Now that the cold weather is here, drafty homes and high energy bills are on many people’s minds. We were therefore delighted to host a Retrofit hub in November thanks to financial support from Renfrewshire Climate Action Network. The evening was dedicated to giving residents in the Gryffe Valley, Bridge of Weir, Houston and beyond an opportunity to ask any questions they have about making their homes more energy-efficient and cosier, while saving money on heating and maybe even reducing their carbon footprint in the process.

Stephen McAlaney from Home Energy Scotland and industry expert Jonathan Annan were available to explore first and next steps on residents’ journeys towards retrofitting their homes, regardless of where they were on their journey at the time. Many tips were exchanges, recommendations made so that everyone was able to walk away with a plan and next steps. We also provided an opportunity to explore community energy ideas, where the community comes together to generate renewable energy locally for community rather than individual benefit.

We heard at the hub that people feel that retrofitting is quite complex and there is a wariness about who trusted contractors are, as well as a worry about cost and being unclear of what funding may be available. What would be help residents to retrofit their home is an online forum for the community to share experiences and information about trusted tradespeople and contractors.

In general, we found out that there are 5 steps to greater energy efficiency of homes that everyone can consider:
1. Assess the condition of the home and the current energy efficiency. Home Energy Scotland can help with this for free.
2. Create a Whole House Plan suitable for your home and evaluate the improvement options
3. Based on the Whole House Plan seek advice on the correct stages of retrofit and which improvements meet your goals best. There may be grant assistance available to help with funding of the proposed works.
4. Install the retrofit measures with properly qualified and quality assured contractors
5. Finally, assess and evaluate the work undertaken and measure the improvement it made.

Financial support through (interest-free) loans and grants is available for heat pumps, solar thermal, wood fuelled boiler and stove, wind turbines and micro hydro at present. Energy exported to the grid may also provide an income from generating renewable energy through the Smart Export Guarantee (SEG).

On top of this there are area-based schemes run by local authorities. Home Energy Scotland can provide information on what is available where you live (0808 808 2282).

We were pleased that people shared that they went away with lots of ideas, appreciated the tailored advice that we offered and felt more likely and confident to take the retrofitting plunge.

If you want to find out more, there are a number of useful websites to get you started:

Home Energy Scotland funding finder
Ofgen’s webpage on ECO
Warmer Homes Scotland scheme
Home Energy Scotland Grant and Loan.

If you’re interested in future Hub events or want to get involved in our community energy side of work, why not get in touch?