This blog was first posted on YouGen

Are they really worth it?

Like a lot of things in improving energy efficiency, radiator reflectors can devolve into a complex argument. For example, radiators are not actually radiators. They are also convectors and conductors. And radiator reflectors only deal with the radiant heat.

A single panel radiator will have 50% of the surface area facing the wall. Fins on the back of the radiator will increase heating surface area but also increase the convection effect. Double rads will have only 25% of their surface facing the wall and double finned, double radiators will have the lowest radiated heat emission and highest convection emission.

Complicated isn’t it?

To try and un-complicate the question, we have first to ask two other questions :

1. Is the house, and specifically the walls, well insulated? That is, really well insulated – 100mm plus thickness? If so, there is no benefit from reflectors as the heat is barely escaping through the walls anyway.

2. Are they older, single panel radiators or more modern radiators with fins on the back? If they are older type then reflectors will have a good impact. But they will have a smaller impact on finned radiators.

That is not to say that they should not be installed if you have modern radiators. In terms of saving energy every little helps and reflectors are relatively cheap and easy to install.

Which radiator reflectors to install?

There are plenty of different types out there but the ones with a saw-tooth like surface are the best as they encourage convection and improve the warm air movement around the room.

If you have a poorly insulated wall I would suggest first gluing the reflector to a thin sheet of insulation (Kingspan, Celotex or similar) and fixing that (with glue) to the wall behind the radiator.

First posted on YouGen

About the author: Tim Pullen is eco-editor for Homebuilding & Renovating magazine, author of Simply Sustainable Homes and founder of sustainable property consultancy WeatherWorks.

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Led by powerhouses like GE and Google, the corporate sustainability movement in the U.S. is gaining momentum and proving “going green” saves the planet while saving money. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has encouraged companies to work off waste through its second annual Battle of the Buildings competition. 245 buildings across the country are now engaged in a friendly fight for green supremacy.

Commercial buildings in the U.S. spend more than $100 billion annually on energy, accounting for 20% of the nation’s total energy consumption. Buildings with energy star certified plans emit 35% fewer greenhouse gasses and burn 35% less energy than typical structures. Water, waste, insulation, lighting, and building materials all become fair game, leaving the participating building both energy efficient and cheaper to operate.

The sustainability groundswell packs a big punch. GE’s Ecomagination initiative has saved the company $130 million in energy resources and shaved 22% off their own energy consumption. Google has invested millions in wind power to cool its massive data centers. Sustainability is proving not to be just a grassroots movement.

The Battle of the Buildings competition pits office buildings, schools, churches, hotels, and banks against each other to measure whom, over the course of a year, can reduce their energy use intensity (EUI) by the largest percentage. EUI is a measure of a building’s energy use and is calculated by taking total energy consumption and dividing it by total floor space.

The EPA selects finalists in July and the 2011 winner in November. “We’re harnessing our nation’s innovative capacity to save money on electric bills, create a cleaner environment and protect the health of American families,” says EPA Administrator Lisa P. Jackson.

ENERGY STAR symbolizes the government’s standard for energy efficiency. Although the EPA’s competition focuses on commercial buildings, individuals can benefit from the same ENERGY STAR quality, performance, and efficiency. Homebuilders, partnering with the program, now offer green-building designs and responsible construction, delivering results similar to their commercial peers.

Malli Homes in Yelm, Washington personifies the new green builder by constructing homes given the ENERGY STAR approval. North Carolina’s Vincent Properties Construction delivers ENERGY STAR homes designed to be 20-30% more energy efficient than those built to standard residential code. Michigan’s Ferraro Builders constructs high-performance, custom homes implementing the latest in building sciences, bringing the ENERGY STAR to more discriminating buyers.

Skyscraper or single-family home, green building means hope for both the environment and budgets.

