Eco-bling

I have been talking to a number of people recently who have all lost the plot when it comes to understanding what eco is all about, they’ve gone technology mad. They have been telling me all about their expensive renewable technology systems they are installing or about to. What’s wrong with that you might ask, well a lot if they haven’t installed the energy saving fundamentals first. It’s utterly pointless installing a ground source heat pump or biomass boiler designed to meet your current ebergy needs if you haven’t upgraded your insulation and reduced your energy demand.

If you upgrade after then you’ve over designed your renewable system and wasted money. The only green benefit in installing the technology in advance of insulation is seen in the form of green wads of cash for the eco-version of the old notorious double glazing salesman, yes they do exist and beware! Solar water heating has been a recent example, but any product range where the public are not fully up to speed on costs there’s someone out there waiting to fleece you! Don’t be taken in by knowledgeable (read … crafty) salesmen who want to sell you their own range, think about the bigger picture before you sign on the dotted line. I prefer to turn people away sometimes if we haven’t got the right solution for them than sell for the sake of it.

Please ensure you up-grade your loft insulation to 300mm (or as near as you can afford), do the same in the floors to what ever depth you can get away with under your floor boards and seal the edges, if it’s a concrete floor it might not be possible to improve. Then seal the drafts around windows by fitting draft strips and ensure you have at least double glazing throughout. If you can improve the insulation on your walls with cavity wall insulation then do it as it will make a real difference.

Change your light bulbs over to the new compact fluorescents, upgrade your extract fans in your kitchen to one with a humidistat, to extract excess moisture when the relative humidity rises, and make sure you’ve got a decent bathroom fan, you’ll need to fit these to help extract the excess moisture in the home which builds up in the air when your property is no longer leaky. If you’ve got a heating system, make sure you’ve got thermostatic radiator valves and an insulated water jacket to your cylinder.

If you are then at a loose end and have spare cash by all means consider renewables, such as solar thermal first, then if you really want ground source that’s great as it will be far more cost effective but don’t forget they work best with under floor heating as they operate at lower temperatures than gas boilers.

I am really not knocking renewables, I just want people to understand saving energy should come first, as for lifestyle changes to reduce your demand try that as well, maybe don’t buy a plasma TV and try not leaving it on standby. If you’re not convinced buy a check meter and watch it whizz!