24 October 2024
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With rising energy prices over recent years, most of us are a lot more aware of the cost to heat and power our homes. This is compounded by the fact that Scotland has some of the leakiest homes in Europe when it comes to retaining heat.
We’re also more aware of the impact that our home has on the environment, such as gas boilers emitting harmful carbon, and think about how we can make a better future for our families.
That’s where home retrofit can make a difference. Retrofitting simply means making improvements to our home so that it uses energy more efficiently. So instead of moving home, or building from scratch, you can add measures such as insulation, solar panels, or upgrade windows to improve your home. If you’re still not sure if retrofit is an option for you, here are some of the benefits to you and your family by going through a home retrofit.
Fabric-first approach
At EcoCosi, a home retrofit service from Changeworks, we adopt a fabric first approach to retrofit, meaning making changes to your home before looking at adding things such as renewable technologies. This helps to prevent potential issues, get the most out of your retrofit, and prioritise the work and your budget.
It’s also important to get an assessment of your home done. This will look at your energy usage, your retrofit needs, but also your aspirations for your home. Every home is unique so it’s important to do this first to make sure you get the right plans for your home. Depending on your home and how efficient it already is, some steps might need more or less attention, which is where an expert assessment is key.
Insulation and ventilation
We’d recommend looking at insulating your home first. We need to make the home warmer and able to hold a warmer temperature longer. This makes your home more efficient to run, more comfortable and healthier to live in. It won’t be a generic one size fits all and an assessment can give good insight into the best options. This also helps ensure areas you lose heat the most such as draughts and cold spots get specific attention.
From there it’s important to consider ventilation. Now that you’ve got a nice warm insulation layer added to the house, moisture from daily household activities (breathing, bathing, drying clothes, cooking) is trapped in the house. You therefore need to make sure that there is good ventilation to get airflow through the home to remove this excess moisture. This is because excess moisture might cause condensation in any cooler area of the home which potentially could lead to mould or rot.
Sustainable heating systems
After you’ve looked at insulation and ventilation, we’d then suggest looking at decarbonising your heating system, perhaps with a heat pump if appropriate. And finally look at renewables like solar panels for your electricity or hot water.
Working through your retrofit this way is very effective to make sure your home is energy efficient, but also to avoid problems like mold along the way and ensure your home’s energy system is working in harmony.
EcoCosi from Changeworks can support you with a home assessment, help find a trusted installer, and ensure the work has been done correctly. Our retrofit experts are with you every step of the way to reduce your home’s carbon emissions and improve its energy efficiency for a warmer, drier, easier to heat home.
Find out more about home retrofit and how EcoCosi can help you at: https://changeworksinfo.org/home-retrofit