About the Author:

S. M. Combs produces articles for the solar panels blog and the solar battery chargers blog. She has a master degree in sciences and worked as consultant for the South West Scotland Energy Agency. Now she is retired and provides free resources to help people get additional info on energy efficiency starting from small devices (i.e. cell phones) to home solar systems.

Photo Credits: Shannon Combs

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However high you turn up the heating, a cold draught howling around your ankles is still uncomfortable, yet lots of the products on sale at the DIY shops don’t manage to cut it off.

Well, thanks to English Heritage, by way of Hook Norton Low Carbon, I’ve discovered the answer for casement windows and doors. It’s silicone bath sealant and vaseline.

First clean the window casement or door and the frame and edges thoroughly, removing loose paint (and mould if you’ve got it). Dry well.

Spread a generous layer of vaseline along the edge of the casement or door along all edges. Shut the window / door and fill the gap with silicone. You can smooth it off with a wet finger, or knife.

Leave it to dry for 24 hours. As long as you got the vaseline right you will be able to open the door, and find yourself with a custom fit seal that exactly fits the gap, however uneven it is.

As I’ve got lots of plastic windows, I haven’t tried this myself. But if you do, please let us know at YouGen how well it works.

First publsihed on the YouGen blog. For more tips on energy efficiency or renewables, please visit the YouGen website.

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Talk to your local builder long enough and the pressures of meeting the ever changing standards of building regulations will inevitably come up. And not in a nice way. Is there any rhyme or reason behind the seemingly endless changes in regulations for new builds? Well yes, there is.

The construction industry has been given a timeline punctuated with various levels of sustainable building practices, which should culminate in 2016 with carbon neutral buildings – otherwise known as Level 6 Building Code. Carbon neutral buildings should create as much energy as it takes to build them, or to create the materials that are used to build them. They should be airtight and superbly insulated to create the most thermally efficient building possible.

Good architects and builders are already achieving Level 5, but there is a large hill to climb in the next five years if we are to achieve the ultimate low energy model of the German Passivhaus system.

Many in the industry are more concerned with the leaky old houses that we all live in – well 26m of us anyway. The Great British Refurb Campaign is working hard with the government and industry leaders to create a plan that will help the rest of us to improve the energy performance of our properties. Adding insulation and solar panels or renewable energy to a property costs money that many of us don’t have. The governments plan is called ‘The Green Deal’ which should provide applicants with a loan of up to £6,500 to improve their property. The 25 year loan will be carried by the property and will be passed on to the new owners should the current owners move on. Those who decide to invest in new technology and create their own energy can potentially save vast amounts on their energy bills (up to 80%) and earn at the same time, by selling any excess back to the national grid under the new Feed In Tariff.

The energy performance of a property is already recorded in the EPC report carried out by estate agents for every property that is marketed. This report will be increasingly important over the next few years. We could soon be reaching the point where the thermal efficiency of a property might actually make it more desirable and add a premium to the final asking price. A strong argument for even the harshest climate change sceptics!

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The sust-it website ranks over 7000 household electrical goods, from Tumble Dryers to Computers, by their running costs and energy usage. This makes it well placed to reveal the UK’s most energy efficient appliances and electricals that were available in 2010. By choosing the most energy efficient electricals you could save over £650 pa off your bills, compared to buying inefficient models.

Top ranking household electrical products in 2010:

1. Machines – Panasonic NA-168VG2
2. Tumble Dryers – Siemens WT46W566
3. Wash Dryers – Hoover HDB854D
4. Larder Fridges (Medium sized) – Siemens KI25RP60
5. Chest Freezers (Medium sized) – Liebherr GTP2356
6. Fridge Freezers (Medium sized) – Gorenje RF60309O
7. Television 40 inch – Sharp LC-40LE821E
8. Satellite Set-Top Box HD –Grundig GUFSDTR500HD
9. Blu-ray / HD-DVD Players – Sony BDP-S770
10. Desktop Computer – Apple Mac mini (MC270LL)

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What’s the best energy efficiency measure you’ve taken at home. It may be the one that saved you the most off your heating bills, or the easy, quick fix that blocks off the draught that used to howl around your ankles while you watched TV. Or maybe it’s the ingenious bodge job, that didn’t cost you a penny.

