Galway home goes from BER C2 to A1

Background

Anne Marie moved home from England in 2019 with the goal of buying her own place. Like many others, she rented while keeping an eye on the market. It was a full year before she found her forever home in the heart of Galway City. The three-bedroom bungalow was 'love at first sight' even though it was in need of some upgrades. The BER was C1, so not bad in terms of energy efficiency. The average home in Ireland is a D2, although that average is improving as more and more people are investing in insulation and renewable energy technologies such as heat pumps and solar PV. 

Anne Marie did her research and was aware of the various home energy grants available from SEAI. But it was an advert she saw through her electricity company that led her down the One Stop Shop route. House2Home, an SEAI registered One Shop Shop offer a full range of services to homeowners that minimise the hassle of a big retrofit project. Like all One Stop Shops, this service includes a home energy assessment, project management, grant application, contractor works, follow up BER assessment and financial support. They also deduct the grant amount upfront making the project more affordable for the homeowner. 

Ann Marie decided this was the best option for her and she contacted House2Home. 

The Project

After Anne Marie reached out to House2Home, they arranged a Home Energy Assessment to establish what energy upgrades needed to be carried out. They came back with a very detailed report and recommended the following upgrades to be carried out:

• Install new energy efficient windows and doors
• Insulate the attic
• Replace the old heating system with a heat pump
• Install solar panels to generate electricity

They talked through the project with Ann Marie so she understood exactly what was involved, how long it would take and most importantly, how much it would all cost. Part of the service is to apply for the SEAI grants on Ann Marie's behalf and deduct the grants upfront, making the project more affordable. Ann Marie was happy to proceed. 

Despite a considerable amount of work, the project was finished in just four weeks. Anne Marie can now control the heating in her home from her phone. She also has an app which tells her how much solar energy her panels have produced, how much she needs to power her home and how much she can sell back to the grid.

"The temperature in my home stays steady all the time. The house used to be freezing first thing in the morning and now when I wake up, the temperature has hardly dropped". 

Results

The house went from a BER C2 to A1. This is a fantastic result and will guarantee Ann Marie energy savings long into the future.

"I’m saving around €1,000 a year, based on the fact that I no longer have to spend money on oil, but the big benefit isn’t the cost saving, it’s the fact that the house has changed and that it’s much better quality with greater insulation".

You too can benefit from a warmer, cosier home with support from SEAI. We offer a range of grants to suit homeowners at every stage of their retrofit journey. Choose one of our individual energy grants or get multiple upgrades completed all at once with our One Stop Shop grant route.