Out There Blog

Our homes account for 27% of the UK’s CO2 emissions so it makes sense for homeowners to think carefully about how they use energy. But just what are these eco-friendly products that everyone’s talking about? The organisers of The London Homebuilding & Renovating Show have put together a simple guide to help you through the maze of greener living.

Rainwater Harvesting
Rainwater harvesting allows homeowners to make the most of the significant amount of rainfall the UK gets. A system costs around £1500 which includes underground storage tanks, filters and a pump to take water back into the house. A large tank can supply enough water for the whole house but at the very least you could use it for flushing toilets and watering the garden. A cheaper alternative is to invest in a few water butts and a pump to allow 100% of saved rainwater to be hosed onto the garden. Hosepipe bans will no longer be a problem!

Underfloor Heating
An underfloor heating system is energy efficient because the emitter (the floor) has a larger surface area than the standard radiator and so the water can be heated to a lower temperature than normal. Installation costs are similar to those for a top-end radiator-based system. Running costs tend to be between 10-30% cheaper.

Grey Water Recycling
Grey water (waste water from showers, basins and washing machines) can be recycled for non-potable uses such as flushing the loo and watering the garden. The ‘grey’ water is treated with cleaning agents and passed through a carbon filter. Less storage is needed than with rainwater harvesting as the supply of water from the household is much more regular than rainfall.

Heat Pump
The ground source heat pump is one of the darlings of the green movement. It works like a fridge, using electricity to power water through pipes below the surface (you will need to excavate part of your garden to lay the pipes) where the temperature remains at a constant 10°c. A secondary process raises the temperature further, enough to power an underfloor heating system. Installation costs tend to be between £8-12,000. Payback times are a point of controversy in the industry, with claims ranging between 8 and 22 years.

Wind Power
Wind power is also making the news. Two basic types exist: the stand-alone system used to generate electricity to run small electrical applications; and grid-connected systems, which connect the output to a home’s existing mains supply. The energy produced by the turbine overrides the energy from the grid, with the mains electricity as backup. The Windsave WS1000 (now available at B&Q) costs around £1,595 + VAT installed and, taking into account grants available, the manufacturers claim it could pay for itself in as little as five years, saving of up to 33% off an annual electricity bill. Key controversies are how much wind is actually converted into energy, and the viability of the system in low-wind areas.

Solar Power
Using the sun to provide energy, solar panels are used for heating water and PV cells, for creating electricity. A heating system will cost around £2,000 to install and can usually provide enough hot water all year round — the problem from a ‘value’ point of view is that it only costs around £100 a year to provide this anyway. PV cells create a more significant amount of electricity which may allow you to sell some of the energy you’ve created back to the grid.

Install More Insulation
Insulation is a key ingredient of a green home because it reduces the amount of energy required to keep it warm inside. Floors, walls and roofs should have as high levels of insulation specified as possible. Owners of older properties should be looking to bring  insulation levels close to modern building standards. Up to 33% of heat produced in the home is lost through walls so consider cavity wall insulation. It costs £200-500 and produces savings of around £150 a year on your heating bills.

Energy Saving Lightbulbs
Energy saving lightbulbs use around four times less electricity than a standard lightbulb. In place of a 40W bulb, you would only need an 8-11W energy-saving equivalent. They cost around £3.50 compared to just 50p for a standard bulb, but it should save you around £10 per year on your annual electricity bill.

Heat Recovery Passive Ventilation
A heat recovery system takes the moist, stale air from bathrooms and kitchens (through extractor fans) to a heat recovery unit (usually situated in the loft), and pass it through a heat exchanger to recover some 65-70% of the heat usually lost through standard ventilation. They run continuously, are up to 95% efficient and can easily be fitted to additional heating and cooling systems. Payback time for a system of this sort is estimated to be around five years. A HR unit is quiet and provides filtered air - perfect for asthma and hayfever sufferers.

Low Flush WCS

The average household uses an astonishing 180 litres of water a day to flush loos, the largest single use of water in the home (around a third of water used). Dual flush loos are an essential starting point but water saving or low flush WCs are an even better way to save water and money (all new homes are fitted with water meters).

