The Green Homes Grant (GHG) scheme is now closed to new applicants. It offered homeowners in England up to £5,000 in vouchers to help make their homes more energy efficient. If you applied before the deadline of 5pm on Wednesday, 31st March 2021, you should still be able to get the measures installed if you meet the criteria. If this applies to you, please see below information as a reference guide.
The Government’s Green Homes Grant aims to improve the energy efficiency of homes. The Grant allows homeowners or residential landlords to apply for a voucher of up to £5,000 that covers up to two-thirds of the cost to installing energy efficient improvements in the home.
Improvements could include insulating a home to reduce energy use, such as insulation, double glazing and draught proofing or installing low-carbon heating to lower the amount of carbon dioxide a home produces. However, installers and households must consider ventilation too, which is also covered by a Green Homes Grant voucher and is vital to the success of a project.
Why is Insulation & Ventilation an important pairing?
Dripping windows, mould on walls, asthma and itchy skin - these are all symptoms of moist stale air being trapped in the home. When we insulate our homes in order to trap the heat, it’s easy to forget that we are also trapping other things too – like moisture, viruses and chemicals. Adequate ventilation is essential for any home, but even more so if insulation has been added therefore making it a sealed box.
Insulated home without ventilation
A lack of ventilation in an airtight space leads to poor indoor air quality risking damage to property and the health of its occupants.
Insulated home with ventilation
Ventilation will help extract chemicals, excess moisture and viruses that are damaging to health.
Did you know...?
Ventilation is covered under the Green Homes Grant, which has been extended until March 2022. Installers need to adopt the new PAS 2035:2019 and updated PAS 2030:2019 specification by June 30th 2021. The changes in the standards are to encourage trustworthiness, higher standards of installations and increase confidence in the industry. At a minimum, each home that is insulated will require:
Natural ventilation such as airbricks and window vents
Intermittent extract ventilation in ‘wet rooms’
Requirement
Green Deal and ECO Installers are required to consider ventilation under PAS 2035:2019 and updated PAS 2030:2019 when installing insulation.
Green Homes Compliance Scheme
Ventilation manufacturers have worked with their trade association BEAMA to create the Green Homes Compliance Scheme, aimed at installers the scheme provides guidance on how to ensure adequate ventilation, when a building’s air tightness is improved. The Green Homes Compliance Scheme is designed to help installers easily identify products through its Green Homes Compliance badge for accredited products. The badge shows that fans will meet Building Regulations requirements and deliver effective ventilation.
The Solution
By fitting a Green Homes Compliance Accredited fan listed below will help ensure installers overcome potential ventilation problems that could happen due to increasing the airtightness of the dwelling.