Blog

Whether it’s topping up your attic or wall insulation, replacing old drafty windows and doors with more efficient ones, or swapping out your oil / gas boiler for a heat pump, energy upgrades are a smart investment for you and our planet.

Upgrading your home may appear overwhelming and costly, but you don’t need to do it all at once.

Making your rental property more energy-efficient can bring you a host of benefits, and thanks to various government supports, it's easier than ever to get started.

“Any idea of the future should at first seems ridiculous”. If we apply this to the energy sector, we can look forward to living in a fully decarbonised society by 2050.

As we race against time in our efforts to address climate change, Margie McCarthy, Director of Research and Policy Insights draws on insights from SEAI’s analysis, including the National Heat Study, to discuss how HVO (Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil) can most effectively contribute to Ireland’s energy transition.

Old and inefficient oil or gas boilers can be wasteful of energy and costly to run, as well as having a negative impact on our environment. Now is the perfect time to think about upgrading your heating system and making your home more suitable for an energy-efficient, environmentally friendly option, like a heat pump.

Dr. Ciaran Byrne, Director of National Retrofit and a member
of the Executive Leadership Team at SEAI was a guest on The
Last Word with Matt Cooper on Today FM to discuss the
benefits and barriers of upgrading the energy efficiency of
your home. Below we have summarised a few of the items
discussed.

You've done your research, talked to a few people about their experiences and decided you want that level of comfort in your home. You're ready to get a heat pump. What's next?

Tom, from SEAI, shares his reasons for switching over to a heat pump in his home.

Interested in learning more about the 'value' of a home retrofit and why it should outweigh the cost, especially when it comes to the lifetime benefits you can expect.

Are you getting solar photovoltaic (PV) panels installed at your home? Have you asked all the necessary questions of your solar PV Company and/or Installer? If in doubt, check this out.

William Walsh, CEO at SEAI, gives his thoughts on the new low-
cost loan scheme and how it supports home energy upgrades.

In this blog, SEAI colleagues answer the most commonly asked questions we get about building energy ratings (BER).

2023 was an exceptional year for retrofit in the residential
sector. Building on the achievements made in 2022, last year
hit new, more ambitious targets. The trajectory is going in
the right direction, and that is a testament to the appetite
of the Irish people to do something tangible to reduce the
CO2 emissions from their homes.

It's time to give your home an energy upgrade and switch to clean, renewable energy with a heat pump.

Director of National Retrofit, Dr Ciaran Byrne, discusses the
real cost of retrofit and why communication between homeowner
and contractor is absolutely key to understanding the project
and managing expectations.