its all-round performance, it is possible for a 100mm Standard grade Celcon Block to be used throughout a build, eliminating on-site confusion.
Celcon Block High Strength & Super Strength Grade
H+H’s Celcon Blocks High Strength Grade (7.3N/mm2) and Super Strength Grade (8.7N/mm2) are used principally where higher compressive strengths are required such as in the foundations and lower storeys of three storey buildings, piers under high vertical loads and in multi-storey buildings.
Celcon Vertical Wall Panels
Are the new generation of mechanically handled aircrete products that builds on the efficiency of thin-layer construction. These products offer all the benefits of aircrete material with proven site productivity.
Developed to enhance the key benefits of our thin-joint system; speed and quality of build with reduced waste. H+H UK’s Vertical Wall Panels offer all the attributes of aircrete as a building material whilst offering additional value to the project.
H+H Vertical Wall Panels are made to extremely tight manufacturing dimensional tolerances, supplied specifically for use with a combination of ancillary products and bonded using H+H’s proprietary element mortar to provide a nominal 3mm joint. This ensures a quality and quick build with little or no site wastage.
Celcon Plus Blocks
Celcon Plus Blocks are an alternative to the 440 x 215mm face format block and are suitable for the same applications. They are longer at 630mm long and come in a variety of thicknesses.
Celcon Foundation Blocks
Available in Standard Grade (3.6N/mm²) and High Strength Grade (7.3N/mm²), Foundation Blocks can be used to support 3 storey constructions. They are suitable for the support of solid or cavity walls, framed construction or suspended floors, including beam and block.
Jumbo Bloks
Jumbo Bloks are produced with the latest technology, offering a high degree of dimensional accuracy with sharp arises, which make them ideal for use with Celfix mortar.
Celcon Block Coursing Units
Coursing Units are produced from the same material as all H+H aircrete and are suitable for the same applications as conventional size Celcon Blocks, allowing consistency within the building fabric.
Celfix Mortar
Celfix Mortar is cement based and supplied as a dry, pre-mixed powder in 25kg bags. It has been designed to replace the traditional sand:cement mortar and is used with building with our Thin-Joint System. Celfix Mortar starts to set within 10 minutes of application and approaches full design strength in just 1 to 2 hours.
H+H Victorian home swapped for EPC A self-build
Having lived in an older Victorian property for many years, Perry Champion wanted to build his own energy efficient home. Airtightness and lower fuel bills were the goals for this self-build. To help achieve this he chose to build a masonry house using both Standard Grade and High Strength Grade Celcon Blocks.
Having experience as a brickwork contractor and being Brickwork Director at The Champion Group, Perry was familiar with Celcon Blocks and knew they could achieve what he wanted for his home. He also saw Celcon Blocks as a good choice of building material as they are lightweight and easy to work with.
Perry explained his choice of block, saying: “Celcon Blocks have excellent thermal properties that help to make the house extremely energy efficient. As a brickwork contractor I’ve always liked H+H aircrete blocks because they are light, workable and an all-round good product.”
Celcon Standard Grade 100mm Blocks were used to build the structure’s external cavity walls, with 140mm High Strength Grade units being used at the rear of the property to help support two large sliding doors.
Choosing an efficient building fabric is key to creating a home with excellent thermal performance. Final SAP calculations found an average external wall U-value of 0.14 W/m²K for Perry’s new home. This far exceeds the requirements for wall U-values outlined in the 2022 amendments to Part L of the building regulations of 0.18 W/m²K. To achieve Passivhaus certification – the gold standard in energy efficiency – wall U-values should be between 0.10 W/m2K and 0.15 W/m2K.
To further enhance thermal efficiency of the masonry walls, Perry used low thermal conductivity wall ties, minimising heat loss from the structure. The house is wrapped in a waterproof membrane and finished with attractive larch cladding.
While Perry’s home did not meet the requirements for Passivhaus accreditation, it is still incredibly well insulated and thermally efficient. The house achieved top marks for energy efficiency receiving an EPC rating of A, with the only suggested improvement being the addition of a wind turbine. This result was accomplished through a combination of an airtight building fabric, an air source heat pump, mechanical MVHR, and solar panels.
The 4,000 square feet four-bedroom five-bathroom home took nine months and 10 days to finish with Perry acting as a full-time project manager for the build.
Perry documented the build on his Instagram account @shawfield_next_chapter_, where you can see him go from foundations to finished house.
H+H UK EPDs: What you need to know
Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) are crucial for housebuilders and contractors who want to make informed decisions about building materials, with a focus on embodied carbon.
Many housebuilders have already published their own ‘zero carbon’ targets, prompting manufacturers to calculate the embodied carbon of their products. The expansion of building regulations to include requirements for embodied carbon is also under consideration. A proposed amendment, known as ‘Part Z’, would introduce mandatory assessments of whole life carbon emissions for construction projects if enacted.
EPDs are third party verified documents produced by manufacturers to detail the environmental impact of individual products.
H+H offers EPDs for our Standard Grade Celcon Blocks and our Vertical Wall Panels. We are also in the process of developing EPDs for our specialist grade Celcon Blocks.
Whole life or up front carbon emissions?
EPDs are valuable but only if the reader understands what the information is telling them and considers the context in which the product will be used. Comparing figures from different EPDs is not straightforward and it pays to look closely at the numbers rather than any commentary.
The focus should be on ‘whole life’ carbon emissions. This figure, also known as ‘cradle to grave’, includes: the raw materials and manufacture of a product; transport and construction; the building in use, and disposal of the material at the end of the building’s life. In an EPD these are categorised under sections:
• A1-A3 - Product
• A4-A5 - Construction
• B1-B7 - Use
• C1-C4 - End of life
Any embodied carbon figure quoting only the ‘up front’ manufacture (A1-A3) is not a true reflection of the environmental impact of a product.
For most people the most relevant figure in an EPD is the Total Global Warming Potential (GWP), measured in kgCO2e. This information is often given in a useful ‘Environmental Data Summary’ within the document, however extreme care must be taken to check what information the manufacturer has chosen to include here.
A manufacturer interested in full transparency should report the whole life carbon emissions figure: ‘GWP-total, A1-C4 (KgCo2e)’. The H+H EPD certainly includes this measurement in the data summary. However, manufacturers can decide what information they declare in the summary, so some will choose to publish ‘GWP-total, A1-A3’ here (the ‘up front’ figure), particularly if it shows a lower value than the whole life number.
The ‘Declared unit’ should also be reviewed as not all manufacturers report figures based on the same unit of measurement. For example, the figures for aircrete blocks are based on one metre cubed whereas some other products are measured by a square or linear metre. To compare like with like some additional calculation may be required.
Just as important is to take into consideration how the product will be used in the construction project. For example, the choice of material used for the structural walls will dictate what other materials are needed to complete the wall structure.
For aircrete internal walls the calculation is relatively simple since the wall is built entirely of aircrete. For composite panels the picture is more complicated as the embodied carbon of each individual product: timber, board, waterproof membrane, insulation, for example, will need to be considered. And again, the figure used should be the whole life embodied carbon.
Embodied carbon calculations are relatively new and there can be a lack of consistency in the way the figures are presented. Guidance and regulation will eventually standardise this, but in the meantime, it is down to the user to focus on the detail to make sure that the correct comparisons are being made.
For further advice on how to interpret an EPD and to access EPDs for our products go to our website https://www.hhcelcon.co.uk
