An Introduction to Domestic Heating Alternatives

The average home in the UK uses 15,000-kilowatt hours of electricity a year,  just on heating. With electricity prices currently around £0.09 per kWh (not including standing charges), to put this into perspective, the average household spends around £1,350 per year to keep temperatures comfortable.

If your house is connected to the gas grid, this figure looks more like £300 per year.  However, 70% of households in Powys are not connected to the gas grid. With the waiting list to make this connection a minimum of 8 weeks, and with the outrageous cost of having pipes, boilers and radiators fitted, it’s really no surprise that people are choosing more cost effective and environmentally friendly alternatives.

Solar PV installations, of which we have funded the installation of over 250 arrays, are a great all round renewable electric or heating source, however the following articles will focus on the cost and benefits of the less renowned heating alternatives, the unsung heroes of the domestic heating world, Biomass and Heat Pumps.

Since 2011, Robert Owen Community Bank has provided loans for almost 60 Biomass Installations, around 50 wood burners and wood pellet boilers and 20 Heat pumps (both ground source and air source).

Robert Owen Community Bank has funded the installation of over 500 renewable installations since 2010, through the provision of 0% interest loans up to 10,000, for a period of up to 5 years.

Look out for future articles with more details on renewable household heating alternatives!