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Episode 34: The Green Homes Grant (GHG)

In this video James and Nick talk about everything to do with the new Government approved Green Homes Grant (GHG).

You can read more about the GHG on our website: ...https://www.thegreenage.co.uk/green-homes-grant-comprehensive-guide/Show More

Episode 34: The Green Homes Grant (GHG)

In this video James and Nick talk about everything to do with the new ...

Episode 33: Electric Boilers Explained

The Green Room: What happens when you put two energy experts in a room ...

Episode 32: Big Energy Saving Week 2020

The Green Room: What happens when you put two energy experts in a room ...

The Green Room: What happens when you put two energy experts in a room and ask them about Big Energy Saving Week 2020? We’re digging deep into one of energy’s ...biggest events of the year this episode, and giving our own take on the top tips that BESW20 published in aid of the event. From tariff switching to taps, we’re taking a closer look at which energy saving measures really do work.

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WHAT IS BIG ENERGY SAVING WEEK 2020?
Big Energy Saving Week is a national campaign to help people cut their energy bills and get all the financial support they are entitled to. This year it is running between 20th-27th January, and you can get involved on social media using the hashtag #BEST20.

WHO IS BIG ENERGY SAVING WEEK TARGETING?
Everybody! BESW20 is al about getting people aware of their energy use and thinking about their habits. This year, there is a special focus of 4 major groups: people using electric heating, people in debt to their energy suppliers, people with hard-to-heat homes, and anyone that doesn’t have full access to the internet. These are the groups reckoned to be in the most need of energy saving and general energy advice, but really BESW20 is for everyone.

WHAT IS HAPPENING DURING BIG ENERGY SAVING WEEK 2020?
There’s plenty going on this week to get involved with! Citizens Advice are holding events around the country for people to go and get free energy saving advice. There are also plenty of resources that have been produced, including lectures, social media, and a whole lot of content. Don’t forget to use the #BESW20 hashtag to be part of the conversation!

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Read More:
20 Ways to Save - https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/Global/CitizensAdvice/campaigns/BESW%202020/20%20ways%20to%20save%20(1).pdf
Big Energy Saving Week 2020 official website - https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/about-us/our-campaigns/all-our-current-campaigns/besw/
Big Energy Saving Week 2020 on the Energy Saving Trust - https://energysavingtrust.org.uk/blog/big-energy-saving-week-2020
100 Ways To Save Energy In Your Home - https://www.thegreenage.co.uk/100-ways-to-save-energy-in-your-home/
Where Can I Get Advice on Saving Energy? - https://www.thegreenage.co.uk/big-energy-saving-week-advice-saving-energy/Show More

Episode 31: Energy Saving - Your Questions Answered

The Green Room: What happens when you put two energy experts in a room ...

The Green Room: What happens when you put two energy experts in a room and ask them your questions about bills, energy, and the environment? We’re back for 2020 and ...we’re answering all the questions you asked while we were away. We cover insulation, triple glazing, the DECC, and celebrate the 2019 energy mix. If you have questions about energy saving, we have the answers.

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WHAT IS DECC?
DECC is the Department of Energy & Climate Change, a now defunct department of the British government. Controversially, DECC was scrapped and became part of Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy in July 2016. We’re wondering if it’s likely to come back any time soon.

WHAT IS TRIPLE GLAZING?
Put simply, triple glazing is 3 panes of glass instead of 1 or 2. The claim is that by having an extra pane, you will increase efficiency and reduce noise. We already know that double glazing makes a significant improvement over single glazing, but even so, upgrading from single to double glazing takes a long time to pay back in terms of energy efficiency. So would making the jump to triple glazing make that much of a difference?

WHAT IS A U-VALUE?
The U-value signifies the heat lost through a given thickness of a particular material. You don’t really need to understand the mechanics of how it is calculated; instead it is useful to be able to compare different substances by their U-values. The lower the U-value is, the better the material is as a heat insulator.

WHAT IS THE UK’S ENERGY MIX?
We haven’t had the full figures released yet for the last quarter of the year, but the first part of 2019 saw a significant shift towards renewbles, providing 38.9% of our electricity. Nuclear provided 18.4%, gas 38.8%, oil 2.9%, and coal 1%.

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Read More:
Internal and Cavity Wall Insulation (The Insulation Masterclass Series Pt 3) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Ya7uXupx_U
Department for Energy and Climate Change (DECC) - https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/department-of-energy-climate-change
Triple glazing – Is it worth it? - https://www.thegreenage.co.uk/triple-glazing-is-it-worth-it/
Should I get external wall insulation on cavity walls? - https://www.thegreenage.co.uk/get-external-wall-insulation-on-cavity-walls/Show More

Episode 30: Biggest Energy Guzzlers in the Home

The Green Room: What happens when you put two energy experts in a room ...

