The UK's two million offices and 26million homes leaked £1.2bn-worth more heat than normal during the past month's cold snap, according to new figures released yesterday. This study shows that using more energy efficient materials like double glazing would have lowered the amount of heat lost by houses and offices.

The study from project management consultancy Faithful & Gould, a subsidiary of engineering and design firm the Atkins Group, found that the sub zero temperatures accelerated the high rates of heat loss from many British buildings, forcing heating systems to increase their output in an attempt to maintain indoor temperatures. However better insulation and the widerspread of double glazing would have contributed to reducing the loss because it would improve insulation.

"Heat is simply lost at a greater rate if the temperature drops," said Ellie Horwitch-Smith, an energy management expert at Faithful & Gould. "While the £1.2 billion-worth of additional lost heat may be a shocking figure, it’s a very conservative estimate."

She added that the scale of energy inefficiencies should serve as a warning to larger organisations due to take part in the government's Carbon Reduction Commitment Energy Efficiency scheme when it comes into effect in April. This scheme will contribute to encouraging homeowners and office developpers to use energy efficient such as double glazing in order to improve the building’s insulation. Thus improving the building's energy efficiency.

"The answer may be to retrofit insulation and double glazing or even think more carefully about the characteristics of a building at the design stage, but whatever home-owners or businesses do, investing in heat-proofing can rapidly cut their energy costs, " Smith said.

The consultancy's calculations assumed that an exceptional fall in temperatures of just two degrees below the average for the time of year would have meant that an extra £284m-worth of energy was consumed by offices in order to maintain indoor temperatures at an average of 20 degrees during the two-week cold snap. However fitting double glazing would contribute to reducing these extra-costs and help save energy.
 

Author:  Thomas Davies

Mail to a friend  |   Print this news  |  Contact Us  |  About Us

Publish our Green issues articles on your own site!

All our Green issues articles are available for republishing, provided the links in the content remain intact. You can also use our RSS news feed to republish all of our Green issues articles.