Case study | Domestic retrofit case study

BHESCo’s Energy Saving Team visited the property and produced a report highlighting all the ways that energy was being wasted, recommending the most cost-effective ways this could be improved with retrofit measures. Particular areas of concern were the draughts coming from the chimney as well as single glazed windows.

Importantly, BHESCo noted that the property had an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) of a low D, which would mean that under government guidelines Muriel would not be eligible for the full Feed-in-Tariff were she to install solar panels.

To increase the energy efficiency of the property and improve the EPC, BHESCo designed and installed a suite of energy saving measures, the most significant element of which was to replace the thin single glazed windows with double glazing.

To reduce draughts in the property, BHESCo installed a draught excluder brush in the letterbox and a curtain rail for the front and back doors.

We recommended installing a chimney balloon to block draughts in the chimney flue, as well as a radiator reflector panel behind the external wall mounted radiator.

To help reduce electricity use, we recommended replacing eleven existing lights with energy saving LED alternatives.

As a result of the retrofit measures that were installed, the EPC of the property was increased to a ‘C’, which means that Muriel will be eligible to receive the full Feed-in-Tariff if she installs rooftop solar panels.

Because the property will now require less energy as a result of the measures installed, Muriel can expect to save £150 a year on her energy bills as well as significantly reducing the environmental impact of the property. 

BHESCo are now developing a 2kW solar array which will be paid for and installed using funds invested from our shareholder members (our ‘Pay As You Save’ model).