The Green Room: What happens when you put two energy experts in a room and ask them what is causing your energy bills? We’re looking at energy guzzlers today, aka ...energy vampires. It’s all about appliances this week, and how much energy they use. We cover heating, washing, and more. There is also a significant amount of discussion about tea.

Subscribe:
Itunes - https://itunes.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-green-room-by-the-greenage/id1450172106
Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/0mrSwzL4dKtNhm90fUEo63
Sticher - https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/greenage/the-green-room-by-the-greenage
Podbean - https://thegreenage.podbean.com/
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SOME TOP TIPS TO SAVE ENERGY

1. Familiarise yourself with your heating controls! A bit of fiddling can make a big difference to your bills. Dropping your thermostat by just one degree should save £60 over the course of a year.

2. Switch to efficient LED lighting. In halogen bulbs, 90% of the electricity used is given off as heat, and only 10% as light. With LEDs, this figure is reversed, making them far more efficient.

3. Heating hot water is an expensive business, so try to limit your usage.

4. Avoid electric convection heating – electricity costs 4x as much as gas. If your property is off-gas, you have other options. Infrared, for example, is powerful and efficient.

5. Don’t wash your clothes at unnecessarily high temperatures. A 40°C wash uses a third less energy than a 60°C cycle. Also, be sure to fill up your washing machine every time you use it.
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Read More:

Winter-proof your home and save energy - https://www.thegreenage.co.uk/winter-proof-your-home-and-save-energy/

100 ways to save energy in your home - https://www.thegreenage.co.uk/100-ways-to-save-energy-in-your-home/

Which appliances use the most energy? - https://www.thegreenage.co.uk/appliances-energy/

The cost of leaving appliances in standby mode - https://www.thegreenage.co.uk/the-cost-of-leaving-appliances-in-standby-mode/Show More

Episode 29: General Election 2019: Comparing Energy & Environment Policies

The Green Room: What happens when you put two energy experts in a room ...

The Green Room: What happens when you put two energy experts in a room and ask them about the upcoming UK general election. James, Nick and Harri are today discussing ...the political agendas of all the main political parties, and getting to the bottom of what we’re being promised. How soon can we be carbon neutral? How many trees should we be planting? How much should we be investing on improving the energy efficiency of our buildings?

Subscribe:
Itunes - https://itunes.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-green-room-by-the-greenage/id1450172106
Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/0mrSwzL4dKtNhm90fUEo63
Sticher - https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/greenage/the-green-room-by-the-greenage
Podbean - https://thegreenage.podbean.com/

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WHAT ARE THE BIG ENERGY AND ENVIRONMENT ISSUES FACING US IN THE 2019 UK GENERAL ELECTION?

Cutting emissions

All the main parties want the UK to move toward being carbon neutral, but they have very different timelines on when they think we can achieve this.

Improving UK housing stock

A huge number of buildings in the UK are woefully underinsulated, making them very inefficient with energy. Politicians are aiming to tackle this in many different ways, with wildly different levels of priority and expenditure, and significantly different focuses.

Transportation

Whether it’s investing more in cycle lanes and buses, or ending the sale of petrol and diesel car in favour of electric vehicles, the future of the British transportation and how it affects the environment is a policy for all the parties.

Renewable energy

There’s a lot of variation between the party positions here, including policies on nuclear power, wind farms, fracking, and more. Where does our energy come from and what should we be investing in?
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Read the Party Manifestos:
Conservatives - https://vote.conservatives.com/our-plan
Labour - https://labour.org.uk/manifesto/
Liberal Democrats - https://www.libdems.org.uk/plan
Green Party - https://www.greenparty.org.uk/assets/files/Elections/Green%20Party%20Manifesto%202019.pdf
SNP - https://www.snp.org/general-election-2019/
Plaid Cymru - https://www.partyof.wales/maniffesto_2019Show More

Episode 28: General Election 2019 - Can Labour Save The Planet?

The Green Room: What happens when you put two energy experts in a room ...

Episode 27: Ultimate Guide To EPCs (ft. London-EPC)

The Green Room: What happens when you put not two, but three energy ...

Episode 26: What Is The Cheapest Way To Heat My House?

The Green Room: What happens when you put two energy experts in a room ...

Epiosode 25: Boilers 101 - How To Heat Your Home

The Green Room: What happens when you put two energy experts in a room ...

