4 ways to future-proof your home and cut energy bills

If you’re fed up with the constant energy price changes, then perhaps investing in some home improvements might help you take control of your monthly bill.

It might also increase the value of your home and lower your environmental impact. 

Eddie Rourke, Solar Expert at boiler and solar installation firm Heatable, says: “When you’re on a fixed income, being able to predict future outgoings becomes much more important.  

“One major outgoing for retirees is energy bills, which, according to the Office of National Statistics, can account for around 17% of average household expenditure. But for lower-income households, this can be as high as 25%.” 

Of course, some home improvements will require more of an up-front investment, and you may need to commit to staying in your house for several years to fully recoup the cost. 

There may also be financial help available, as the government pushes to lower carbon emissions through making homes more energy efficient, so you might be able to offset the cost through grants. 

1. Improve insulation 

A less disruptive home improvement is better insulation. Around a third of all heat can be lost through your home’s walls if they’re not insulated properly, while around a quarter escapes through the roof. 

“Better insulation means you can cut down on heating costs as you won’t need to put it on nearly as much,” says Jon Bonnar, Managing Director of renewable energy company Cotswold Energy.  

“This is particularly relevant for Victorian homes. They were built with solid walls and no internal cavity for insulation. Often, they also lack insulation in the roof and floors. This lack of overall insulation means they’re prone to losing heat much quicker than modern homes.” 

You should hire a professional to fit cavity wall and loft insulation, and make sure they’re professionally certified and offer contractual guarantees for the work.  

This can cost anywhere between £900 and £10,000, says Bonnar, depending on the size of your home.  

Cavity insulation in a semi-detached house will cost around £2,700 in England, Wales and Scotland, offering savings of around £235 a year, according to the Energy Saving Trust – so you’ll recoup your costs in around 11 years, as well as lowering your carbon emissions.

If you're on Pension Credit (or receive other benefits) and your home’s energy efficiency is below the required threshold, you might be able to apply to the Energy Company Obligation (ECO4) scheme to get help with the cost. 

Alternatively, find out if you can get support through the Great British Insulation Scheme (if in England, Scotland or Wales).  

If cavity wall insulation isn’t an option, there are cheaper jobs you can do yourself. These include fitting your hot water cylinder (the tank which stores water after it's been heated) with an insulated jacket or draught-proofing your windows and doors. 

It sounds small fry, but each measure can save you around £40 a year on your energy bills, so the savings quickly stack up.

2. Install solar panels 

Solar panels let you harness energy from the sun, reducing your reliance on the National Grid and the amount you need to spend on electricity. 

The drawback is fitting the panels isn’t cheap, so it’s important to do your own research to work out if solar energy would be right for you. 

“At present, the average 3.5kW solar panel system would typically require around 10 solar panels (at 350W each) and cost around £7,000,” says Rourke. 

The government has ended its previous financial support for solar panels, but you might find you qualify for support under the ECO4 program through your energy provider or local council, providing your home is sufficiently energy inefficient and you’re on certain benefits. 

Battery storage systems can also be installed on your property, sucking up any excess energy from the panels to be used when the sun isn’t shining. 

But this will add around £2,000 to £4,000 to the cost, warns James Holton, Solar Energy Expert and Founder of Business Solar.  

“[It] does not make sense to invest that much when you’re just getting started. Once you’ve been using solar panels for a while, you’ll get a firm idea of how much energy you’re consuming and how much energy surplus you have.  

“Based on that, you can make an informed decision on how many batteries you’ll need.” 

If you’re not storing energy to use yourself, you can sign up for the Smart Export Guarantee (SEG) scheme and get paid for passing on surplus electricity you generate back to the Grid. 

The amount you’re paid will vary between energy suppliers, but Holton says you could earn up to £200 a year.  

According to the Energy Saving Trust, a household in London could reduce its bills by £360 per year with an average set of solar panels – rising to £630 if using the SEG scheme.  

That’s on top of potentially adding  at least £1,800 to the value of your property. 

However, just how much installing solar panels will save will depend on a number of factors, including where you are in the country (and, therefore, how much sunlight you’ll get) and the energy you consume each year.  

