Why energy certificates are being implemented. Its not just about selling your home, clients have lowered their bills from over a £100 a month to £60 a month joint fuel bills.
If you are thinking of getting an Energy Assessment on your property and want to ensure that you get the best possible rating, there are things you can do now:
• Fit energy saving light bulbs - Your Energy Assessor will count the number of fixed light fittings in your property and work out the percentage of those with low energy bulbs.
• Fit a hot water tank jacket - The thickness of your hot water jacket will be measured during your assessment
• Fit or top up your Loft insulation - Fitting insulation that is at least 250mm thick could cut heat loss around 30 per cent.
• Install Cavity wall insulation - If you have unfilled cavity walls, installing insulation could cut heat loss by over 30 per cent.
In terms of saving energy and reducing your carbon emissions, cavity wall insulation has the greatest effect in relation to the financial outlet.
Top ten tips to save energy around the home
They say you have to speculate to accumulate and by following these simple top ten tips, you're guaranteed a great return on your investment, both financially and environmentally.
The energy saving measures below could help you shave up to £300 off your annual energy bill and enable you to reduce your carbon dioxide emissions by two tonnes. Here's how you do it.
1. Brush up on energy saving
Eliminate draughts and wasted heat by installing a cheap, easy-to-fix brush or PVC seal on your exterior doors. Letterboxes and keyholes should be covered too.
2. Draught dodgers
Draughts also get in through gaps in floorboards and skirting boards, which also allow heat to escape in the winter months. Filling them with newspaper, beading or sealant will help you stop throwing heat (and your money!) away.
3. A bright idea & buy an energy saving light bulb
Trade your ordinary light bulbs for energy saving ones. Costing from just £3.50, energy saving light bulbs last 12 times longer and for each bulb you fit, you could save up to £9 on your annual electricity bill or £100 over the bulb's lifetime.
4. Treat your tank & give it a jacket
An insulating jacket for a hot water tank only costs a few pounds and pays for itself within months. Fit one that's at least 75mm (3") thick and you could save around £20 a year. If every UK household fitted a jacket on their tank tomorrow, we'd save over £95 million of energy every year!
5. Lofty ambitions
Insulating your loft is one of the simplest ways to save energy and you can even install it yourself. Insulate you loft today and in a year you could between £180 and £220.
6. Look for cavities
Around 33% of the heat lost in your home is through the walls, so insulating them can be the most cost-effective way to save energy in the home - you could save £130 to £160 on your annual heating bills! Cavity wall insulation will also keep you cool in the summer and warm in winter. It's straightforward, inexpensive and hassle-free. If we all had our cavity walls filled tomorrow, together we'd save over £962 million of energy every year.
7. Boilers - it may not be broke but it might still need fixing!
If your boiler is over 15 years old it's probably time to replace it. By law, new boilers must now be of the high-efficiency condensing type. They can help you save up to a third on your heating bills and even more if you upgrade to modern controls.
8. Look for the logo
When replacing appliances, look for ones displaying the energy saving recommended logo. Energy saving appliances use less energy and could save you up to £45 a year.
9. See double...and cut heat loss by 50%
Double-glazing cuts heat loss through windows by 50% and could cut your heating bill by £80 to £100.
10. Take our online home energy check
Still not sure which are your home's weak spots? Why not complete an online energy check? Go to Energy Saving Trust on www.est.org.uk
If you are unaware of whether you have or could have cavity wall insulation installed simply contact a local cavity wall insulation installer. They can be found in the yellow pages and on yell.com under 'Insulation Installers'. Many of these installers offer grants towards the cost of any work they do and when they visit your home to check whether you need cavity wall insulation they could also check your loft insulation at the
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