The Green Room: What happens when you put two energy experts in a room and ask them all about boilers and home heating? We’re looking forward to winter this week, ...and that means we’re talking all things central heating. In this episode we demystify boilers, taking you through each different type of boiler, along with their pros and cons. Scroll down for a simple summary of boilers and hot water systems.

Subscribe:
Itunes - https://itunes.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-green-room-by-the-greenage/id1450172106
Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/0mrSwzL4dKtNhm90fUEo63
Sticher - https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/greenage/the-green-room-by-the-greenage
Podbean - https://thegreenage.podbean.com/

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COMBI BOILER
Usually the boiler of choice for flats or small houses with only one bathroom, since it doesn't require a hot water tank. If you have a small property, it's an incredibly convenient boiler system, but won't work for larger families.

SYSTEM BOILER
System boilers use a hot water tank in an airing cupboard to store hot water. As a sealed, pressurised system, these boilers can provide hot water to several outlets at the same time, operating at the same water pressure as your mains flow..

CONVENTIONAL BOILER
Also known as regular boilers, traditional boilers, or open vent boilers. These use a dual tank gravity system to create the water pressure. You can use multiple outlets at once, but they take up a lot of space and are limited by the positioning of the tanks.

OTHER HOT WATER SYSTEMS

Back Boiler: A type of conventional boiler but with a gas space heater fire at the back. They're no longer available in the UK due to inefficiency.

Biomass Boiler: Instead of using gas to produce the heat, biomass boilers combust sustainable wood pellets. They also qualify for the RHI government funding scheme.

Oil/LPG Boiler: Work the same as normal boilers, but fuel used is stored on site rather than coming off ‘the grid’. Fairly reliable, but relatively expensive and very bad for the environment.

Electric Boiler: An electric boiler can be used in off-grid areas, or where a gas supply is either not wanted or not possible. However, they are very expensive to run.

Combined Heat and Power (CHP) Boiler: Acts as micro power plants by providing your hot water, but also using the wasted energy to generate electricity to use around the home.

Instantaneous Hot Water Points: They work the same way as electric showers, heating the water at the point of use. Only really used in outhouses or garden sheds, etc.

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Read more:
An Introduction to Gas Boilers - https://www.thegreenage.co.uk/tech/gas-boilers-introduction/
What Kind of Boiler Do I Have? - https://www.thegreenage.co.uk/what-kind-of-boiler-do-i-have/
Should I replace my conventional boiler with a combi? - https://www.thegreenage.co.uk/should-i-replace-my-conventional-boiler-with-a-combi/
Gas Distribution Network - https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/key-term-explained/map-who-operates-gas-distribution-networkShow More

Episode 24: Top Tips For Lower Winter Bills

The Green Room: What happens when you put two energy experts in a room ...

The Green Room: What happens when you put two energy experts in a room and ask them how to prepare for winter? The weather is starting to cool a little, ...and we want you to be prepared. In this episode we take you through the best things you can do to save money on your heating and electric bills this winter. We also discuss some of the funding schemes you may be able to benefit from.

Subscribe:
Itunes - https://itunes.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-green-room-by-the-greenage/id1450172106
Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/show/0mrSwzL4dKtNhm90fUEo63
Sticher - https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/greenage/the-green-room-by-the-greenage
Podbean - https://thegreenage.podbean.com/

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THE GREENAGE’S TOP TIPS TO SAVE MONEY THIS WINTER
- Get your boiler serviced before everyone else. A healthy boiler will serve you well all winter.
- Invest in a cylinder jacket for your hot water tank so that your hot water stays hotter for longer. It’s worth insulating cold water jackets too to prevent them from freezing.
- Bleed your radiators to ensure you get them working at maximum efficiency
- Get to know your thermostat controls, and make sure all your radiators have thermostatic valves
- Lag (insulate) your pipes to keep you hot water hot, save money, and prevent them freezing
- Replace your lightbulbs with LEDs. Don’t wait until they blow, you’ll save more money by switching now
- Draught proof your most frequently used rooms - consider doors, floors, and windows
- Check the links below for more information on government subsidies and assistance. Some are automatic but some require you to apply.
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Read more:
Warm Home Discount 2019/2020 - https://www.thegreenage.co.uk/warm-home-discount-2019-2020/
Winter Fuel Payment - https://www.gov.uk/winter-fuel-payment
Ecoease - https://www.ecoease.co.uk/
Low Energy Bulbs - https://www.thegreenage.co.uk/tech/low-energy-led-bulbs/
Thermostatic Radiator Valves - https://www.thegreenage.co.uk/tech/thermostatic-radiator-valves-trv/Show More

Episode 23: How To Save The Planet

The Green Room: What happens when you put two energy experts in a room ...

Episode 34: The Green Homes Grant (GHG)

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