As temperatures plummet in the UK this week, central heating systems across the country are working overtime to keep people warm. But for an alarming number of households the cold winter months means more financial misery.

Glow-worm – one of the UK’s leading boiler manufacturers – recognises the financial strain turning up the heating poses,  particularly for the most vulnerable members of society, and is offering some good to help tackle high energy bills this winter.

Cranking up the heating during the cold winter months uses the largest proportion of energy most households will use throughout the entire year, so it stands to reason that to get the best out of your hard-working boiler is needs to working to optimum performance.

“Accurately sizing a new or replacement boiler is very important.  But it’s also very important for homeowners to ensure their whole heating system is working as efficiently as possible,” explains Glow-worm’s Commercial Director, Pippa Wibberley.

“This may mean new or replacement radiators, controls, under floor heating or even investment in renewable technology,” she added.

An efficiently running system means not only will you not be wasting energy, but you won’t be wasting money either, which will help to reduce your fuel bills.

To get the most from your central heating system, Glow-worm has a few top tips, which includes:

• Programme your heating system to operate when you need it most – it’s the most efficient way to heat your home – rather than leaving it on low all day.

• Utilise systems with intelligent controls to set your heating and hot water, such as Glow-worm’s Climapro₂ wireless programmable room thermostat, which can be used as part of a heating system containing a cylinder.

•  Consider installing thermostatic radiator valves.  And if you’re not using a room, save energy – and money – by turning off the radiator valve.

• Treat your central heating system to an annual maintenance check by a Gas Safe Registered engineer.

• And last but not least, remember to get your boiler serviced regularly by a Gas Safe Registered engineer.

For more information about Glow-worm’s products visit www.glow-wormheating.co.uk

A new report has highlighted the enormous task the UK faces, if the country stands any chance of meeting its carbon emissions reduction targets through a massive ‘get Britain retrofit’ scheme. 

From now until 2050, one green makeover will need to be given every minute, otherwise the country will fail to meet its targets, reveals the Centre for Low carbon Futures report, which was compiled in conjunction with the Energy Saving Trust.

Given that around 45% of emissions come from existing buildings, of which 70% will still be standing come 2050, there’s no escaping the fact that getting Britain’s buildings retrofit is of the utmost importance.

According to the report, schemes like the Renewable Heating Incentive (RHI) and the Green Deal have gone some way to encouraging people to make improvements to the energy efficiency of their properties. However, in order to achieve an 80% cut in carbon emissions, more still needs to be done – and the urgency to do more and the challenge facing the built environment should not be overlooked

“Despite the best efforts to encourage households and industry to adopt low carbon solutions through regulation and incentive schemes, they are not achieving the step changes required,” explained Jon Price, director of the Centre for Low Carbon Futures.

Mr Price explained that a lack of knowledge and understanding of energy performance, coupled with the diversity of the country’s buildings would hinder the extensive retrofit plans because one size cannot fit all, as it were.

Government schemes like the Green Deal and the RHI are designed to encourage Britain’s home owners and businesses to become more energy efficient by implementing energy saving measures, such as installing energy efficient new boilers, cavity wall insulation, double glazing and green heating technologies like heat pumps and solar water heating. The Green Deal in particular should, in theory, totally revolutionise the energy efficiency of the UK’s housing stock.

Phase one of the Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) scheme went live on Monday, inviting applications from the non-domestic sector interested in switching to renewable heating.

Under the Government’s flagship £865 million scheme, companies are eligible to install renewable energy technologies, such as heat pumps, solar thermal panels and biomass boilers, and get paid money for generating their own green heating and hot water.

Tariff levels and the amount of money paid will depend on the  the type of renewable heating technology installed, as well as the size of the system.

As one of the UK’s leading suppliers of wood pellets, CPL Distribution is pleased to see the phase one of the scheme finally go live, after a series of delays knocked industry confidence.

“There is no denying that the delays to the Renewable Heat Incentive’s launch knocked confidence among board-level decision makers and a large number of projects to install renewable systems have been stalled as a result,” commented Tim Minett, the firm’s chief executive.

“With the delays now behind us, this green light for the Renewable Heat Incentive will be a significant stepping stone in the UK’s transition towards a low-carbon economy.”

If you’re a business and you would like to know more about the scheme, give energy regulator Ofgem’s dedicated enquiries helpline a ring on 0845 200 2122 or visit www.ofgem.gov.uk.

The domestic side of the RHI will be launched next year.

It is the season to be jolly, and with Christmas fast approaching, the nice folk at Glow-worm have been working faster than Santa’s little helpers to source top tips and advice to help us all enjoy a low carbon Christmas. 

The winter months are starting to set in, and with the expensive Christmas season just around the corner, we’re all looking for ways to help save energy and money.