The direction your property faces is important too, with south facing roofs getting the most sun. You should also take a look at your surroundings and check whether your panels are likely to be blocked by trees. 

Solar panels are only worth considering if you’re happy to stay in your home for a long time – we tested a variety of housing types on the Energy Saving Trust’s calculator for a home in London, and it suggested we’d need between 10-22 years to recoup the cost of a solar power system. 

It’s worth having your roof assessed before you go ahead to see if it’s right for you. 

3. Invest in heat pumps 

Heat pumps run on electricity and can replace a gas boiler to heat your home. By extracting heat from the environment, this can be transferred into your house and provide warmth with much greater efficiency. 

There are two common types of heat pumps: air source and ground source. The former costs on average £10,000 more than a gas boiler, according to the National Infrastructure Commission, although this depends on the current setup of your home and could be much lower (or higher). 

Ground-source heat pumps, which use heat from deep underground, are even more expensive (and complicated) to install, typically costing upwards of £28,000. They also require plenty of outdoor space for digging trenches or boreholes. 

Given the high outlay, make sure you speak with an independent professional to understand whether you’d benefit from installing a heat pump. 

It’s not just the cost of the heating unit itself that raises the price; heat pumps typically run at a lower temperature than gas boilers, so upgrades to your home may be needed (such as improved insulation) to get the same level of warmth as you would from a gas boiler. 

Raphael Sibille, Founder of heat pump advice firm Electric Owl, warns: “Many homes will need some new radiators and other changes for [heat pumps] to work well. That adds to the overall cost. The average cost of switching to an air-source heat pump upgrade is £12,500.” 

While the costs are substantial, financial help is available through the government’s Boiler Upgrade Scheme in England and Wales. You can receive a grant of up to £7,500 to help cover the cost and installation of a heat pump.  

Those living in Scotland may be able to get an interest-free loan or grant to improve the energy efficiency of their home, and you can find out what energy-saving grants you’re eligible for if in Northern Ireland. 

The money-saving potential of a heat pump can vary quite a bit depending on the current efficiency of your boiler and the age of your house, so make sure you do your sums to work out whether it’ll benefit you – especially if you’re in an older, harder-to-heat home. 

If you’re replacing an old boiler with a heat pump system that’s been tuned to your property, you could shave around £340 off your energy bills each year.  

And, if you have an air-source heat pump, you should be able to recover your costs within five to 15 years, as well as dramatically reducing your carbon emissions. 

A further benefit is that installing a heat pump could add around £4,500 to £8,000 to the value of your home. 

But heat pumps won’t be suitable for everyone, especially if you like to keep things toasty, as Oliver Creevy, Managing Director and Co-founder of Heat Pumps UK, explains: “Properties that are not well-insulated or those in extremely cold regions might not achieve the desired efficiency.  

“The initial installation cost, even with grants, can be a barrier for some retirees. It's important to conduct a thorough assessment of your home's suitability before making a decision.” 

4. Choose smart heating 

Having one thermostat for the whole house is like having one light switch turning on every room – not all need to be heated.  

Switching to smart heating (also known as a smart thermostat) allows you more precise control over how and when you warm the house and only heat the rooms you regularly use. 

If you enjoy tech, you can set clever things like only turning on the heat when people are in the house (or on their way home), or equip each room (or radiator) with its own smart thermostat to only turn on when needed. 

“Traditional heating often involves manual adjustments and basic timers, leading to inefficient energy use,” says Michael Wood, Head of Network Delivery at home maintenance firm Rightio.  

“Smart heating systems, however, offer precise, responsive control by automatically adjusting to weather changes, occupancy levels, and your daily routine, significantly reducing energy waste.” 

You’ll typically pay anywhere between £80 to £250 for a smart thermostat to begin with, (although you’ll likely pay installation costs of around £100 on top).  

Extra sensors cost more, but if you’re in a larger house, these can help achieve better savings by not heating every room at once. 

Estimates vary on how much energy you can save, but around 10-15% on your annual bills is a fair assumption. This means you should pay off the cost of installing a smart thermostat in two to three years.