Builders Merchants Journal – BMJ Publishing to Builders Merchants and the UK merchanting industry for more than 95 years
Insulation supplier Rockwool has found that around 4.6million households face fuel poverty due to poor energy efficiency and rising utility bills.
The company’s research reveals that 28% of UK homes do not have loft insulation, with 58% having no cavity wall insulation and 58% also having unlagged pipes.
It also estimates that UK home owners waste a £2.9 billion on energy bills and pump 15 million tonnes of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere every year by failing to adequately insulate their homes.
The Energy Savings Trust estimates that installing loft insulation, cavity wall insulation and pipe lagging for the average three bedroom property (which did not have any of these previously) would cost just £510 and save the homeowner up to £275 a year in fuel bills and could equate to a carbon saving of 15,529,410 tonnes per year.
“It is staggering that so much CO2 is being pumped into the atmosphere, with so much energy lost and money wasted by poorly insulated homes, particularly given how relatively simple and cheap it is to rectify this problem,” says Rockwool managing director Hans Schreuder.
“There is a lot of help for home owners available now meaning many low income householders won’t have to pay for home insulation or can take advantage of significant discounts. We urge homeowners to investigate the help that is available to them and to look seriously at the savings they can make by properly insulating their homes.
“If all of the UK’s 25,350,000 homes were properly insulated the nation would not only save £2.9 billion a year on energy costs, we would also make a considerable cut in carbon emissions , scoring an important victory in the battle to prevent global warming.”
