Simple improvements
Draughtproofing – windows, doors, floors, ceilings, penetrations, round pipes, beside wires in ceiling roses etc
Check insulation, replace any missing or displaced pieces, upgrade loft insulation to 400mm.
Replace heating controller and thermostat with a better form of control like a programmable room thermostat or smart controller like Hive or Nest.
Draught seal under window boards, round loft hatch architraves, round service pipes, through floor boards and under skirtings.
Seal draughts and air infiltration coming into your first floor void.
Add insulation to hot cylinder and the nearby pipes
Preventative maintenance
Insulate pipes and cisterns in the loft, replace ball valves or at least the ball valve washer, check cistern lid and cistern insulation
Overhaul incoming mains stop tap, check water board outside stop cock
Clean and very lightly silicone oil all window ironmongery patio doors.
Adjust kitchen cupboard doors, refit buffers, replace broken hinges and drawer runners, tighten loose handles
Internal doors, wipe hinges with silicone wipe, clean, adjust latches, tighten loose handles, very tiny squirt of silicone oil into lock part.
Service kitchen, utility and bathroom taps
Aspirations
Reduce heat loss and energy use
Wall insulation aim to achieve a U value of 0.1
Ceiling insulation aim to achieve a U value of below 0.1
Floor insulation insulation aim to achieve a U value of 0.2
Windows and doors, forget double glazing and plan on having triple glazing.
Build your own house – start deciding what it should be like now.
An opportunity has presented itself whereby the above goals can be moved forward on a scale that we have so far only been able to dream of. This is the TVB Smart City ClusterChallenge Fund which calls for bids to install monitoring systems that can record temperature, humidity, occupancy, CO2 (indicative of occupancy/ draughtiness/ ventilation) and energy use with a view to implementing interventions that will reduce energy use and help with problems of damp, mould and condensation. We are involved as a partner in a bid for this funding.
Although our group did not get the funding we will be doing some monitoring in problem properties and taking a keen interest in other peoples activities in this area.