And the results of all this? Claus’ annual gas usage has dropped by almost a third from 14,700KWh to 5,700KWh while his electricity usage is down from 2,800KWh to 2,000KWh. As a comparison, Ofgem have previously estimated the average home uses 16,500KWh gas and 3,300KWh electricity per year. Due to the reductions, Claus’ energy costs have been halved with dual fuel bills costing £47 per month whilst living in a comfortable home with the thermostat at 20 degree C all year round. Beforehand the water usage on the property was unmetered (£450 a year), but now the family use 52m3/year, which equates to 71 litres per person per day. Claus no longer pays a surface water drainage charge as all the rainwater run off is handled on site and pays around £190 per year on water charges.
Of the project, Claus said: “The property looks and feels loads better and has increased in value too. “Taking on Hay Tor was a big project as so much-needed doing to it in order to get it up to the standard I wanted it to be at. “It was extremely important to look at each part of the house and how we could maximise the energy efficiency of each section, I’m so pleased each of the components has come together to produce such a big energy-saving.
“I think people are often put off retrofitting their homes because they worry there’ll be a huge cost and very little reward. It does seem like a lot of work when you view it as one whole project but there’s always the option to make one change at a time. “When I think about the amount of work which went into Hay Tor, both the practical work and the research beforehand, it has definitely been more than worth it and I hope to inspire many more people to consider to retrofit their home.”
Surprisingly, to achieve these results didn’t cost as much as you might think. Claus used about £40,000 from the sale of his former home to finance the overhaul. He has now joined the Superhome network, which promotes the benefits of retrofitting older properties, and an assessor who surveyed the bungalow concluded 72 per cent of CO2 has been saved due to the work undertaken.
Harriet Ernstsons-Evans
Claus is now using Hay Tor to inspire others, inviting potential Smart Energy Services customers to come and view the property and find out how they could benefit from overhauling their home. For more information about Hay Tor or Smart Energy Services, you can visit www.smart-energy-services.co.uk, email info@smart-energy-services.co.uk or call Claus on 01743 871099 or 07410 549781.
Harriet Ernstsons-Evans writes for J&PR which is a Shropshire-based public relations firm working with businesses and organisations of all sizes on a variety of print and digital PR campaigns. The company works with business owners to raise their profile and attract their target market, increasing business and helping the organisation to grow.