To count down the days running up to Christmas, the team at Glow-worm have today launched their fun alternative Christmas advent calendar. From now until Christmas Day, instead of the traditional festive images or chocolate treats, you will be able to feast on a variety of fun facts and figures and energy saving tips.

If you want to cut your costs and do your bit for the environment in the process, it’s worth considering these energy saving tips:

• Reduce your carbon footprint – ditch paper cards and send friends and family an e-card instead.
• Make your own recycled Christmas decorations.
• Use LED fairy lights – they use much less energy compared to traditional ones.
• If you really want to go to town you could decorate the outside of your home, but use energy-saving solar powered lights instead. You’ll be saving money on your energy bills if you use the sun’s renewable energy during the day to light up your house at night.
• And last but not least, give your boiler the best present of all by making sure it’s had its annual winter check-up. A service will ensure you don’t wake up to any nasty surprises on Christmas morning – like having no central heating. We can’t imagine anything worse than a Christmas without any heating - except perhaps having to eat a plate full of sprouts!

There’s no time like the present – pardon the pun! Check out www.needanewboiler.com to unwrap today’s first energy saving treat.

According to the latest Boiler Guide press release, reinstating the Boiler Scrappage Scheme in England will help homeowners cut their fuel bills.

Boiler Guide is backing the Heating and Hotwater Industry Council (HHIC) who are calling on the Government to reinstate the boiler scrappage scheme in England, which last year saw more than 118,000 old and energy inefficient boilers scrapped in favour of new A-rated energy efficient models.

The incentive proved a runaway success last year, encouraging 61% of homeowners to replace their old boiler as a direct result of the scheme, enabling them to make their homes more energy efficient, saving money and reducing greenhouse gas emissions in the process.

Of the boilers replaced, 51% of them were over 25 years old and with energy bills at an all-time high, the need to become more energy efficient is growing in awareness amongst homeowners. Reintroducing the boiler scrappage scheme would be a productive way to help householders in their battle to save money as energy bills continue to rise.

Swapping an old inefficient boiler for a new boiler will help homeowners to save an average of £290 annually on their central heating bills. But there are many advantages to the boiler scrappage scheme, not least:

• It provides a financial incentive, encouraging homeowners to trade in their old boilers for newer energy efficient models
• Installing a new energy efficient boiler will save energy and reduce energy bills
• It will help to achieve cuts in greenhouse gas emissions
• The scheme raises money for the Treasury
• It helps to protect jobs and encourage growth in the UK’s domestic heating and hot water industry

David Holmes, founder of Boiler Guide says: “Saving energy means saving money and one very effective way to do that is to replace your old energy-sapping boiler for a brand new energy efficient model.

“Unfortunately during these increasing tough economic times, many homeowners simply cannot afford the initial upfront costs needed to install a new boiler. And that’s why schemes like this are worth their weight in gold.

“The merits of the boiler scrappage scheme have already been proven and given that the scheme continues to run successfully in Scotland, it’s high time the scheme was reinstated in England.”

As the UK’s leading online resource of boiler and central heating installers, whether your boiler needs repairing or if you’re looking to install a brand new boiler, Boiler Guide is the go to place to help you source boiler quotes from recommended installers and heating engineers.

For more industry news and views, or to find an engineer in your area visit www.boilerguide.co.uk

With the winter months fast approaching, energy consumers already struggling to meet the demands of rising gas and electricity costs are facing more worry when it comes to ensuring they stay warm and healthy this winter.

But for the most vulnerable members of society – the elderly and low income households – there is help at hand , thanks to a variety of schemes and incentives. One of which is the Government’s Warm Front Scheme.

Whether you’re in need of a new boiler to replace your old energy inefficient model, or would like to install loft insulation or cavity wall insulation, but cannot afford the up-front costs involved, the Warm Front Scheme can provide grants to householders who reside in poorly insulated or badly heated homes. If you’re eligible to benefit from the scheme you can apply for a grant of up to £3,500 or up to £6,000 if your property is not main gas connected.

“With the coldest months of the year fast approaching, there’s never been a better time for people on low incomes to pick up the phone and apply for a Warm Front grant,” advises Energy and Climate Change Minister, Greg Barker.

This year the Government has made more than £110 million available in funding, and another £100 million has already been allocated for 2012/13.

It’s estimated that around 90,000 people will take advantage of the Warm Front grant scheme over the next two years.

For more about the scheme, visit www.direct.gov.uk

Community heating projects in Scotland have been awarded a loans boost of £1.9 million, which will aid the installation of nine small community biomass heating systems.

