Where to start?
It would be good to ask yourself the following questions.
What is most important to you in your energy saving journey? Lower bills? More comfort? Or a lower carbon footprint?
Answering this question will help to reveal the best pathway to achieve your goals., for example if lower bills are a priority, then you might do well to upgrade the heating controls on an existing gas boiler, whereas if lowering your carbon footprint is more important then working towards a heat pump installation will be key.
For a deeper dive into this important topic please click here.
How long do you think you’ll remain in your property?
Different measures have different payback periods, and its only natural to want to feel immediate benefits in the wallet. Though, no matter what the return on investment might be in pounds and pence its hard to put a price on more comfort, and increasing a homes energy rating will add to its value when you come to move.
How much budget do you have?
This question needs careful consideration as energy efficiency measures will deliver savings on bills and different speeds, and that plays into these decisions, especially if budget is competing with other household upgrades such as a refurbished kitchen or bathroom.
Might you be eligible for grant funding?
The grant landscape is always shifting often with various schemes open at the same time with different offers depending on your circumstances. Please get in touch for up-to-date advice or contact the Footprint trust by clicking here.
What do you know already about your home?
The main indicator about your home will be your lived experience and your bills. As well as costs your bills will contain valuable consumption data to help you compare with national averages.
You may also have a recent EPC that will provide some recommendations, though they need to be approached with caution as they are automatically generated and may not always be the best.
In the colder months Wight Community Energy can loan you a thermal camera which can reveal things about your property, click here for details.
And lastly Wight Community Energy have a qualified domestic energy assessor and retrofit advisor available that can visit your home to produce a detailed report, click here for details.
Do you want to include your transport in the journey?
Often it can be found that a households fastest way to save money and reduce their energy use (and carbon footprint) is not through home upgrades but by switching to electric transport, see our blogs and electric vehicle section for more details of how that can be.
Wight Community Energy is able to provide completely impartial advice to homeowners, altogether free from commercial motivation and will only steer people towards the best route that fits their individual property and personal objectives.