Whatever you’ve done we want to hear about it, so that other people can copy it, and stay warm for less this winter too.

To encourage you to share your triumphs with us we’re giving away two fabulous Geo Minim energy monitors. They make it easy to see how much energy you’re using at a glance, by using a visual representation as well as numbers.

Entering the competition is easy, just add a photo or text onto our facebook page YouGenUK. There will be prizes for the best idea and for the best photo.

But you’ll need to do it soon. The competition closes on 30 November.

First published on YouGen blog. For more information on  energy effieciency or renewables visit the YouGen website.

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Why is it that people starting renovation projects have “so much to think about it is difficult to know where to start”? I am yet to meet a self-builder undertaking a new build that makes that complaint. Maybe the answer is that renovation is not treated with the same consideration and respect as a new build.

The essential first step is to plan and cost the renovation in the same way as a new build would be. So many renovations start work on the day the property is purchased, with a fixed budget that is simply the amount of money available, regardless of how much is needed.

A YouGen visitor has asked what energy efficiency measures should be considered in the renovation of: An 1840s brick, solid wall construction house. Current heating: a rayburn for hot water plus economy 7 night storage heaters. It’s off mains gas, has a south facing roof, and land which offers potential for wood supply and maybe a wind turbine. The windows are single glazed with rotten frames. Currently no insulation at all. 

To plan properly the renovator first needs to understand how the building was designed to work. For example, does it have breathing walls, where are the air bricks, is there ventilation in the roof space, what are the ‘must-do’s’ (rotten window frames), what are the no-no’s? The fact that this may be more a refurbishment than a renovation does not make the planning and budgeting any less important.

The 5 key steps, in order of priority, are: 

1. Energy conservation

Insulation and draught proofing. This means working out the heat load in the same way as for a new build and planning the insulation and air-tightness to meet the desired consumption figure. This is not as easy as it would be for a new build as the U-values of each element (wall, window, roof, etc.) need to be calculated.

2. Windows & Doors

To replace or not. Replacement double-glazed windows are not necessarily essential and consideration should be given to alternatives. Secondary double-glazing can be more cost effective and give more flexibility. The decision will impact on the overall heat load and will feed back into the calculations.

3. Heating system & controls

A gas or oil boiler over 10 years old will probably need replacing but so will the control system. Good controls that allow the temperature and timing of heat delivery to each room are essential to a good system. In this case the night-storage heaters will have to be replaced (woefully inefficient) and a new distribution system installed as well. 

4. Heating distribution

Radiators, skirting heating or underfloor heating. The decision on this will influence the decision on the primary heat source (oil or gas boiler, heat pump, solar or biomass). Underfloor heating will allow any primary heat source as it operates at very low temperatures. Radiators generally need very high temperature water and essentially exclude heat pumps. Skirting heating can be cheaper and easier to install than underfloor and some (Climaboard) will take low temperature flow. 

5. Renewable energy options

This will relate to the site and the demand from the house. Once all the other issues have been decided on (and the heating system is likely to incorporate some renewable heat technology) the requirement can be calculated more accurately and the budget needed arrived at. 

The 6th step, is to feed all these decisions back into the plan and work out the budget, and maybe go through the whole process again.  

The authour of the this blog first published on YouGen was Tim Pullen,  eco-editor for Homebuilding & Renovating magazine, author of Simply Sustainable Homes and founder of sustainable property consultancy WeatherWorks and YouGen Energy Expert.

For more information on energy efficient or renewable energy, please visit the YouGen website.

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What are the main differences between the old and the new label?
The new labelling system allows up to three classes (A+ to A+++) to be added on top of class A so as to provide consumers with more differentiation between products. If the majority of the market reaches the upper two classes (A++, A+++), the classification will be reviewed. However, it is expected that classes A+++ are close to the technological limit of possible efficiency improvements.

