Energy - efficiency advice and assessment
Free energy efficiency advice is available from the Greater
Manchester Energy Saving Trust advice centre (GM
ESTac) to help residents improve their home energy
efficiency and reduce fuel bills. There is a wide range of
help including advice on renewable energy technologies.
The service is impartial; if you wish to undertake some of
the recommended work the Greater Manchester ESTac maintains a list
of approved energy efficiency contractors.
Toasty Rochdale Insulation Campaign
Now is a great time to think about insulating your home in
readiness for the cold winter months.
Loft and cavity wall insulation can help make your home as warm
as toast. Its like wrapping up your home in a giant 
overcoat and because of the extra warmth you're keeping in
the house, you can turn your heating down and save money on your
energy bills.
Rochdale Council is working with the Energy Saving Trust to
make homes across the borough warm and toasty. You could
be entitled to free loft and cavity wall insulation (some
lofts will require top-up insulation at £60) subject to survey.
Rochdale's Affordable Warmth Strategy
Affordable warmth is the key to ending fuel poverty. A household
is considered to be suffering from fuel poverty if it cannot afford
to keep adequately warm at reasonable cost. Fuel poverty is defined
as a household that needs to spend more than 10% of its income on
fuel to heat its home to an adequate standard of
warmth.
Vulnerable households at risk of fuel poverty may include:
- older people
- physically or mentally disabled people
- blind, partially sighted or deaf people
- people with chronic illness
- lone parents with young children
- long term unemployed or people who live on a low income
The four main aims of the affordable warmth strategy
- Raise awareness of fuel poverty across the borough
- Ensure adequate provision of advice to all residents in the
borough
- Ensure all housing in the borough is capable of providing
affordable warmth
- Improve and/or develop community involvement and partnership
working
Rochdale's Affordable
Warmth Strategy (370KB)
Warm Front grant
You may qualify for help from the Government's "Warm Front
Grant". This grant pays for insulation and heating measures
for those in receipt of one or more qualifying benefits.
Top tips
Big improvements to energy efficiency in your home can be made
quickly and cheaply by eliminating unnecessary heat loss by using
draught proofing materials such as draught proofing strips and
temporary “plastic film” secondary glazing products. They can
improve internal temperature levels and lower your energy bills. To
really make a difference consider a combination of measures such as
insulating your roof space with at least 270mm of insulation quilt,
insulate external cavity walls and draught proof doors and windows
where you can. There are many companies offering this service with
appropriate accreditation.
Reducing your space and water heating costs can be grouped
into three general categories:
No cost
- If you have a room thermostat, turn it down by one
or two degrees. This can make up to a 10% saving on your
heating bill over a period of a year without a noticeable change in
room temperature.
- Close the curtains to your living room and bedrooms as soon as
it gets dark to reduce heat loss through the windows. Heavy or
lined curtains are best. Annual savings are approximately £15.
- Ensure that your curtains do not lie over the top of the
radiators. Heat rises up into the space between them and the window
and some of this heat will be lost through the glass.
- Do not overfill kettles and remember to put lids onto pans when
heating water.
- Keep doors to unheated rooms closed so that at least one living
room is warm.
Low cost
- Fit shelf deflectors above radiators and fit reflectors panels
behind the radiators to throw heat forward into the room.
- Fit compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs) in rooms instead of
standard bulbs. Although these lamps are more expensive to buy
initially they last approximately 8-10 times longer than a normal
bulb and some even quote a 12 year life! Typically, a 20 watt CFL
has the light output of a 100 Watt incandescent bulb and they use
60-80% less electricity. CFLs are also ideal for outside security
lights which are left on over night (they are not suitable for
movement detector type security lighting or for
dimmer switches).
- Do not forget to switch off lights when you leave a room
and remember, if you leave the TV and video on
standby they will still use some electricity.
- Check that your hot water cylinder, if your heating
system has one, has a good thick jacket and that it is well
fitting. Heat loss from an uninsulated hot water cylinder can be
substantial. A good insulation jacket is relatively cheap and
quickly pays for itself in energy saved.
- Fit temperature controls to radiators (TRVs) and save up to £40
a year.
- Fit simple draught excluders to doors and windows. It can save
you up to £25 a year. Note: Do
not block ventilation that has been specifically provided for fuel
burning appliances such as gas fires, boilers etc as this can
create a risk of carbon monoxide poisoning.
Ideas with a pay-back period usually less than five
years
- Insulate your loft with at least 270mm of insulation.
- Cavity insulate your walls where applicable. Up to 35% of all
heat lost is through the walls. Savings are generally between £75 -
£150 a year. You may qualify for a grant toward the cost of these
measures – contact your local Energy Saving Trust Advice
Centre (Greater Manchester ESTac).
- A heating boiler more than 15 years old will be much less
efficient than a modern one, typically only 60% efficient. When the
time comes to replace it with a high efficiency modern design,
typically 90% efficient or higher, you could save up to 30% on
your heating bill. A saving of £100 - £200 a year. Buy an "A" class
energy rated boiler if you can!
- If you fit timers and thermostats to your central heating and
hot water system you can save up to £85 a year through better
control of your heating system.
More energy conservation measures
If you have taken all the above tips into consideration and want
to further conserve energy or are making additions or alterations
to your property you may need to consider double glazed windows and
doors.