Our Services:
Our Services include:
- Domestic & Commercial Building Energy Rating (BER) Certificates
- Grant Applications & Thermal Insulation Advisory
- Building Air Pressure Testing
- Building Thermography
- Energy Surveys
- Heat Loss Calculations
- U Value Calculations
- Passive House Information & Advisory
- Renewable Energy Technology Advisory
- Energy Bills Analysis & Reduction
- Energy Consultancy Services
Energy Rating Plus can offer a suite of services to you while also carrying public liability and professional indemnity insurances.
We will work with you to achieve compliance on Building Energy Rating through the following steps:
Step 1: Implementation
Energy Performance of Buildings Directive – EPBD
Step 2: Calculation
Dwelling Energy Assessment Procedure software – DEAP
We calculate the energy performance of your building through its:
- Dimensions
- Water Heating
- Space Heating
- Lighting
- Building Elements (e.g. floors, walls, roofs, windows etc.)
as provided by construction plans and design specification
Step 3: Assessment
Building Energy Rating assessment – BER
.
Step 4: Certification
Preparation and issue of BER certificate.
A ‘Provisional BER Certificate’ must be produced by the vendor to potential buyers or tenants, when the new dwelling is offered for sale “off plans”. This certificate is based upon the pre- construction plans. When the relevant new dwelling is completed, the vendor is obligated to arrange for a new BER certificate to be supplied to the purchaser, based on the plans of the dwelling as constructed (to take account of any design changes during construction).
Step 5: Registration
Property registration on SEAI national database
Step 6: Advisory
Provision of Energy Advisory Reports, giving you no cost and low cost options of saving energy and improving your BER.
Typical % Heat Loss
Building Air Tightness
Air Tightness Testing:
This measures the flow of air within your home by using blower door test equipment. The aim is to identify areas of your home that are experiencing heat loss through gaps and cracks in the fabric of the building. These areas of heat loss are increasing your energy consumption subsequently costing you a lot more money.
Building Thermography
Thermal Imaging:
Thermal imaging is used to identify patterns of heat loss from your home that is invisible to the naked eye; it is conducted using a high tech infrared camera
Infrared cameras are a cutting edge technology for finding air leaks and gaps in a building, paving the way for better energy efficiency.
The Home Energy Saving scheme (HES) has relaunched as part of the Better Energy Homes scheme (May 2011)
Key highlights of the new scheme:
- Grant levels have been adjusted (except for external wall insulation)
- The Greener Homes Scheme is no longer open for applications
- Homeowners wishing to install solar panels can now avail of a fixed grant through the Better Energy Homes scheme.
The Better Energy Homes scheme opened for homeowner applications on May 16th 2011
Through SEAI, the Irish Government wishes to encourage people to improve the energy performance of their homes by incentivising the cost of installing various upgrade measures.
What are the benefits for homeowners?
- Improved efficiency - energy use is reduced & comfort levels increased
- Energy costs are reduced
- Environmental savings - reduction of greenhouse gas emissions
The incentive is in the form of a Cash Grant. Cash grants are fixed, irrespective of home size, though where actual expenditure is lower than the grant value only the lower amount will be paid. Payment is by Electronic Funds Transfer to the applicant’s bank.
Energy Efficient Works |
Incentive |
|
|
|
Cash Grant Value* |
Insulation
|
Attic Insulation |
€200 |
Wall Insulation - Cavity |
€250 |
|
| Wall Insulation - External | ||
Apartment (any) OR Mid- terrace House |
€1,800 |
|
| Semi-detached or End of Terrace | €2,700 | |
| Detached House | €3,600 | |
| Wall Insulation - Internal Dry Lining | ||
| Apartment (any) OR Mid- terrace House | €900 | |
| Semi-detached or End of Terrace | €1,350 | |
| Detached House | €1,800 | |
|
|
|
Heating System
|
High Efficiency Oil / Gas Boiler with Controls upgrade. |
€560 |
Heating Controls Upgrade only |
€400 |
|
Solar Heating |
€800 |
|
Building Energy Rating (BER) |
€50** |
|
*Cash Grants are set value unless expenditure is below the set value, in which case the actual expenditure will be reimbursed.
**A Building Energy Rating (BER) is an integral part of all grant applications under the Better Energy Homes scheme, whereby homeowners must undertake a BER on their home after grant aided works have been completed. A homeowner is entitled to BER funding of €50 once per home. This funding will be applied to your grant application automatically provided you have never applied previously for BER funding. You will be informed during the online grant application process if BER funding is available for your home or as part of your Letter of Grant Offer if you have applied through the post. It is advisable that you apply for and undertake all planned grant aided works at the same time to minimise the costs of multiple BER assessments.
*** From December 8th 2011 internal and external wall insulation grants will no longer be one single amount, but rather be based upon the house type.
Please note the minimum grant amount for the first application must be €400. A BER grant, where applicable, does not count towards the €400 minimum.
In the instance where a Contractor is completing works within his own home then only the cost of materials will be deemed qualifying expenditure.
The scheme is open to owners of existing houses built before 2006
Better Energy Homes (previously Home Energy Savings)
The Better Energy Homes scheme provides grants to homeowners who are interested in improving the energy efficiency of their home in order to reduce energy use and costs as well as greenhouse gas emissions. The scheme is open to all owners of existing houses built before 2006. The Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland administers the scheme.
Landlords and owners of multiple properties may also apply, however they must submit a separate application form for each property. If you are a landlord or a management company considering an entire building upgrade, please contact SEAI before applying online for the grant.
