January 22ndInCERT January 22
InCERT - Cutting greenhouse gas emissions at home. In 2017, we made a series of energy improvements to our 1950s house in Haultain: 400mm external wall insulation, state-of-the-art energy efficient windows from Austria, and a heat recovery ventilation system. This cut the greenhouse gas emissions from heating the house by 1/3 (even after thermostat settings somehow drifted upwards), cut our gas bill similarly, and made the place substantially more comfortable in winter.
In 2024, we continued the process. Having had our chimney demolished the previous year in conjunction with re-shingling, we increased our loft insulation to about 500mm, and installed photovoltaic panels on the roof. It’s too early to announce results, but we are confident to have further reduced furnace use - and in the early autumn we were producing more electricity than we used and selling it back to Saskatoon Light and Power.
The 2017 retrofit was possible for us only because of funds from my late mother’s will. The 2024 additions are partly financed through the City of Saskatoon’s HELP scheme: we will pay back in increased local taxes but our reduced energy costs will more than counterbalance that. People on low income, and especially those in rented accommodation, would not be able to do what we have done. I invite readers to advocate for policies which would enable those most in need of cutting their fuel bills to do so through energy efficiency and solar panels. I’m open to discussions as to what policy changes could achieve that aim. Mark Bigland-Pritchard mark@lowenergydesign.com