Manufacturers of Televisions will have to declare the energy efficiency of their products, using an A to G scale. The label must be clearly shown on the TV set and in advertisements, if the prize of TV is mentioned.

The new labels are language free and will be added in the packaging of each appliance and TVs. This will allow retailers to easily attach the label to the appliances and televisions at the point of sale and avoid today’s situation where appliances are often mislabelled.

When will the Regulations enter into force and when will the label become mandatory?
The entering into force of the Regulations is subject to the right of objection of the European Parliament and Council. If they do not object, the Regulations should enter into force around December 2010 or February 2011. The label will be allowed on a voluntary basis immediately after the entry into force of the Regulation and become mandatory on all appliances placed on the market one year after the entry into force of the Regulations.

Why does the energy label for televisions have seven classes from A to G while the energy label on refrigerators, dishwashers and washing machines goes up to class A+++?
The principle is that the energy label starts with the classes A to G when it is introduced for the first time on the market (which is currently the case for televisions). Refrigerators, dishwashers and washing machines have already been displaying the energy label with the A to G classes for more than 10 years. As a result of the technological improvement triggered by the label, around 90% of those products currently reach class A. This is why new classes have been introduced on top of class A to allow consumers to differentiate “better than A” products.

How much electricity can a household save with the highest energy class on the label?
The actual amount of energy saved depends of course on a concrete product (its size and features). For example, a refrigerator-freezer in class A+++ will consume on average 60% less than a refrigerator-freezer in class A. A dishwasher or a washing machine in class A+++ will consume on average 30% less than a dishwasher or a washing machine in class A.

Will the TV and other equipment be more expensive for consumers?
The label scheme does not increase the prices. Energy efficient products tend to cost more but they save energy. The label gives the consumer the choice which product they prefer.

Does the introduction of these new labels ban some household equipment from the market?
The label does not ban any product from the market but provides information and market transparency to assist consumers to make an informed purchasing decision. It ensures that all products are comparable using the same test methods and classification. The aim of energy labelling is to provide incentives for industry to develop further improved products and innovations beyond the “minimum” mandatory energy efficiency levels.

How will the new label be introduced at the point of sale? Is an old class A of household refrigerating appliances, dishwashers and washing machines the same as the new one?
The new label will gradually be introduced at the point of sale, meaning that consumers are likely to see the old and the new label close to each other for several months at the point of sale. However, since an old class A or B appliance is equivalent to a new class A or B, consumers will still be able to compare products at the point of sale on the basis of both energy labels.

What is the difference between energy labels, ecolabels and ecodesign?
Energy labels are adopted by the European Commission on a product by product basis (energy labelling Directive 2010/30/EU). They display ranking of products according to their energy efficiency consumption on an A to G scale, the A class (green) being the most energy efficient appliances and the G class (red) the least. Once the majority of products reaches class A, up to three classes (A+/A++/A+++) are added on top of class A.

Energy labels are mandatory for all appliances placed on the EU market and should always be clearly displayed on each appliance at the point of sale.

Ecolabels are voluntary labels adopted by the European Commission on a product by product (Ecolabel Regulation (EC/66/2010). The Ecolabel, i.e. the flower logo, may be displayed on products and promotional material on a voluntary basis if they respond to a list of the criteria pre-defined in implementing measures of the Commission and guaranteeing that the product is among the most environmentally friendly in his sector.

Ecodesign requirements are adopted by the European Commission on a product by product basis (ecodesign Directive EC/2009/125). They set minimum requirements on the performance of the products so as to improve their environmental impact. Ecodesign requirements are mandatory and must be met by all products to be allowed to be placed on the EU market. They are based on an assessment of the impact of the product on the environment throughout its life-cycle, starting from the production stage, through to production, distribution and disposal.

