Most of us live and work in older buildings that weren’t designed with energy efficiency in mind. Without effective or reliable government support, it’s up to us to improve the energy efficiency of our homes. We’ve created a list of things you can do, below.
Future buildings should be built to better environmental standards. We need to consider how we design buildings to minimise energy use; the materials we choose; and how our homes are connected with the places around us. A big advantage of building sustainably is the people living, working and travelling in these environments don’t even need to make an effort – it becomes easier to “live green” than not.
Here’s our Big Green Ideas List for making our built environment, both current and future, more sustainable.
Recommended reading
For a detailed analysis of green building design and sustainable construction products, check out GreenSpec. It’s a fantastic resource for building designers, self-builders or anybody who wants to know more about the impact of their plans before they buy.
Influence planning policy
Lobby for cycle routes as part of every new development
Write to your local council and political representative to demand that new developments are only given the go-ahead if they add to the sustainability of the local transport system, e.g. a cycle route from the development to the centre of town.
Find out more about lobbying for cycle routes.
Lobby for green tech as standard in new builds
Lobby the government to force developers to fit solar panels, water recycling systems, triple glazing, air-source heat pumps, and electric cooking appliances in all new homes.
See our Influence page for more ways to influence companies, politicians and people you know.
Make your home or workplace more sustainable
Insulate (lag) your pipes and hot water tank
Insulating your hot water tank and pipes is probably the cheapest and easiest way to improve the insulation in your home.
Read more about insulating your pipes and tank.
Draughtproof your existing doors and windows
Badly fitted double glazing and older wooden doors let the heat leak out of your house and leave you with cold draughts. You probably know exactly which windows or doors need attention because you feel cold when you go near them!
Draught-proofing is one of the most cost-effective insulation methods, with a payback time of just a few years, and an instant improvement in living quality, so worth doing sooner rather than later.
Read more about draught-proofing.
Create a laundry/drying room
Tumble dryers use a lot of energy. If you have a suitable space, convert it into a laundry/drying room, and hang your clothes up to dry away from household smells. Alternatively, set up a clothesline in a sunny part of your garden, and dry clothes outdoors; or dry your clothes on clotheshorses in rooms away from cooking smells.
Replace your gas hob/oven with an electric model
In addition to the need to phase out fossil fuels, cooking with gas can cause dangerous particles to accumulate in your house which could harm your health[1].
If you are planning on installing an induction hob, bear in mind it may need a heavier-duty electricity supply than your regular 13amp sockets. So plan this into any other work you are doing to avoid later disruption and redecoration. Of course, when the markets are working again, you should also sign up to a renewable electricity tariff to make your cooking fully fossil-fuel-free.
Green technology
If you can afford it, consider installing solar panels, a heat pump or even a wind turbine. Prices should be coming down in the next few years as gas boilers are phased out and the technology improves. Always look around for grants and government incentives.
Check for grants that may be available to help with costs. At the time of writing, if you are in a couple with 2 children and earn less than £32,300 per year, and your house has a low energy efficiency rating, you could be eligible for a government-backed means-tested grant that covers the whole cost of insulating and installing a heat pump in your home. (Other limits apply if you are single or have more/fewer children.)
Make sure you fully understand what you’re signing up to if it isn’t a simple pay-and-you’re-done deal, so you don’t sign yourself and future owners of your house up to a bad deal.
Install a programmable thermostat and thermostatic radiator valves
A programmable thermostat allows you to set the times that the heating will be on or off, so you don’t waste energy heating an empty house. Thermostatic radiator valves allow you to control the flow of water to individual radiators so you can control the heat on a room-by-room basis. This can be very useful as you probably don’t need to heat the spare room you use for storing boxes and gym equipment!
If your home doesn’t have a programmable thermostat or thermostatic radiator valves, get them fitted or speak to your landlord.
Insulate your loft (attic)
Uninsulated properties lose 25% of their heat through the roof [2]. You can tell if your property is under-insulated (compared to your neighbours) by looking at the roof on a frosty or snowy day. The heat rising through the roof of a badly insulated house will melt the frost or snow faster than on neighbouring roofs.
Depending on where you live and your personal circumstances, there may be grants available to help you with the cost of roof insulation. See the Energy Saving Trust for more information.
The Energy Saving Trust also has advice on which types of insulation may be suitable for your loft.
Insulate your walls
According to the Energy Saving Trust, properties can lose one-third of their heat through the walls. Both cavity walls and solid walls can be insulated.
Read more about insulating your walls.
Replace your doors and windows
If you have draughty doors and windows, replace them with modern, well-fitted, thermally-broken*, double- or triple-glazed versions.
Double and triple glazing is expensive and it could take decades to recoup the cost in terms of money saved. However, you’ll feel much warmer, use less energy, and cut out some external noise. Depending on your property, you’ll probably increase the resale value of your home too.
For older or listed properties, secondary glazing may be the best option. Secondary glazing is a second pane of glass that fits discreetly behind the original on the inside, decreasing heat loss while preserving the property’s traditional external appearance.
* (A thermal bridge is where there is no change in material between the inside and outside, which allows heat to pass more easily. Thermally-broken walls/doors/windows have at least one change in material, so heat cannot pass through so easily.)
Install a water recycling system
Water recycling systems collect rainwater for washing clothes and watering vegetables, or grey water (from your sink, bath, shower and washing machine) for toilet flushing and watering non-edible plants.
