If you are thinking of getting a new hot water boiler, you should look at installing a combination boiler. It will take up around the same space, if not slightly less, than your old boiler and you will save money and the environment by making the change.

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Guest Article by Louise Goldstein

Never one to hide its light under a bushel, double glazing giant Anglian Home Improvements has introduced its own £2,000 National Window Scrappage Scheme, designed to encourage UK homeowners to scrap their old poorly insulated windows, in return for £2,000 towards the installation of new, and professionally installed, energy efficient windows.

Such schemes have become popular after the cash for wrecks programme appeared to stimulate the ailing car industry throughout Europe and the US. Not to be outdone, there are growing demands on the Government to introduce similar schemes for boilers and windows.

Anglian claim that their own scrappage scheme supports the UK window industries lobbying activity, which focuses around the Glass and Glazing Federation’s (GGF) Government e-petition for a £1,000 windows scrappage scheme. Go here to sign up.

Melanie Russell, Head of Marketing and Communications at Anglian Home Improvements, said:
“Anglian Home Improvements supports and encourages the GGF Government e-petition. As an industry leader we saw the need to offer homeowners immediate support through our £2,000 national windows scrappage scheme, benefiting the consumer, while fully endorsing and promoting the call for UK households to sign the GGF petition.

“Anglian’s windows scrappage scheme, which replaces inadequate insulated windows with new energy efficient ones, means this winter UK households can retain more heat while actually spending less heating their homes.”

Whether this is a marketing version of jumping on the bandwagon, or a genuine attempt people to save money and carbon emissions remains to be seen, but Anglian can only be applauded for what they say is trying to kick start UK households into replacing old widows with energy efficient versions, in order to reach the Governments CO2 reduction target.

And as Anglian point out, much of the country’s precious energy is wasted through poorly insulated windows which not only leak heat, but also money, which is bad for the consumer pocket as well as the UK’s carbon footprint.

Anglian do not go into the details of exactly how the scheme works, but if it is adopted by the Government then they, as well as the industry in general and most consumers, will no doubt grab at the chance to save themselves some money as winter approaches.

Guest Article by Neil Camp

Top boiler manufacturer Baxi has announced that it has become a brand partner of the Government’s ACT ON CO2 campaign.

Baxi joins the likes of Ford, John Lewis and Michelin who are already in the campaign, and all are helping people save money, save energy and reduce their CO2 emissions.

The campaign is a cross-government initiative involving the Department of Energy and Climate Change, the Department for Transport and the Department for Communities and Local Government, and is designed to highlight how individuals can act to make a difference over CO2 emissions.

Geraldine Clegg, Baxi’s marketing communications manager, said:
“The company is committed to producing and promoting products that meet increasingly demanding environmental standards. We’re delighted to become a partner in this campaign. At the heart of our product development strategy is our commitment to help the UK population cut its CO2 emissions.

“Replacing a boiler older than ten years by installing a new high efficiency condensing boiler can cut CO2 emissions as well as save householders hundreds of pounds each year. We believe that through offering the best products and the best customer care and advice, we can play a large part in reducing CO2 emissions across the UK.”

As a brand partner, part of Baxi’s role will be to share energy and money saving tips with their customers.

These include:

1. Ensure that you are using your heating controls correctly. Review your boiler and cylinder thermostat, time programmer and thermostatic radiator valve settings and re-set them to match your needs more closely in terms of timing and comfort. And as the weather warms up, make sure you turn down your boiler settings to match the temperature.
2. Ensure you are not blocking precious heat from radiators by furniture or curtains.
3. Always fit reflective insulation panel boards on walls behind the radiators, especially if it’s an outside wall. Rigid reflective radiator panels are an ideal solution, if you don’t want to, or can’t, take your radiators off the walls.
4. Ensure your boiler is serviced once a year and this will mean it will work as efficiently, safely and reliably as possible. Typically, this will cost around £140.

The announcement over the ACT ON CO2 Campaign follows on from news that Baxi is celebrating success after one of its combination boilers was voted ‘Best Buy’ by leading consumer magazine Which?

The magazine tested 52 boilers from a selection of leading manufacturers for fuel consumption, durability, energy efficiency and emissions. Each was then evaluated by a CORGI registered gas installer on how easy it was to install, service and use.

The Baxi boiler in question was the Duo-tec Combi 28 HE which had the best score at 79%. It won five-star ratings for performance, efficiency, NOx emissions (Nitrogen Oxide), installation and features.

The Baxi Duo-tec Combi 28 HE is no stranger to fame, having previously won Boiler of the Year 2008 in the CORGI Boiler of The Year awards.

Guest Article by Neil Camp

Although may experts are focusing on energy alternatives and greener technologies such as carbon capture, one study has shown that heat capture techniques alone could meet 5% of the U.K.’s future requirements.

The report, from the University of Southampton and the Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE), claims that over 10 million tonnes of carbon dioxide could be saved every year if the waste heat from the country’s power stations could be captured and diverted to offices and homes.

This forms part of a new way of thinking called combined heat and power (CHP) schemes, which is a theory based on homes and offices being provided with heat and power from a localised power plant. The key is to have homes and businesses near enough power sources to make use of the central heat and power facility.

Many of the U.K. biggest power stations, such as Kingsnorth and Drax, are near populated areas and if the waste heat were to be captured from their energy making process, it could be used to heat local communities.

And producing heat accounts for nearly half of the U.K’s energy requirements.

The problem with many power stations is that they are woefully inefficient. They currently return an efficiency rating of only 35%, which in practice means that for every 1,000 mega watts of electricity the average power station produces, some 2,000 mega watts of heat goes up into the atmosphere via the cooling towers.

If this waste heat were to be captured, then it would make the power stations nearer 80% efficient and allow the heat captured to be used elsewhere. The report did acknowledge that all power stations could not be used in such a way (many, including nuclear facilities, are sited away from heavily populated areas), but there were enough near conurbations to make a significant difference.

The report also acknowledged that a great deal of investment would be needed in terms of the heat capture technology and the piping needed to distribute the heat.

But with a ten million carbon dioxide saving in the offing, the government might well decide to take the plan forward.

Guest Article by Neil Camp

A group of elderly residents in Theale, near Reading, are coping with fuel poverty by generating their own electricity at their sheltered housing scheme.

Residents of the James Butcher Housing Association (JBHA) have had new, highly efficient boilers installed, together with a combined heat and power unit (CHP). The new boilers are similar to large car engines and constantly produce 15 kilo watts of electricity and 30 kilo watts of heat. Combined with a new CHP, they distribute electricity and heat to all the residents.

The JBHA team behind the installations say that the investments in the new boilers and CHP system has proved to be very successful. The system performs more efficiently at lower maintenance costs and they are able to generate their own electricity, passing on all the savings to residents.

They claim that carbon dioxide emissions will fall by 25% with the new system and that the total amount of gas used will drop by just over 5%. Support was provided by a major energy supplier and local contractors.

JBHA intend to roll out similar schemes, including those making use of solar panels together with CHP, over other of their developments. They have also received many enquiries from other housing schemes, who see the concept as a way of helping their residents beat the poverty fuel trap.

CHP systems are designed to generate heat and electricity from localised sources – such as small community power stations – and distribute the heat and power, via a pipe system, to local residents and businesses. They are becoming more and more popular as a way of reducing carbon emissions and making the generation of power more efficient. They are already very popular in many Scandinavian countries.

Guest Article by Neil Camp