What is Retrofit?
Retrofitting is the process of making changes to an existing building to make it more energy efficient, more comfortable, cheaper to heat and healthier to live in. Retrofitting can help you tackle problems like damp, condensation, and mould. It could help reduce your energy bills, improve your health and it could also help reduce your carbon emissions.
This can be done by improving loft or roof insulation, reducing draughts, double or triple glazing or adding solar panels (pop your postcode into Solar Wizard and in just a few clicks it will tell you how much electricity you might be able to generate from rooftop solar panels on your house). It is best to consider how you might be able to improve the energy efficiency of your house before carrying out work you might need or want to do, like decorating or rendering and replastering, replacing an old boiler, fixing a roof, building an extension, or replacing your kitchen. This way you can make potential savings as you incorporate thermal upgrades into the upkeep and maintenance of your home.
What is a retrofit assessment and how can it help me?
A retrofit assessment can help you understand where your house loses heat and energy, and plan how to make improvements as efficiently as possible either now or in the future.
A qualified retrofit professional, will carry out a ‘whole house assessment’. This is a survey of your home, looking at how is has been built (walls, floors, windows, doors, and roofs), and how energy is used to heat your rooms, your hot water and light your home. Every home is different, and any assessment will consider how you live and any circumstances special to you.
A plan is then produced which is usually split into phases, showing which items of work could be best carried out together, what they might involve and a rough estimate of how much they might cost. It will also estimate the energy savings for each measure and its associated carbon reduction. It will also consider, your aims, budget and how long you plan to stay in your home. It’s then up to you as the homeowner to decide which measures you might want to undertake and when.
Who is this service for?
- You may be a homeowner,
- Or you may be a landlord with private rental properties.
- You may live in a whole house or in a flat.
- You might be suffering for health conditions which could be caused or effected by living in a cold damp home.
- Perhaps you are wondering if you can save money on your energy bills or reduce your carbon footprint by installing renewable energy technology?
- Perhaps you’ve just moved into a new home and have alterations planned?
If you live in Frome or a surrounding village, and your house is more than 20 years old, get in touch to see if our retro fit assessor can help.
How much will it cost?
The assessment and report won’t cost you anything.
This project is part of the Green and Healthy Frome initiative. We are a unique partnership of Frome Town Council, Edventure Frome, and Frome Medical Practice. We are funded by The National Lottery’s Climate Action Fund. We are exploring ways to help local people live lives which are good for their health and good for the planet. By improving one, we’ll also improve the other, enabling everyone to share in a better future.
The project is also supported by the Centre for Sustainable Energy and Futureproof.
The Centre for Sustainable Energy is an independent charity formed in 1979 with the aim of ending the suffering caused by cold homes. They help city councils and community groups shape their energy polices and net zero ambitions and put plans into action.
Futureproof offer support and advice to homeowners and builders in the South West to carry out energy saving home improvements and refurbishments.
What is the process?
This service is currently on pause while we work our way through the waiting list.
After you fill in the initial form, we will contact you and make an appointment to visit you at your home. An assessment can take between two and a half hours to half a day, depending on the size of your house. We will carry out a detailed survey of your entire home and go through a simple household questionnaire with you. We will then use this information to build up a bespoke plan for your home, detailing all the measures you could take to make your home as energy efficient, comfortable, and healthy as possible. It will tell you which measures have the most impact, roughly how much they might cost, and which are the most cost effective, and suggest a good order in which to carry them out. Importantly, it will break the work down into phases, so the work can be carried out in different stages to suit your timescale, budget, and circumstances, and what you want to achieve.
What we can’t do…
The report can help you to be as informed as possible as to what your retrofit options might be and how you might benefit from carrying out work on your house. However, we can’t fund the work on your house, and we can’t find or recommend contractors to carry out the work for you. Neither can we draw up plans or details to give to contractors or suppliers, or oversee any work which you choose to go ahead with. It will always be your decision if you want to carry out any work and if you require help to do so you can engage an Architect, surveyor, or project manager to assist you and manage your project for you.
Useful links
Retrofit your home • TrustMark
What is retrofit – Centre for Sustainable Energy (cse.org.uk)
Measures to help reduce home heat loss – Energy Saving Trust
Sign up for a free retrofit assessment
To qualify for a free retrofit assessment, your property must be:
- Over 20 years old (built in or before 2003)
- Within Frome or the surrounding villages
- A residential property, not a retail/business premises
Please fill out the form below and our we will be in touch. The details you provide will be handled in line with Frome Town Council’s Privacy Policy.