Design with energy in mind
When making big changes or designing a home from scratch, specify features that reduce energy waste e.g. lobbies (so your heated rooms don’t open straight into the outside), drying rooms (so you can hang your clothes up to dry away from cooking smells, reducing tumble dryer use) and triple glazing (to reduce heat loss).
Repurpose rooms to get the best solar benefits
For example, in the Northern hemisphere, put your living room, dining room, kitchen and drying room on the side facing South, and your larder, bathrooms, storage, bedrooms, and garage facing North. Reverse the advice in the Southern hemisphere.
Look for sustainable versions of products
Whatever you’re buying, research whether a more sustainable version exists. Things to consider include:
- How far it is shipped
- How much water, chemicals, energy or dye is used in its production
- Whether the materials can be separated and recycled at the end of the product’s life
- Does the product gives off Volatile Organic Compounds, and for how long
- Whether the material is compostable or easily recyclable
For a detailed analysis of green building design and sustainable construction products, check out GreenSpec. It’s a fantastic resource for building designers, self-builders or anybody who wants to know more about the environmental impact of their purchases before they buy.
Fit electric charging points at home
Electric charging points allow you to easily recharge your electric car overnight, making charging hassle-free and potentially cheaper (depending on your tariff). As electric cars become more common, homes with a charging point already installed will become even more attractive to buyers.
While it’s undeniably easier for people with driveways to install chargers at home, kerbside options are coming, such as these solutions from Connected Kerb and Green Mole.
If you are a landlord, there are grants available to fit charging points and infrastructure for your tenants.
Build-in bike storage
It’s a great idea to use a bike for local journeys. Secure, easy-access bike storage will help make that part of your routine.
Build a sustainable home from scratch
Building from scratch gives you the freedom to design-in all sorts of eco-friendly ideas rather than struggling to retrofit them. Everything in the above section applies, but also…
Aim for Passivhaus or EnerPHit standards
Passivhaus is an energy certification standard that ensures buildings use the minimum amount of energy while being comfortable to live in. Passivhaus buildings typically have very high levels of insulation, high-performance windows, are airtight, have a highly efficient mechanical ventilation system, and have no thermal bridges (a thermal bridge is where there is no change in material between the inside and outside, which allows heat to pass more easily).
For retrofit projects, where the existing building cannot be made to meet Passivhaus standards for architectural or conservation reasons, the slightly relaxed EnerPHit standard is available.
Design the layout of your home for the best solar benefits
Plan to put your living room, dining room, kitchen and drying room on the side that gets the most sun (South in the Northern hemisphere, North in the Southern hemisphere). A veranda or brise-soleil keeps direct sun out when it’s at its highest and hottest while allowing the light in when the sun is lower.
The best place for your larder, storage, bedrooms, and garage is on the side which doesn’t get much sun. They’ll stay at a cooler temperature and act as a heat-loss buffer.
Well-planned windows and skylights that bring light into the centre of the home will reduce the need for electric lighting during daylight hours.
Minimise concrete use
Concrete uses a lot of energy in its manufacture, so it’s best avoided unless it’s been deliberately specified in order to use it as a heat store.
Use sustainable timber
Wood is a sustainable building material because it captures carbon as it grows, and locks it up in use. Commercially grown timber is effectively a crop, so any trees cut down will be promptly replaced with more trees to repeat the cycle. However, it’s important to choose timber from a sustainably managed source.
This is hard to do if buying tropical hardwoods, as Greenpeace allege that the FSC certification is being used as a cover for deforestation. It’s better to buy locally grown FSC-certified timber as there is a much better chance that it has been grown sustainably.
Specify a green roof
As well as looking attractive, green roofs have multiple benefits including slowing rainwater run-off, providing a habitat for insects and birds, absorbing carbon, extending the lifespan of the waterproof membrane by protecting it from ultraviolet rays, providing a layer of insulation for the building itself, and lowering average temperatures in cities.
The building must be able to support the weight, so they are easier to build in than to retrofit, and they require more maintenance than a traditional roof if they are to remain well-balanced and healthy.
[1] Lin, W., Brunekreef, B. and Gehring, U., 2013. Meta-analysis of the effects of indoor nitrogen dioxide and gas cooking on asthma and wheeze in children. [online] Oxford Academic. Available at: <https://academic.oup.com/ije/article/42/6/1724/737113> [Accessed 22 August 2022].
[2] Energy Saving Trust. 2022. Roof and loft insulation. [online] Available at: <https://energysavingtrust.org.uk/advice/roof-and-loft-insulation/> [Accessed 22 August 2022].
[3] Lin, W., Brunekreef, B. and Gehring, U., 2013. Meta-analysis of the effects of indoor nitrogen dioxide and gas cooking on asthma and wheeze in children. [online] International Journal of Epidemiology. Available at: <https://academic.oup.com/ije/article/42/6/1724/737113> [Accessed 23 March 2022].
Image credits:
Construction plan with tools – photo by P Nattakan originally on Unsplash but now removed
Grassy cycle route – photo by Mitchel Boot on Unsplash
Solar panels on roof – photo by Ulrich Derboven on Unsplash
Cooking – photo by Conscious Design on Unsplash
Radiator – photo by Bernard Hermant on Unsplash
Timber door and wall – photo by Will Palmer on Unsplash
Kitchen pantry – photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash
Man drawing architectural plans – photo by Ryan Ancill on Unsplash
Modern house – photo by R ARCHITECTURE on Unsplash
Wildflowers – photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash