Let experts help you with energy efficiency drive

With winter around the corner, it’s more important than ever to make sure your home is warm.

As we’ve all spent more time at home during the pandemic, energy usage has been greater than ever. With fuel bills on the increase, we are all facing a hard winter.

But rather than turning off the heating and shivering through the cold months, making our homes more energy-efficient is a much better way to lower energy costs and stay cosy.

The start-up cost of making improvements to heating systems and insulation often puts people off – but help is at hand from the Scottish Government.

Home Energy Scotland can tell you everything you need to know about what funding is available.

You might be able to get a grant to pay for home improvements to winterproof your home.

If you act now, you could get help worth about £5000 and reduce your energy bills before winter.

Since 2008, the service has saved Scottish householders more than £1billion on their energy bills and is helping to fight climate change by saving more than six million tonnes of CO2.

You may be able to get a grant from the

Scottish Government’s Warmer Homes Scotland programme, which supports households struggling to stay warm and keep on top of energy bills.

The grants are to help eligible homeowners and private sector tenants, who have lived in their property for at least a year, to make their homes warmer and more comfortable by installing a range of energysaving improvements.

All you need to do is call Home Energy Scotland, who will check what support you can get. If you’re eligible, they’ll put you in touch with Warmworks, the organisation that delivers the programme.

Assessors will come to your home to recommend suitable improvements to insulation and heating.

It’s time for owners to act to ensure a warm and

• FIT A THERMOSTAT and radiator controls to maintain a comfortable temperature without wasting energy. • SETTING YOUR THERMOSTAT to a comfortable 18-24C and turning down the heat by one degree could save up to 10 per cent on bills. • INSULATION KEEPS THE HEAT IN YOUR HOME and is a great way to save energy, money and do your bit for the environment. • INSULATE YOUR HOT WATER TANK to keep your water hot for longer, and water will run at the right temperature more secure home.

When the clocks go back on 30/31 October, Home Energy Scotland is encouraging homeowners to use the “extra hour” to get in touch and find out more about making their homes more energy efficient this winter. After all, a warm, energy-efficient home is not only good for your wallet, but for your physical and mental health. quickly if you insulate your cold and hot water pipes, too. It’s cheap and you can do it yourself.

• WALL INSULATION doesn’t cost much and can really cut your energy use.

• DRAUGHT PROOFING is an easy and costeffective way to reduce heat loss, with most materials available from DIY stores. • INSULATING UNDER THE FLOORBOARDS on your ground floor will save you around £60 a year, and you can seal the gaps between floors and skirting boards to reduce draughts.