252 lines
8.3 KiB
Plaintext
Executable File
252 lines
8.3 KiB
Plaintext
Executable File
sponsored
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earth
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one-planet-home
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8097305
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-----
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# How to make your home green
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## Kathryn Saville talks to three home owners who have benefited from an
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energy audit by one of B&Q's eco experts
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![Room insulation][1]
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4:32PM BST 29 Oct 2010
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These days, more of us are aware of the importance of insulating our homes and
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using energy-efficient products to limit carbon emissions. But now, DIY
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specialist B&Q has trained eco advisers in all 330 of its stores who can tell
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you how to save energy in your home, making it easier to save money on your
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bills. B&Q also offers home visits from eco experts based in B&Q Sutton and
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B&Q New Malden, with more stores to follow.
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To find out more about B&Q's eco service, we sent qualified domestic energy
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assessor Spencer Barrett, who is based at B&Q New Malden, to three types of
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home a flat, a terraced house and a semi-detached house -- to give the home
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owners some valuable energy-saving advice.
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Tom Warner, a project manager, lives in an Edwardian two-bedroomed ground-
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floor flat in west London with his wife and 18-month-old son. "Spencer gave me
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quite a good bill of health," Tom reports. "He checked for draughts, had a
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look at the boiler and the windows I've got double-glazing front and back so
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he was happy with that. There's a little loft area above the back bedroom but
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I'd already insulated that. However, he did recommend changing my downlighters
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from halogen to LED bulbs.
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"The boiler is less than 10 years old and a combination model, so there wasn't
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much to improve but Spencer did recommend I control the heating using the
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radiator thermostats I've already fitted. That's what's good about the service
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-- some of it's about getting new kit and updating things but you're told how
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to use what you have already.
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"There's an electrical usage monitor called an OWL, which Spencer installed
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and showed me how to use. I think that monitoring energy use could get quite
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addictive. You end up running round, switching things off!"
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## Related Articles
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* [B&Q commitments][2]
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29 Oct 2010
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The OWL will provide Tom with a detailed analysis of electricity use and show
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him how much money he's saving. The low-energy lightbulbs will also reduce
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Tom's bill. Spencer also recommended that Tom seal a gap under the skirting in
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his kitchen and use a standby saving device.
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Jan Raggett, from Farnborough Village in Kent, also found her eco assessment
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enlightening. Like many home owners, she discovered that the loft insulation
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on her two-bedroomed terraced house wasn't of the recommended thickness, and
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insulating her cavity walls could take a third off her heating bill.
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In fact, without proper insulation as much as 50 per cent of your heating
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could be disappearing through your walls and roof. And if every UK household
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fitted loft insulation to the recommended thickness of 270mm, it would save
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enough energy to heat 750,000 homes for a year.
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If you're unsure about what kind of loft insulation you need, and how much, go
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to diy.com, click on Eco, then Save Energy, and you'll find a handy loft
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insulation calculator.
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Jan takes up the story: "The loft badly needed lagging. I don't know when it
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was last insulated but it was a pretty poor job." Spencer also suggested that
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Jan should start using an electricity monitor and look at having her cavity
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walls insulated.
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Jan now knows how to save energy, and enjoyed the process: "I have to say
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Spencer was very helpful and friendly." Charlotte Nash lives with husband
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Simon and children Matthew and Mollie in a three-bedroomed semi in Tunbridge
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Wells, Kent.
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Spencer suggested Charlotte should draught-proof the front and back doors, fit
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foils behind the radiators to reflect out heat, insulate the loft over her
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cold kitchen, and use energy-efficient lightbulbs and an electricity monitor.
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"I'd already noticed the impact of using the tumble dryer on our bills, so I
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now use an airer instead," says Charlotte. "I didn't know that B&Q gave eco
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advice; it was really helpful and confirmed what we thought we should do to
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make the house warmer.
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"We sleep in the loft; it's cold in the winter and hot in the summer. Spencer
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says that's because there isn't proper insulation between the ceiling and the
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roof tiles -- but fixing it is a really big job."
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Spencer suggested that Charlotte and Simon should include this in their plans
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next time they are considering any major building work.