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The Government is talking to big national retailers about delivering the Green Deal, yet our poll on YouGen found that 84% of people would trust locally-based, specialist suppliers more than national retailers such as M&S, Tesco (15%).

The idea for the poll came from Greg Barker saying that “the other exciting thing about the green deal is that it is not just reliant on the big six energy companies, which have mixed reputations, but brings in some of our most trusted high street retailers and brands, such as Marks and Spencer and Tesco, which have strong degrees of consumer trust,”  during the energy efficiency debate at the end of June.

I was really concerned when I heard that. Retrofitting existing housing to make it more energy efficient isn’t a pile it high, sell it cheap business. Every house is different, as is the way people live in them. These things have to be taken into consideration and consumers need expert advice on the best solution for their circumstances.

Past grant schemes for insulation have tended to be one dimensional, with little regard for choice. It’s mineral wool or nothing under most of them. I hope that the Green Deal, which has a much more ambitious reach in terms of numbers covered, will also offer householders choice as to products and measures – as long as they meet the goals of reducing carbon emissions and reducing the total energy bill. This will need the involvement of local and specialist companies, as well as the big national ones.

Not only will this offer choice, but it also will help boost local businesses to provide the green jobs that Nick Clegg was talking about last week, and give consumers some peace of mind. The reputation of smaller, local companies depends on word of them delivering good service, and word soon gets out if they don’t. The nationals are much more likely to sub-contract the work losing the level of accountability for customers.

First published on YouGen. For independent advice on renewable energy visit the YouGen site.

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When a property is undergoing refurbishment, it’s an ideal time to install underfloor heating (UFH) as the system offers excellent opportunities in terms of improved energy efficiency, greater design freedom and ease of installation. But how can you tell if the system is an appropriate solution?

Installing underfloor heating (UFH) in a refurbishment property can present major challenges and it is vital to ensure that the system is suitable. Insulation in the existing property needs to be brought broadly in line with the requirements of Part L of the Building Regulations; wall insulation, double glazed windows and doors are all helpful. Floor insulation is essential and could affect floor height build-up. A good UFH supplier will undertake full heat-loss calculations and advise where shortfalls, if any, will be.

Floor constructions

Of the three standard floor constructions available – floating floor, suspended timber and screed – suspended timber floors have little impact on floor height build-up, although ceilings or floors will have to be removed in order to lay the floor heating tube. This is acceptable if they are being replaced anyway but if they have to remain in-situ a floating floor is a better solution. The floating floor construction is a popular option for retrofitting UFH due to minimal floor height build-up and straightforward installation, as it is laid over the existing deck. An average floor height build-up of 150mm means that screed is better suited to renovation projects where floors are being removed or sufficient height is available.

1980s bungalow

Sometimes a refurbishment property doesn’t appear to tick the boxes for UFH, but that doesn’t necessarily rule it out, and is where the use of a supply and design company can really help. This bungalow had 60mm loft insulation, 30mm floor insulation and no wall insulation, but heat loss calculations indicated that by using Nu-Heat’s floor construction SL14 (14mm Fastflo® in liquid screed with cliptrack), the system would achieve the required comfort levels. The owners agree that it has been exceptionally successful, especially as the primary heat source is an air source heat pump.

Victorian villa – single zone

UFH was retrofitted into the hallway of an 1850s Victorian property with a joisted floor, and issues concerning very high ceilings (3.2m) and thresholds into other rooms. Heat loss calculations showed that the presence of an enclosed porch at either end of the hallway made UFH viable, and hardwood thresholds were made to disguise the difference in levels between the hall and other rooms. The UFH was put between the joists with insulation and foil below. The floor covering used was ceramic tile with flexible adhesive and grout. The owner is now having UFH put into the new kitchen extension as they were so pleased with the system in the hall.

In many refurbishment projects, the installation of UFH is likely to be feasible, and once a good design and supply company has the project details they should give frank and unbiased advice on the viability of such a system.

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