IN AN ERA of increasing environmental awareness as well as higher energy costs, improving your home’s energy efficiency is a wise investment.
Ireland is unique in Europe in its goal for upgrading homes, with approximately 500,000 Irish homes to be upgraded to a minimum B2 BER rating by 2030. This represents almost a quarter of our entire housing stock. It’s a big task ahead, but the work has already begun with Ireland leading Europe in building the processes needed to deliver home energy upgrades at scale.
For homeowners in Ireland, upgrading your home’s energy efficiency not only contributes to a greener future, it also improves comfort in your home, adds value, and can help to reduce energy bills moving forward. But it can be difficult to know where to start, which is why we’ve put together a comprehensive guide to upgrading your home with the help of SEAI (Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland).
In Ireland, home energy efficiency is assessed using the Building Energy Rating (BER) system. The BER is a standardised method of assessing a home’s energy performance on a scale from A to G, with A being the most energy-efficient and G being the least. The BER assessment calculates the energy performance of the home, looking at how energy is used for space and hot water heating, ventilation and lighting. A higher rating not only signifies better energy efficiency but also adds value to your property.
If you are unsure how to start your home energy upgrade, carrying out a BER assessment will give you a good indication of the current energy performance of your home and the energy upgrades likely to have the biggest impact on improving your home’s energy rating.
Once the assessment is complete, you’ll receive a BER certificate showing the BER rating of your home, and an Advisory Report showing the recommended energy upgrades.
You can check the SEAI National BER Register to see if your property already has a valid BER certificate and you can find your local BER assessor through the SEAI National Register of BER Assessors here.
Now more than ever, homeowners are aware of the benefits of carrying out home energy upgrades to make their homes more comfortable and to reduce energy use and save on energy bills. By investing in insulation upgrades such as attic and wall insulation, homeowners will see the immediate improvement in home comfort as less heat is being lost through draughty roofs and walls.
Homeowners who have well insulated homes, but are still using fossil fuel heating systems, such as oil or gas boilers, should look into the significant benefits of installing a heat pump. Heat pumps are highly efficient heating systems that use less energy than a fossil fuel heating system to provide the same amount of heat in the home, saving you money on energy bills in the long run. They also provide a much more comfortable and healthier home as you are no longer burning fossil fuels to heat your home, and they maintain a constant healthy temperature throughout.
Going that step further and installing renewable technologies such as solar PV will further improve the energy efficiency of your home.
There are three variations of grants available to homeowners to help them on their home improvement journey; Individual Energy Upgrade Grants, One Stop Shop Service and a Fully Funded Energy Upgrade.
SEAI offers a number of home energy upgrade grant options to suit different homeowner budgets and circumstances, whether you want to do a complete home energy upgrade in one go or over time. The range of individual energy upgrade grants gives homeowners greater flexibility to carry out works in a step-by-step approach, doing one or two upgrades over time.
SEAI has individual grants for the likes of attic and wall insulation, heat pump systems and renewable technologies such as solar PV. With an easy-to-use online application system and over 1,000 SEAI registered contractors carrying out individual energy upgrades, it is an excellent grant option for homeowners starting their upgrade journey. Learn more about SEAI’s Individual Energy Upgrades.
However, if you want to do a comprehensive home energy upgrade in one go and bring your home to a minimum B2 rating, then SEAI’s One Stop Shop Service is the ideal grant option. Here, the One Stop Shop will manage the entire project from start to finish, including all aspects of the SEAI grant application, making it hassle-free for the homeowner. Another advantage is that the grant value is deducted from the cost of works upfront, which can really help with cashflow. SEAI has a growing number of available registered One Stop Shops listed on their website.
For homeowners in receipt of certain social welfare payments, SEAI operates a Fully Funded programme, where the full cost of the home energy upgrade is covered by SEAI, along with the management of the entire project from start to finish. Further details of this energy upgrade option and eligibility criteria, can be found here.
The cost of upgrading any home will vary greatly as there are many factors to consider such as the type and size of the house, number of occupants, energy consumption habits, fuel type. SEAI recommends that homeowners shop around and get a number of quotes, making sure they are comparing quotes that are like for like. If you decide to install more upgrades and go for an A-rated home, your quote is likely to be higher than that of a very acceptable B rated home.
Most individual energy upgrades can be carried out while the homeowner is living in the home, as they are relatively quick to install and do not cause any major disruption. However, if you are undergoing a complete energy upgrade, you should talk to your chosen SEAI registered One Stop Shop about the schedule of works and get their advice on what works can be carried out while you are living in your home or whether you might need to leave your property for a short period to accommodate some of the works.
For more advice on how to plan your home energy upgrade and to find out more about the SEAI Home Energy Upgrades, visit SEAI Home Energy Upgrades.
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