Average family carbon outputs and how to reduce it

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Average family carbon outputs and how to reduce it

The Independent states that roughly, the average middle-class family of four’s carbon emissions for food and energy are as follows:

  • 16.00 tons – General consumerism
  • 12.00 tons – Meat based diet
  • 10.00 tons – Family flight to Miami
  • 4.60 tons – Two cars driven at UK average mileage of 14,800 km/year
  • 2.25 tons – Gas central heating
  • 0.75 tons – Electricity (if not on an 100 per cent renewable green tariff)
  • 0.20 tons – Water supply (although this calculation does not include the high carbon cost of hot water or its ecological impacts)

That’s a total of 45.80 tons.

Ways to cut your carbon

Reduce heating costs2020-05-28T09:05:47+01:00
  • Replace your boiler with a newer, more efficient model.
  • Fit better controls and use them to make sure your boiler only provides heat where and when you want it.
  • Switch to a cheaper or lower carbon fuel or technology. Find out about renewable technologies for generating electricity and heat.
  • Make any insulation and draught-proofing improvements that you can.
  • Use chemical inhibitors to help maintain central heating system efficiency.
Renewable energy2020-05-24T09:19:57+01:00

If your home improvement work requires scaffolding, such as a loft conversion, this would be an ideal time to install solar panels. Scaffolding is a significant part of the solar installation costs, so combining it with other works could make them much more cost-effective. Solar panels are most effective on south-facing roofs at a pitch of around 30 degrees.

There are various other factors to consider when thinking about whether your home set up works and how best to maximise the installation. For more information on installing renewable energy system at home, see here .

Energy Saving Trust
Lighting2020-05-24T09:17:34+01:00

Lighting accounts for 15 per cent of a typical household’s electricity bill. It’s good time to consider changing to LED bulbs.

LEDs are the most efficient light bulb on the market and have made significant advancements since their early days of low quality lighting. They are available with varying degrees of brightness, colours, and ‘colour temperatures’ – from warm white to cool white in appearance – and can suit almost all light fittings. Although the cost of bulbs is coming down, it can sometimes appear prohibitive, so consider the most used lights throughout your home as a first step.

Statistics from Energy Saving Trust
Insulation2020-05-24T09:14:14+01:00

Make sure your extension is insulated to Building Regulations. You could Consider having the rest of your home to insulated as well. If your home has cavity walls, a layer of insulation can be blown into the cavity.

If you have solid walls (usually homes built before 1920), you can have either internal or external insulation added. Applying external insulation at the same time as your extension would ensure the exterior finish to the main building matches the extension, improving the aesthetic of your home.

External insulation will also make those cold rooms in your home warmer and, so long as sufficient ventilation is maintained, it can help alleviate many causes of damp and mould. Furthermore, solid wall insulation could save around £225 a year from the heating bills of a typical gas-fuelled semi-detached home. Savings could be significantly higher in detached properties, around £375 per year in a typical gas-fuelled detached home.

Statistics from Energy Saving Trust
Bathroom energy efficiency2020-05-24T09:11:30+01:00

Planning your new bathroom is a great time to think about being more efficient and reducing water usage throughout the home. There are many different types of shower head that aerate the water thereby reducing water usage without a negative impact on your shower experience. A water efficient shower head could save a four person household (e.g. a family of four or even a shared student flat) around £40 a year on gas for water heating, as well as a further £55 a year on water bills if using a water meter. You should also look for low-flush toilets – saving at least one litre of water per use.

If you’re adding extra heating to your bathroom, such as a towel rail or underfloor heating, make sure it is installed with easy to use, accessible controls, we’ll show you how to use heating controls so your being efficient as possible.

Statistics from Energy Saving Trust
By |2020-05-28T09:04:50+01:00January 7th, 2020|News|
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