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Margaret’s Story
Margaret lived alone in a large terrace house. Her recent fall had left her with severe mobility problems.
Her husband who had passed away over a year ago had always taken care of the bills. She had received a letter from the company three months ago telling her that her direct debit payments had been reviewed and they were increased to £205 per month. She was very concerned as she was not going to be able to afford keeping up the payments.
The Warm Homes, Healthy People advisers were approached to support Margaret, and the first thing they did was take a look at her bills. Firstly, Margaret had been moved to a higher tariff the previous autumn when her previous tariff had run its course. Secondly, all the bills she presented were based on estimated usage as no meter reading had been made. After accessing the cellar to read the meter and a conversation with the utility company, Margaret’s tariff was switched to a cheaper rate and her direct debit payments were reduced by £100 per month.
In addition to this due to the income based benefits she received, she was entitled to the Warm Home Discount Scheme for £140 off her electricity bill.
Mr Khan’s Story
Mr Khan lived in a private rented flat. His mum acted as his carer due to his learning difficulties, although she didn’t live with him. The WHHP adviser met Mr. Khan at the flat to discuss the problem of his rising energy costs.
The flat was very cold and it was apparent it was impacting on his health. It was heated by old storage heaters and had no gas supply. The meter for the flat was positioned in the cellar of a betting shop next door, which meant that Mr Khan could not check his own meter.
Mr Khan’s problem was bigger than moving tariff or changing his behaviour. The problem was the heating system was inadequate for the property. The adviser spoke with the landlord and arranged a meeting at the flat. The situation was explained to the landlord, and the options available for central heating. The landlord agreed to have central heating installed in the flat, and a date was set with a surveyor to visit and establish a quote for a gas connection and a new central heating system for Mr Khan
Mrs Bibi’s Story
Mrs Bibi lives in a terraced house in Bradford with her husband and son.
“I needed tips on energy saving because my bills were getting higher. I also wanted help reducing my carbon footprint.”
Mrs. Bibi was also experiencing high levels of condensation in her home, leading to wet windows and black speckled mould. This not only looked unpleasant but could contribute to coughs, colds, and respiratory illnesses – which was concerning with a child in the house.
We asked Mrs. Bibi about how she used her central heating and whether any other appliances were being used to heat the property. To warm the house quickly Mrs. Bibi would often set her thermostat to 25°C and use a gas fire in the living room. Although understandable, these two actions were contributing to Mrs. Bibi’s high bills: a greater temperature difference between the inside and outside of the home will result in more heat loss , wasting energy. Depending on the model, a gas fire may be only 28-60% efficient (NEA, 2015) as much heat is lost through the chimney or flue.
In order to bring her bills down, we advised Mrs. Bibi to lower her thermostat to 21°C as a general rule of thumb, for every degree a thermostat is lowered, heating bills will be cut by 10%. It is also more likely that her home will be able to achieve and maintain this temperature as heat will not be escaping so quickly.
Mrs. Bibi was also advised to utilise her thermostatic radiator valves to regulate the temperature in each room, setting those in the bedrooms to number 2 or 3, and those in the main living rooms to 4 or 5. This prioritizes the distribution of heat in the home and saves excessively heating rooms that are occupied less frequently. When home alone, it was suggested that Mrs. Bibi turn off all the radiators in her home except for the one in the room she would be occupying, which is usually the living room.
“I thought that (the gas fire) was cheaper than the central heating, but now I’m using the radiators more often.”
We also installed reflective panels behind the radiators located on external walls to reduce the amount of heat escaping Mrs. Bibi’s home.
“My husband says the house is a lot warmer now, particularly since the radiator panels have been put in!”
The advice to use her central heating system more effectively combined with the reflective panels have helped to keep Mrs. Bibi’s home warmer, and should help to reduce heating costs.
The Warm Homes, Healthy People advisers are trained and can offer a range of advice to help people reduce their energy use and keep warmer in winter.
“Most of the things that you told me were new to me. That was good knowledge that I wasn’t aware of before.”