Choose your boiler wisely
Boiler efficiencies have been transformed in recent years to reduce the level of CO2 emissions. Nowadays, boilers can only be used if they are A or B rated on the Government’s SEDBUK rating scheme, which means that all boilers in the UK have to be at least 86% efficient — a rating that only condensing boilers currently exceed. Using one will save you up to around £60 a year on your heating bills.

Use natural building materials
The choice of materials used in house construction can have a big impact on the environment. Materials that need manufacturing require high levels of energy to produce workable products and may give out pollutants as a by-product of the process. Naturally occurring materials such as lime, sand, stone, slate and timber enjoy very low production costs and produce far less pollutants in this process.

Want to know more?
Visit the Eco Homes Zone at the The London Homebuilding & Renovating Show where exhibitors will be on hand to advise you on environmentally friendly products and there will be two daily seminars on creating the environmentally friendly home and a full day of twelve free Eco Homes Masterclasses.

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With average energy bills now around £1,135 a year, and gas and electricity suppliers putting prices up twice last year, it's no wonder that over 30% of UK households have carried out energy saving home improvements over the last twelve months. Making energy savings are even more important now that the Energy Performance Certificate has been introduced as part of HIPs.

The 'Energy Performance Certificate', part of the new Home Information Packs, gives houses an A to G rating, with A being the best. It shows energy efficiency and the impact of a house on the environment in terms of carbon dioxide. The Energy Savings Trust estimates that by following the proposals in the Energy Performance Certificate, the average homeowner will save £300 a year on fuel bills. To help you improve the energy efficiency of your home and make it more attractive to prospective buyers, the organisers of The London Homebuilding & Renovating Show have put together some Top Tips:

Tip No 1 - Increase Insulation Levels
Insulating your home is a great way to reduce energy costs. There is a range of grants available to help with insulation costs. The UK Government funds schemes providing up to £2,500 to households on certain benefits to improve their heating and energy efficiency. Some local authorities also offer grants and more information can be found by ringing 0800 512 012. Grants are available for solar panels and other microgeneration technologies via the Low Carbon Buildings Programme. Ring 0800 915 0990 for further details.

Tip No 2 - Work Your Windows
Around 20% of the heat lost from an average home is through the windows. Consider double glazing your windows or secondary double-glazing if you live in a period property. Double-glazing cuts heat loss through windows by 50% and could significantly reduce your heating bill.

Tip No 3 - Buy Low Energy Appliances
Maximise the efficiency of your appliances - not only will this benefit the environment, it can also save you considerable money on your bills. Make sure white goods like fridges, freezers and washing machines, are A rated (or A++ for fridges and freezers). This means that they are very efficient and, in the case of washing machines, use less water than other models. Remember to turn off computers, TVs and video/DVD players rather than leaving them on stand-by when not in use, as this will substantially cut energy use.

Tip No 4 - Be Clever with Light
Take care to provide good daylight conditions in all habitable rooms and use energy efficient lighting throughout. Good quality low energy light bulbs are one of the best investments you can make as they use a lot less power and last longer. Priced from just £5, they last 12 times longer than an ordinary light bulb. If every UK household installed just one of these bulbs, we'd save over £80 million per year!

Tip No 5 - Heating Hints
Ensure your central heating system is scaled according to your household's needs and the level of insulation. If your boiler is over ten years old, it is worth replacing it; technical improvements mean that new boilers and control systems are significantly more efficient that they were even five years ago, now achieving energy ratings of more than 90%. The most efficient type of gas fired boiler is the condensing boiler which recycles otherwise wasted energy from the combustion gases. The Energy Efficiency Advice Centre runs a database on suitable products. Use individual thermostatic controls on radiators in every room. If the room isn't in use, keep the control turned to low to avoid heating rooms unnecessarily.

Tip No 6 - Reduce Water Consumption
Simple lifestyle changes will quickly reduce the amount of water you use. Take a shower instead of a bath - a bath uses five times as much water! Install a device that reduces your water flow - you can now buy water-saving taps and flow-regulating access valves. Install an ultra-efficient toilet that still operates effectively at low-flush volumes, saving around 30% of the water normally used. Switch off that hose and use rainwater instead, collected in water butts.