The loans, all of which were capped at £400,000, will see West Whitlawburn Housing Co-operative in Glasgow replace electric storage heating in two tower blocks with a wood-fuelled heating system.

Other projects to benefit include the West Highland Housing Association biomass project who, thanks to a loan of £280,000, will now be able to provide heating for 60 properties and a local school. The Mull and Iona Progressive Care Centre in Argyll and Bute have also been awarded £200,000 for infrastructure costs.

The schemes – part of a pilot project open to small businesses, councils and housing associations – will heat about 280 homes and are expected to save more than 68,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide over 25 years and provide heat to around 280 homes in the area.

“We have a target of 11 per cent of heat demand coming from renewables by 2020 and district heating schemes will help Scotland achieve that target,” said energy minister, Fergus Ewing.

He added that many schemes fall by the wayside because of high start-up costs and unavailable finance.

“By offering these loans, we are helping communities to help themselves, developing affordable, green and locally-produced heat,” said Mr Ewing.

The plight of a pensioner in Skipton has highlighted one of the many discrepancies of the privatised energy market.

Pamela Barton, a widow living on Brougham Street, Skipton, has this month received an energy bill of £2,843.41 – a final demand for payment that includes current usage and arrears.

The bill was issued by E.ON, which has been receiving £42 per month from Mrs Barton since 2007. Unfortunately, the regular payments made by Mrs Barton have not been enough to clear her account, which continues to grow as her energy usage exceeds £42 in value each month. Mrs Barton has now resorted to candlelight to save money on electricity and gas central heating.

Mrs Barton said: “My pension is only £120 a week – I just can’t afford to pay all this. I’m just getting deeper into debt. I’m keeping the lights and gas off as much as I can. I sit with something warm around me and use a candle.

“I’ve even thought about selling the house. I’ve cried about how it could have come to this”.

Mrs Barton’s plight is one that is shared by many thousands of other energy consumers in the UK. Fuel poverty is a growing problem in the country and efforts to ensure the most vulnerable households can afford adequate energy appear to be failing.

Highlighting an apparent disparity of the energy market in the UK, whilst Mrs Barton, a fuel-poor pensioner and widow, struggles to afford enough energy to light a room or heat a stove, Stoke-on-Trent City Council has announced a deal with British Gas that aims to provide help for low-income households.

Under the deal, British Gas will invest around £3.6 million to improve the energy efficiency of 785 private and council properties in Northwood. Energy efficiency measures include installing solar PV panels, loft insulation, draught proofing and new condensing boilers. The measures should ensure that households in the area are able to save hundreds of pounds on annual energy bills.

Unless similar help is afforded to households in Craven, Mrs Barton may be spending her Christmas by candlelight.

Recently forced to suspend staff over widespread mis-selling of insurance cover for broken boilers and burst pipes, Homeserve is advising its customers to seek a refund if they feel they have been mis-sold a policy.

Known as Britain’s ‘fifth emergency service’, the insurance firm provides insurance cover for domestic problems ranging from blocked drains to burst pipes and broken boilers.

Serving 3 million customers in the UK, Homeserve recently suspended all of its telesales calls after receiving complaints concerning the companies aggressive use of phone marketing tactics. Specifically, allegations purport to customers being bullied or misled into taking out insurance policies that were unnecessary or inadequate.

Following the complaints, Homeserve appointed business analysts Deloitte to investigate the allegations as part of an independent inquiry. Consequently, the company suspended all of its telesales operations over the weekend, so its 500 or so staff could be retrained.

Homeserve chief executive Richard Harpin said: “We are determined to ensure customers receive the  highest standards of service and we have therefore taken swift action  to address the issues identified by our review,” said Richard Harpin, Homeserve’s chief executive.

Anyone who feels they have been mis-sold insurance with Homeserve should contact the company directly, failing which, take their concerns up with the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS).

Under the Renewable Heat Premium Payment (RHPP) scheme, funding for social landlords to install renewable heating technologies has been increased to £4 million.

The announcement was made at yesterday’s Solar Power UK 2011 conference in Birmingham, with Greg Barker, the Minister for Energy and Climate Change confirming that funding set aside for social housing has been increased by 33%.

In August, the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) launched the RHPP, the first phase of the Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) scheme. An initial pot of £3 million was made available, and housing associations and local authorities were invited to bid for up to £175,000 to help off set the installation costs of renewable heating equipment.

According to the energy minister, 34 projects had made successful applications, but he added that overall interest in the scheme had been somewhat disappointing.

“Take up under the RHPP is marginally slower than expected, particularly for solar thermal, and I would urge you all to embrace this scheme which is due to finish at the end of March next year,” he said.

Technologies eligible under the RHPP range from air source heat pumps and biomass boilers, to ground source heat pumps and solar water heating.