How to make your home greener this summer: Top tips for an energy-efficient house to save money and the planet
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We all want a warm, cosy home that’s free from damp and easy to heat.
According to Home Energy Scotland, heating and hot water can account for half of our energy bills – which is why it’s so important to have a system that meets your needs.
Clean energy systems like air source heat pumps and Solar PV can be a good option if you want to keep your bills down and cut your carbon emissions. Plus installing a renewable heating system such as an air source heat pump is more affordable than ever, as there’s funding available to Scottish residents to help you make the switch.
If you’re looking to replace your old boiler, a Home Energy Scotland grant of up to £7,500 is available now to help you make the switch – and the summer is the ideal time to do it! There is also an additional £7,500 available as an interest free loan.
Helping bring green energy into your home - Aira’s top tips
Here are some easy steps to take now to make your home warmer, more sustainable and cheaper to run.
Around a fifth of the UK’s carbon emissions come from our homes – and three-quarters of that comes from heating and hot water. Air source heat pumps provide an energy-efficient, low-carbon alternative to gas and oil boilers and are suitable for nearly every type of home.
Air source heat pumps work by taking heat from the air outside your home and turns it into energy to heat your home and hot water – and for every unit of electricity it uses, it produces four units of heat which “makes them a very efficient alternative to a gas or oil boiler for heating your home”, according to the Energy Saving Trust. This means that air source heat pumps are four times more energy efficient than gas or oil boilers, making them a great choice for your pocket and for the environment.
As well as being good news for the planet, air source heat pumps are also cheaper to run than your traditional gas boiler or electric heaters so you could save hundreds of pounds on your annual heating bills. Good for your pocket and the planet, and you will never pay a gas heating bill again!
You can even combine them with other renewable technologies like solar panels, which can generate the electricity needed to power a heat pump, cutting your energy bills (and carbon emissions) even further.
Keep the heat in
Proper insulation and draught-proofing can dramatically cut heat loss, making your home feel warmer and more comfortable. It’s also an effective way to reduce your energy bills and shrink your carbon emissions too.
Options include:
Invest in the latest tech
Heat pumps help to keep heating bills down and are kinder to the planet - a real win-win, and with grants and funding available, there’s never been a better time to explore your options.
Loft and roof insulation
Insulating your loft is crucial because hot air rises; uninsulated lofts can lose up to a quarter of your home's heat. Provided they’re easy to access, most lofts are quick and easy to insulate, which will rapidly reduce your heating bill when it gets colder.
Cavity wall insulation
In an uninsulated home, about a third of the heat generated can escape through the walls. Houses built from the 1990s onwards have wall insulation to keep the heat in, but homes built between the 1920s and the 1990s generally have ‘cavity walls’ made up of two walls with a gap in between. These can be insulated by injecting insulation material into the hollow from outside.
Solid wall insulation
Older homes built before the 1920s usually have solid walls, but these can still benefit from insulation (which is installed either on the inside or the outside) which can lower heating costs and make your home more comfortable.
Deal with damp and condensation
Issues with black mould and damp in homes regularly make the headlines and for good reason – it can affect our health as well as damaging property.
It’s also crucial to properly manage condensation at home. Easy steps to take include:
● Move furniture away from walls so air can circulate
● Cut the amount of moisture produced inside your house: keep lids on pans when cooking and dry your clothes outside whenever you can
● Ventilate properly so that any humid air created can leave the house – this means using the extractor fan when you’re cooking, showering or bathing, and making sure vents in windows stay open.
Why summer is the ideal time to transform your home
Summer might seem like a strange time to think about heating systems – but it's actually the best time to embrace clean energy in your home.
The warmer months are perfect for installing an air source heat pump because you don't have to live without heating for a few days, plus it'll be all up and running as the colder weather begins again.
And with grant funding of up to £7,500 available from Home Energy Scotland, as well as an additional £7,500 interest-free loan on offer, there are plenty of reasons why you should make the switch this summer.
To find out how to make your home more energy-efficient, call Aira today to book a free home energy assessment with their Clean Energy Experts on 0330 828 1111 – lines are open from Mon–Fri: 8am–8pm, Sat–Sun: 9am–6pm.
For more information, visit http://www.airahome.com/
For all you need to know about heat pumps, see https://www.scotsman.com/sponsored/heat-pumps-all-you-need-to-know-and-more-including-grant-funding-available-in-scotland-5143976