It is no surprise to anyone that the cost of living is on the rise. At the moment it feels like absolutely everything is going up in price. One thing that is most certainly going up in price is energy and with a predicted 78% increase coming this winter now is the time to see what changes you can make to ensure that your home is as energy efficient as possible. Your architect will be able to discuss opportunities to make your home energy-efficient but below are a few of our suggestions!
Changing the Layout of Your Home
Modern-day homes and apartments tend to favour open-plan layouts. Whilst there is nothing wrong with this, it doesn’t allow for good temperature control between the rooms. This means that when your heating is on, you’re paying to heat large rooms which could be unnecessary. If you are in a position to change this and have walls installed to break up the open plan elements this helps with ensuring that you only pay to heat the exact rooms that you need – as long as you turn off the radiators in rooms that you aren’t using; this is especially helpful in winter.
It isn’t just heating bills that benefit from this. Smaller rooms tend to be able to be lit by less strong light bulbs which over a number of years can add up to a saving too!
Loft Insulation
If you haven’t already then looking at getting your loft insulated is a must. We lose lots of heat through the top of our homes, so insulating this and reducing the amount of heat our homes can lose is a must. If you have been considering a loft conversion then now is the time to do that too! Of course, a loft conversion is a hefty investment but if can also add value to your home, so if it is something that you wanted to do anyway then it is worthwhile. The process of converting your loft and insulating it at the same time really can help.
Being Sensible
Whilst there are drastic steps you can take to change your home, these are going to have the maximum impact if you take sensible steps with using energy in your home too. It is important to get back into the habit of doing things like switching off lights and radiators in rooms that we aren’t using. It can seem like a pain and as though it only makes a tiny difference but over the course of a winter season these small changes really do add up to a big difference. Get someone to carry out a check on things like windows and doors and ensure they’re letting in drafts too!
If you’re looking to carry out a home renovation project then speak to the architect you’re working with about being energy efficient and what they can implement in your home to make a difference long term.
*Collaborative post