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[X][3] Share & bookmark
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Delicious Facebook Google Messenger Reddit Twitter
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Digg Fark LinkedIn Google Buzz StumbleUpon Y! Buzz
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[What are these?][4]
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* Share: [Share][3] [ ][5] [ ][6]
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[Tweet][7]
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http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sponsored/earth/one-planet-home/8097305/How-to-
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make-your-home-more-energy-efficient.html
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Telegraph
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## [One Planet Home][8]
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* ### [Sponsored »][9]
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* ### [Earth »][10]
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### [How to make your home green][11]
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[![Room insulation][12] ][11]
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Kathryn Saville talks to three home owners who have benefited from an energy
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audit by one of B&Q's eco experts
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### [How B&Q can help you save energy][13]
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[![B&Q homes][14] ][13]
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Be inspired. Find out how B&Q can help you save money and the environment with
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a few simple changes to your home.
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### [How to put an end to winter worries][15]
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[![Jan is now implementing B&Q's recommendations. ][16] ][15]
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These clever gadgets from B&Q will keep the cold out and the heat in, says
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Kathryn Saville.
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### [B&Q commitments][2]
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[![B&Q Eco-shop][17] ][2]
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Our approach to sustainability is called One Planet Home®. We have worked with
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independent sustainability experts to develop this vision and the robust and
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challenging programme that underpins it, which is changing the way we do
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business.
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[X][3] Share & bookmark
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Delicious Facebook Google Messenger Reddit Twitter
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Digg Fark LinkedIn Google Buzz StumbleUpon Y! Buzz
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[What are these?][4]
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Share:
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* [ ][3]
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* [ ][5]
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* [ ][6]
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* [Tweet][7]
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* ![B&Q One Planet Home][18]
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video
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### [B&Q One Planet Home][19]
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[![One Planet Home ][20] ][19]
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B&Q Video - Saving energy in the home
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## [Energy saving appliances »][21]
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### [How to put an end to winter worries][22]
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[![Making light work: Tom does his bit by installing energy-saving light
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bulbs][23] ][22]
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At B&Q you can find plenty of eco-friendly solutions that are simple and
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cheap...
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[1]: http://i.telegraph.co.uk/multimedia/archive/01749/one-planet-
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home_1749972c.jpg
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[2]: /sponsored/earth/one-planet-home/8095852/BandQ-commitments-to-
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creating-a-eco-friendly-home.html
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[3]: #
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[4]: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/news/4590190/Share-this-article-
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What-are-these.html
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[5]: mailto:?subject=A Telegraph reader thought you would be interested in
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this article&body=Depending on your email program, you may be able to click on
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the link in the email. Alternatively, you may have to open a web browser, such
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as Firefox or Internet Explorer, and copy the link over into the address bar.
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%0A%0Ahttp://www.telegraph.co.uk/sponsored/earth/one-planet-home/8097305/How-
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to-make-your-home-more-energy-efficient.html %0A%0AFor the best content
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online, visit www.telegraph.co.uk
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[6]: javascript:print()
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[7]: http://twitter.com/share?via=Telegraph
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[8]: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sponsored/earth/one-planet-home/
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[9]: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sponsored/
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[10]: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sponsored/earth/
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[11]: /sponsored/earth/one-planet-home/8097305/How-to-make-your-home-more-
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energy-efficient.html
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[12]: http://i.telegraph.co.uk/multimedia/archive/01749/one-planet-
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home_1749972g.jpg
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[13]: /sponsored/earth/one-planet-home/8127402/How-BandQ-can-help-you-save-
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energy.html
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[14]:
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http://i.telegraph.co.uk/multimedia/archive/01759/B_Qhomes_1759898g.jpg
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[15]: /sponsored/earth/one-planet-home/8127331/How-to-put-an-end-to-winter-
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worries-with-BandQ.html
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[16]: http://i.telegraph.co.uk/multimedia/archive/01760/bq_1760268g.jpg
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[17]: http://i.telegraph.co.uk/multimedia/archive/01749/bandq-eco-
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shop_1749452g.jpg
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[18]:
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http://i.telegraph.co.uk/multimedia/archive/01760/bandqlogo_1760317a.jpg
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[19]: /sponsored/earth/one-planet-home/8097644/BandQ-One-Planet-Home.html
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[20]: http://i.telegraph.co.uk/multimedia/archive/01750/bandq-
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video_1750146e.jpg
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[21]: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sponsored/earth/one-planet-home/8151860
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/Smart-ways-to-save-energy.html
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[22]: /sponsored/earth/one-planet-home/8151860/Smart-ways-to-save-
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energy.html
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[23]: http://i.telegraph.co.uk/multimedia/archive/01768/BQ_1768039e.jpg
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