Climate Conscious Home Improvements

by Rosalind Dean

“Retrofit is really hard”, says Jonathan Hind, Founding Director of SY Ecofit.  So what is retrofit, and why should we care?

Retrofit is turning older houses into comfortable, healthy homes that are cheaper to run, emit less carbon and stay cool in a heat wave.  Simple in theory, but complicated in practice, because all houses are different in their history and how we use them.  

Why should we care?  In 2023, 1.6 Megatonnes of Carbon Dioxide equivalent of annual territorial greenhouse gas emissions were from domestic gas and electricity consumption in South Yorkshire. This single year accounts for nearly a third of the region’s remaining housing carbon budget for the 25 years to 2050 if we are to stay within the Climate Change Committee’s (CCC) pathway to net zero.  According to the South Yorkshire Sustainability Centre:

If South Yorkshire aims to champion carbon reduction and commit to meeting the 1.5 °C net- zero climate limit, its approximately 609,000 existing homes, including 480,000 houses and bungalows, must be retrofitted as fast as possible, whilst minimising the embodied emissions from the retrofits.

Last week, I went to a Festival of Debate Stocktake on Retrofit and Residential Energy Systems.  People there have been working on retrofit for years, on every aspect from regional strategies to where to put the heat pump.  So what did they have to tell us?

Start with insulation, so that other improvements don’t lose heat into the cold outdoors.  The Upper Don Community Energy Group’s “Community Warming” project provides draft excluders and door curtains.  Wall insulation (internal, external and cavity), roof insulation and double or triple-glazed windows are the best bet for reducing carbon, reducing bills and making homes warmer.

Take opportunities when they arise.  If we are doing other work, like changing our carpets or reroofing, try insulating the floors and roofs at the same time.  Find out about Warm Homes Grants.  https://warm-homes.sheffield.gov.uk/  Visit the Sheffield Energy Hub. https://sheffieldenergyhub.org/

Realise that retrofit is complicated, with lots of different trades involved, and find someone like SY Ecofit, who can coordinate an integrated service. 

Make use of the skilled people we have, like locally based small enterprises.  Barnsley College has a Clean Energy Training Centre, which includes retrofit. 

Councils need to work where there is a high concentration of houses with poor energy performance, combining worst-first with area-based savings.  This is what Sheffield Council and Housing Associations are doing.

Target houses with the highest energy demand, i.e., larger pre-1920s.  This is a recommendation from the South Yorkshire Sustainability Centre. 

Make sure that plans cover everyone, especially the 15% of South Yorkshire households living in fuel poverty, and in damp and mouldy homes that lead to respiratory problems.

District Heating Networks could cover 4% of South Yorkshire homes, using waste heat from industry and rubbish.

Beware the rebound effect, if people heat their houses more, reducing the savings on money and carbon.

Heat Pumps work best in insulated houses.  A bonus is that some of them have cooling facilities, which worked a treat during the recent heat wave.