Tag Archives: energy

Easy PV – Pam’s story

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Pam WaringSmall-scale renewables can help you earn money as well as reduce your carbon footprint – but what’s it really like to turn your home into a mini power station? In 2011 our Finance Director, Pam, installed solar photovoltaic panels on her house. She tells us about her experiences…

Our three-bedroom bungalow already had loft and cavity wall insulation, and five years ago we added a solar pipe to channel sunlight into the ensuite shower room, as it has no external walls and therefore no windows. After Dan, our Business Development Officer, installed solar panels on his home, I began thinking about whether it was the next step for us. Although it would be a significant investment, it seemed like the right thing to do. I hated the fact that we were wasting energy from the sun that could be used to power our home.

Dan had already done lots of research into the solar panels and I used the same local family firm that he had chosen. I contacted them in October 2011 and they arranged an installation date, which fortunately was before the rate of the government’s Feed-in Tariffs changed, meaning I could get maximum return for my investment. The company were working flat out to set up as many installations as possible before the deadline.

We already had a mortgage from Ecology and added the cost onto our mortgage using the C-Change Energy Improvements scheme. This gives a discount of 1% off Ecology’s Standard Variable Rate (currently 4.90% – the overall cost for comparison is 5.0% APR) for money borrowed to install energy efficiency or renewable energy measures.

Before the installation, the company came to my house to assess where to put the panels and where the meters would be fitted inside my house. Although there was some shading from trees, there was enough space to get reasonable exposure to the sunlight.

The panels were installed in November 2011 and the process only took a few days, although the scaffolding was up for about a week. We didn’t really have to prepare the house – we just ensured that the installers could access the area inside the house where they would install the meter and inverter. Domestic users can install up to 15 panels, so we had eight panels on our main roof and seven on our extension. Because the back our home isn’t overlooked, none of our neighbours really noticed the difference!

Now that the meters are installed, we can look at how the panels are performing whenever we want. It gets very addictive, especially in the summer! It makes so much sense to use the energy from the sun – I can’t understand why all new buildings don’t have renewables and recycling built in.

We filled out our paperwork for the Feed-in Tariff and submitted the documents via our energy supplier. We had to wait a while for the registration to go through, because lots of people sent in their paperwork just before the Feed-in Tariff rate was cut. We received our first payment in July 2012, giving us £614 for the initial six months of operation. We’re really pleased with the return, especially when we factor in our reduced energy bills.

My one tip for anyone considering installing solar photovoltaic panels would be do to your homework on the firm. Picking the right installers can mean a very smooth operation – and vice versa!

Your home may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on your mortgage. An early repayment charge may be payable if you repay all or part of your mortgage within the first four years.

Providing the power to save energy

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This autumn we launched our innovative partnership with The Energy Saving Co-operative, offering a ‘Fair Green Deal’ to thousands of homeowners across the UK. We asked Ewan Jones, co-founder of The Energy Saving Co-operative, to tell us more…

The UK’s buildings contribute nearly 50% of our final energy demand and resulting carbon emissions. Unlike some other sources, net carbon emissions from buildings can be reduced to zero using simple existing technologies – but people are not yet ‘powering down’ fast enough.

The Energy Saving Co-operative solves this problem. Homeowners, community groups and local tradespeople co-operate to make the greatest energy savings at the lowest cost to homeowners, while creating local jobs from the financial savings.

Outline of Energy Saving Co-operative processThe Fair Green Deal

Our innovative Fair Green Deal gives free, honest and straightforward advice on which energy saving improvements make financial and environmental sense for each building. We then install real energy saving improvements though local tradespeople, benefitting local economies, and provide fair and ethical finance for those who need it. We’re delighted to be partnering with the Ecology Building Society to offer their innovative C-Change Retrofit mortgage discounts to our members.

We’re piloting the Fair Green Deal in Oxfordshire, the West Midlands and East Midlands. In each of these areas, we’re working with established local community groups to reach people who already recognise the importance of saving energy in their homes, and want to take the next step beyond advice to making real and significant energy savings.

The co-operative opportunity

2012 marks the United Nations International Year of Co-operatives, and last week co-operatives from around the world joined together in Manchester to celebrate Co-operatives United. Will 2013 be the year where UK co-operatives take the lead on our great transition towards joined-up sustainable energy?

Mutual and co-operative businesses place people and the planet above the vested interests of financial shareholders, so will play a vital positive role in our learning to live within the earth’s ‘one planet’ resources. Co-operatives also thrive where there is market failure. What could be bigger a market failure than failing to invest to reduce our demands on fossil fuel energy?

Working together, ‘big’ and ‘local’ co-operatives can deliver energy savings that would terrify the shareholders of the big six energy suppliers. That’s why The Energy Saving Co-operative is working to embed the co-operative model throughout the delivery of its services.

As part of the ‘Fair Green Deal’, a new, all female, Birmingham worker co-operative called Energywise is delivering energy assessments for our pilot with Northfield EcoCentre, and social enterprise the Jericho Foundation will install many of our energy saving improvements in Birmingham. In Oxfordshire, worker co-operative R-Eco are installing many of our solar panels, and we’re helping to establish ‘powering up’ community-owned renewable power stations wherever possible (such as the community solar thermal scheme we’re working on in the Barton area of Oxford).

We take our inspiration from the pioneering co-operators who got together in the inns coffee houses of 18th century Birmingham to establish the first building societies – and from the more recent co-operators who established the Ecology Building Society to finance their own energy-saving homes. So we’re delighted to join forces with Ecology: their proposition and values are a perfect fit with ours.

 

Shrink This! Why we’re challenging the nation to retrofit their homes

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Image of footprintIt’s an exciting day for us. Today marks the launch of our Shrink This campaign to encourage people to improve the energy efficiency of their homes.

With debate raging about the likely success of the Green Deal, we want to spread the word that Ecology is a lender that rewards homeowners for saving energy and carbon. We’ve got a bold new look for the campaign and we’re working with a range of partners to tell as many people as possible about the benefits of improving the energy efficiency of their homes.

Our message is simple: you shrink your carbon footprint, and we’ll shrink your mortgage interest rate. Combined with a cosier home, lower energy bills and the warm glow of knowing you’re saving carbon, it’s a real incentive to live more sustainably.

But what if you need a little more inspiration? All of our houses are different, and with the wide range of energy saving measures available, it’s easy to feel daunted. That’s where SuperHomes come in. SuperHomes are older homes that have been refurbished for greater comfort, lower bills and reduced emissions (at least 60% less) and from 17 to 25 March, 65 SuperHomes will be open to the public.

The SuperHomes open to visit include Georgian, Victorian, Edwardian and post-war houses, so you’re bound to find a property to inspire you. Most have superior insulation, many have alternative heating sources and some produce their own energy. The SuperHomes website allows you to search the database for properties near you, or properties with particular green technologies, as well as prebooking a free place on a SuperHomes tour.

A visit to a SuperHome will leave you full of ideas about the steps you can take to save energy in your own home. And if you need mortgage finance to help you do that, our C-Change Retrofit mortgage discount could help. So why not make 2012 the year you shrink your carbon footprint at home?

What’s your New Year resolution?

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It’s the start of another year and we’re full of good intentions: cutting out the junk food, jogging round the block, spending more time with the family… Even if some of those good intentions only last a few days, a blast of optimism at the start of the year can’t be a bad thing.

So why not make 2012 the year you cut your carbon or become an eco-activist? If you’re looking for inspiration, our handy list of resolutions might help…

Resolution 1: Stop that draught!

Insulating your house is one of the easiest and cheapest ways to cut your energy use and shrink your carbon footprint. The Great British Refurb campaign has some great advice on simple things you can do to make your home more energy efficient, or for more inspiration try the Superhomes database of retrofit projects.

Resolution 2: Green your plate

Don’t limit your thinking to a healthy diet – why not go eco-friendly too? This article in The Ecologist offers some great tips on cutting your food miles and moderating your meat intake.

Resolution 3: Challenge yourself

Ever fancied jumping out of a plane or climbing a mountain for charity? Why not use your endeavours to save carbon instead of raising money? The DoNation helps you raise sponsorship with a twist – replacing cash with simple green actions to make a difference that money can’t buy.  

Resolution 4: Take on the big six

Rising energy costs and a lack of investment in renewables threaten our ability to heat our homes sustainably and affordably. Do your bit to challenge the status quo by signing up to Friends of the Earth’s Final Demand, a campaign to launch an inquiry into the power of the big six energy companies and ensure support for renewable energy produced by households, communities, councils and businesses.

Resolution 5: Put your money where your mouth is

If you’re angry at the behaviour of the big banks, make a positive decision to invest your money in the things you believe in. Save with Ecology and you know your money is used to support projects and properties that respect the environment, from ecological new-builds to community businesses. Find out more about the projects we support in our stories pages.

Resolution 6: Walk to work…

… Or if it’s too far, take public transport – you’ll still get the benefit of walking to and from the bus stop or train station. You’ll improve your fitness and cut your carbon emissions in one go – a two-for-one resolution!

Feeling inspired? Add your comments to let us know your plans for 2012.