Tip No 7 - Sign Up with a Green Power Supplier
Even the most energy efficient home will require some form of supplementary power. The easiest way to minimise the environmental impact of our energy use is to sign up with a green provider. Green Electricity is a website that features a comprehensive list of green energy tariffs.  Good Energy (0845 4561640) supplies electricity from 100% renewable sources and for every unit of electricity you use, Good Energy promise to feed the national grid with a unit of electricity produced from renewable sources of energy such as wind and hydropower.

Tip No 8 - Do Your Homework
Do your homework and get as much information as possible. There are a wide variety of websites to visit including the Association for Environment Conscious Building, the Centre for Alternative Technology and the Energy Saving Trust. Contact your local Energy Efficiency Advice Centre on 0800 512012 for free impartial advice.

For more advice and ideas on environmentally friendly products, increasing your energy efficiency and a lot more, visit the The London Homebuilding & Renovating Show, at ExCeL from 21 to 23 September.

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After a disappointing summer and with domestic house prices going through the rain-soaked roof, the prospect of buying sun-kissed property on the Spanish coast is highly appealing. After all, the only time you couple the words ‘rain’ and ‘Spain’ is during a Henry Higgins elocution lesson.

However, Britons are increasingly cautious about investing what might be their life savings in overseas bricks and mortar.

Fears of hidden fees, high commissions and dodgy developers are certainly common, but is buying a home in Spain really such a risky venture? It may have been once, but standards are massively improving thanks to conscientious companies like Pearl Overseas, recently launched by Facilisimo, the major Spanish property portal.

They say a pearl is formed from a single grain of sand, and Facilisimo’s single idea was to offer British buyers the local-knowledge advantages enjoyed by Spaniards. This unique idea grew into Pearl Overseas.

Firmly on the side of the buyer, Pearl Overseas caters to Britons looking to buy with confidence. After hearing all those Watchdog horror stories, homebuyers are naturally concerned and confused about who to trust and which developers are reputable and why.

In such a climate, property companies that strictly demand high standards and promise to go through their developments with a fine tooth comb are worth their weight in gold.
Pearl Overseas is one such venture, as shiny-new and precious as its name suggests.
 If companies, like people, are judged by the company they keep, then Pearl Overseas boasts the highest of pedigrees. Its is working in partnership with Barclays Bank, well known and well trusted by millions of British consumers and the biggest foreign bank in Spain.

Along with Barclays, Facilisimo has joined forces with Premier Mortgage Services to deliver the first-class real estate service that is Pearl Overseas. This is a truly exciting venture because never before has a channel existed whereby Brits can buy in Spain with the local-knowledge confidence of a native Spaniard, coupled with a rigorous pre-vetting procedure that is somehow typically British.

Any potential homebuyer will tell you why pre-vetting is paramount. Dreaded scenarios include the one where you’ve invested your savings in a seemingly dream house only to discover that it isn’t properly insured, the plumbing is dodgy or the developer is teetering on the edge of bankruptcy. It is common sense to have the house scrutinized beforehand so you can move in with the assurance that nothing can go wrong.

Unfortunately few companies are genuinely selective in terms of which properties they will and won’t have on their books. This is where Pearl Overseas is vastly different to most – it ensures that all its properties have undergone a strict due diligence process before being made available. This is carried out by an independent law firm, whose impartiality is vouchsafed by the fact they represent the buyer rather than the developer.

In short, they act in the homebuyer’s best interests. This is a striking departure from the usual modus operandi of developers, whereby ‘impartial’ law firms pre-vet properties on behalf of the developers themselves. Nevertheless, this high standard does not mean impossibly high prices – there are houses and apartments to suit every purse, with properties starting at £100,000 (from which the azure sky is the limit). Its 20 or so developments, containing around 1,500 residences, sit in areas beloved of British tourists such as the Costa Blanca. But apart from the traditional haunts, it offers properties in up and coming areas like Almeria and Costa de la Luz.

As Pearl Overseas expands to 150 developments, the bar will be raised and standards set to an all time high, providing safer investments for British customers either buying to let, retiring, or setting up a summer retreat where they can sip sangria and escape the British summer.

With the arrival of Pearl Overseas, property disaster stories and ropey contracts look set to become a thing of the past.

To find out more visit Pearl Overseas

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