Across Britain, home-owners like you are looking for ways to make their houses more energy-efficient. Fitting insulation and installing renewable energy systems are two of the most obvious and popular options available to energy efficiency enthusiasts. Individually, insulation and renewable energy systems are each incredibly useful solutions. You may not realise, however, that they work best when used in conjunction. The benefits of insulation naturally complement those of a renewable energy system, so it makes sense to use both solutions if you can afford the initial investment. Installing a system for generating renewable energy alongside cavity wall insulation and loft insulation has both economic and environmental advantages.
Renewable energy systems such as heat pumps and solar panels allow you to generate energy for your home, thereby decreasing your dependence on an external, fossil fuel-based energy supply. Insulation reduces the amount of heat that escapes from your home, which means that you don’t have to use as much energy to keep your home warm. So insulation can help you make the energy generated by a renewable energy system go further. There will probably still be a gap between the amount of energy you generate and the amount of energy you use. However, you can continue to generate and use the same amount of energy using your renewable resources and it will take less additional energy (from the national grid) to make up the difference between your energy generation and your usage. Naturally, this will significantly reduce your carbon footprint; but it will also help you save money, because you won’t have to pay for as much externally-provided energy. While renewable energy systems require a large initial investment, they do pay for themselves by saving you money. Installing insulation simply helps your investments pay for themselves more quickly!
Many home-owners feel as though they have to decide between energy efficiency measures (such as insulation) and full-blown renewable energy systems. The truth is that, if you can afford it, it pays to invest in both. Your investments will quickly pay for themselves and you’ll be doing your bit to save the environment, too.