Assistance will be provided by way of cash grants towards the costs of implementing upgrade measures. The types of measures currently eligible under this scheme are roof insulation, wall insulation, high efficiency boilers and heating control upgrades.
The table below sets out:
| 1. The eligible measures and the set grant amounts available. |
| 2. The typical improvement in BER rating could be expected from each individual measure done in isolation. Note that in estimating the total potential BER improvement, if the full range of measures is installed, the potential BER improvements for each measure should not be added together. |
| 3. The typical payback period for each measure, arising from energy saved |
Eligible Grants Available:
Measure |
Cash Grant |
Typical net BER improvement |
Typical payback (years) |
Roof Insulation |
€200 |
10 - 20% |
3 - 6 |
Cavity Wall Insulation |
€250 |
15 - 20% |
4 - 5 |
Internal Wall Insulation |
€1,800 |
25 - 30% |
7 - 10 |
External Wall Insulation |
€3,600 |
25 - 30% |
10 - 15 |
High efficiency boiler plus heating control |
€560 |
25 - 30% |
4 - 5 |
Heating control upgrade only |
€400 |
15 - 25% |
4 - 5 |
Building Energy Rating |
€50 |
|
BER Assessment |
Please contact us to avail of our Grant Applications Advisory Service or to get your Free Quotation to carry out a Building Energy Rating (BER) survey and assessment of your property.
Download our pdf Home Energy Savings
What is a Passive House?
A passive house is a building in which a comfortable interior climate can be maintained without active heating and cooling systems (Dr Wolfgang Feist, Founder of Passive house Insitute). The house heats and cools itself, hence "passive".
- For European passive construction, prerequisite to this capability is an annual heating requirement that is less than 15 kWh/m²/yr (not to be attained at the cost of an increase in use of energy for other purposes (e.g., electricity).
- Furthermore, the combined primary energy consumption of living area of a European passive house may not exceed 120 kWh/m²/yr for space heating, hot water and household electricity.
- With this as a starting point, additional energy requirements may be completely covered using renewable energy sources.
This means that the combined energy consumption of a passive house is less than the average new European home requires for household electricity and hot water alone.
Building in accordance with current building regulations in Ireland would achieve an equivalent value (at best) of 100kWh/m2/yr or 6 to 7 times the passive house standard.
The combined end energy consumed by a passive house will therefore only use about 15% of the energy consumed by the average new construction that complies with applicable building regulations.
Comparison of Energy Ratings of Homes
WSchVO = German Heat Protection Regulation
SBN = Swedish Construction Standard
A passive house is cost-effective when the combined capitalized costs (construction, including design and installed equipment, plus operating costs for 30 years) do not exceed those of an average new home.
Following are the basic features that distinguish passive house construction:
Compact form and good insulation: |
All components of the exterior shell of the house are insulated to achieve a U-factor that does not exceed 0.15 W/(m²K) (0.026 Btu/h/ft²/°F). |
Southern orientation and shade considerations: |
Passive use of solar energy is a significant factor in passive house design. |
Energy-efficient window glazing and frames: |
Windows (glazing and frames, combined) should have U-factors not exceeding 0.80 W/(m²K) (0.14 Btu/h/ft²/°F), with solar heat-gain coefficients around 50%. |
Building envelope air-tightness: |
Air leakage through unsealed joints must be less than 0.6 times the house volume per hour. |
Passive preheating of fresh air: |
Fresh air may be brought into the house through underground ducts that exchange heat with the soil. This preheats fresh air to a temperature above 5°C (41°F), even on cold winter days. |
Highly efficient heat recovery from exhaust air |
Most of the perceptible heat in the exhaust air is transferred to the incoming fresh air (heat recovery rate over 80%). |
Hot water supply using regenerative energy |
Solar collectors or heat pumps provide energy for hot water. |
Energy-saving household appliances: |
Low energy refrigerators, stoves, freezers, lamps, washers, dryers, etc. are indispensable in a passive house. |
For Passive House modelling for your new build, with the specially designed software for Passive Houses, please contact us for further information and advisory.
Homeowner or Business Owner / Manager,
I would like to introduce you to a service that will save you money, save you time and cost you nothing.
Energy Rating Plus as Energy Assessors offer a cost cutting service whereby we analyse your existing utility/energy bills and revert to you, our client, with the best options and rates available in the marketplace. We are a “one stop shop” with one point of contact for all your utility needs. We do not charge a fee for this service, we are paid our fee by the service provider that you decide to choose.
How does this sound?
- We meet with you to carry out an audit of your Gas, Electricity and Telecom rates.
- All you need to do is provide a copy of your recent Gas, Electricity and Telephone Bill.
- We analyse your bill and provide detailed comparisons.
- Once you see the savings that can be made we can switch you immediately to the lower price alternative.
AND
- We provide a free annual review to ensure that you continue to receive the best rates and service available.
Our Aims
- Save you money on your energy bills.
- Save you time in dealing with telecoms and energy companies.
- Provide you with outstanding customer service and negotiate better rates.
- To build a long lasting relationship with you, our client. This can only be achieved if you are happy with our service and the savings we achieve for you.
Remember we do not charge a fee for this service or there are no hidden charges whatsoever and you pay nothing extra on the rate for us doing it, than you would if you spent the time and research yourself finding the lower costs and negotiating a better rate with the energy providers.
If you feel you should be paying less for your energy bills and would like to save money or would like to avail of some of our other energy saving services, please do not hesitate to contact our office on 051-330827 or 085-8193277 and also avail of a free energy bill analysis.
Download our brochure here
Energy Saving Tips
Start saving on your energy bills today with our energy saving tips.
To receive your free copy please enter your email address here:
