An Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) is a document you need whenever you sell or let a home. A qualified assessor will visit your home, perform a brief survey and produce a certificate that shows how much energy it consumes. Having a higher rating means you'll spend less money on heating and lighting. Not only is it a legal requirement, it provides valuable information to potential buyers or tenants. In the guide below we'll cover two main topics. First, why you should improve your EPC rating and secondly how a home in Manchester can do it!

Why EPC Ratings in Manchester Matter

We're moving slowly out of the sellers market here in Manchester. Homes are not selling quite as fast and rentals are staying on the market a little longer. Buyers and tenants have more choice than they did a couple of years ago.

With high energy bills, interest rates and inflation cutting into peoples budgets, buyers and tenants are looking for ways to claw some money back.

The EPC is an area that this can be done, in two ways. At face value, a property with a EPC rating of A should cost much less to heat than one with a G rating. But, it can be also seen as a kind of condition report.

An A rated property will likely have a new boiler which shouldn't be breaking down any time soon. It's probably had some other upgrades like cavity wall insulation, loft insulation or maybe solar panels. It shows that this property has been maintained and improved.

Mortgage companies have noticed this too. And whilst there is not a fail score on the EPC (for selling), some are starting to impose minimum standards for the properties they are lending against. Band E or D seem to be the most common.

We're seeing some lenders offer discounted interest rates for the higher bands too.

Rental properties need to be no less than a Band E to be legally rented. We're currently in the middle of a will they won't they situation where there is talk about increasing this minimum to a Band C. The general consensus is that it will happen, but not for a few years.

We've completed many EPCs in Manchester to help landlords future proof their investments and attract a higher quality tenant through improved EPC scores.

The Most Common Issues Affecting EPC Ratings

The housing stock in Manchester is varied, from old to new. The most common property types we see are Victorian terraced houses and 1930s semis.

The typical Victorian terrace in Manchester has solid walls, slated roofs and suspended timber floors. The 1930s semis that we see tend to have a bay window and cavity walls. All of these elements were originally constructed without insulation and have relied on their owners over the years to upgrade them to the standards at the time.

Currently, no new house is built without insulation in these three areas.

Insulation is one of the largest factors on a Manchester EPC, especially wall insulation. Even solid walls can have insulation, internally or externally.

As well as poor insulation, we still see homes in Manchester with non energy saving lighting and single glazed, draughty windows. But one of the biggest factors on the EPC is always heating.

Older boilers tend to be 70-80% efficient where new combi boilers achieve 97% plus.

We still see electric forms of heating in Manchester too. Even though technically, they are 100% efficient, converting every watt of energy into heat, electric is around 4 times more expensive than gas. As the EPC results all relate back to cost, most forms of electric heating hammer the EPC score.

In short, these are the most common issues we find on EPCs in Manchester

• No cavity or solid wall insulation
• Below standard loft insulation
• No floor insulation
• Old inefficient heating systems
• High energy lighting
• Single glazed windows

Step-by-Step Improvements to Boost Your Manchester Home’s EPC Rating

The first port of call is to check your current EPC for your home. Many houses already have one. There is a section which has personalised recommendations for your house. It even shows how your score will change with each improvement.

If you don't have an EPC or it's really outdated, the below information is solid advice to improve the EPC score in your Manchester home.

Improve Insulation

Wall insulation has a big impact on the EPC. If you've got cavity walls, make sure they're filled. Solid walls can have internal or external insulation fitted.

Lofts have a small impact on the EPC rating but its a quick win. New homes are constructed with a minimum of 270mm. There is no reason your loft shouldn't have this amount too.

Floor insulation in older properties is uncommon, but if you're refurbing your home, insulation the floor will have a small impact on your EPC score.

Manchester City Council is working with the Greater Manchester Combined Authority to provide grants to homeowners for insulation. They are doing this through the ECO4 with their Great British Insulation Scheme across the region.

Upgrade Your Boiler and Heating System

There is no need to install a heat pump to get a high EPC score. Modern boilers with 97% plus efficiency work out around the same cost per kW of heat.

Upgrading an old boiler will likely have a big effect on your score. Replacing a 20+ year old system boiler with a condensing combi boiler is a huge step in the right direction.

Energy Assessors, like us, do not only look for makes and models of boilers on the EPC. If you've got a home in Manchester, you can also swing the EPC in your favour by adding boiler controls. Ideally we're looking for these three ways of controlling your heating

• Programmer. Set a time schedule for your heating to turn on and off automatically.
• Room Thermostat. Having thermostatic control of the entire heating system. For example, your heating comes on when the temperature drops below 20 degrees and turns off once it reaches that number.
• TRVs. You can control individual rooms through thermostatic valves on your radiators.

This can be taken a step further by splitting your home into zones and having different programmers and thermostats for these areas, but its generally a bit over the top for most homes.

As with insulation, Manchester City Council are working with various providers to supply grants to home owners and tenants for heating upgrades. The HUG2 scheme is in place to upgrade electric heating systems to low carbon systems like heat pumps.

Switch to Energy-Efficient Lighting

2-3 points on the EPC are available for low energy lighting. This includes the older CFL style bulbs as well as the modern LED types. We only check fixed lighting fixtures, not lamps.

We've seen on many occasion one solitary light bulb being the difference between a Band D and a Band C. Before your assessment make sure all you bulbs are low energy.

This is another quick win on the EPC. They're cheap, easy to fit and can be the difference between bands. If you have the bulbs available, we'll fit them for you before the EPC.

Install Double or Triple Glazed Windows

Much more common on commercial EPCs in Manchester, we still do see single glazed windows in Manchester homes too. Maybe a couple a week.

Homes lose a lot of energy through windows and by upgrading from single to double glazed, this will have an impact on improving your EPC score. Not only will your EPC score improve, but the home will be warmer, hold heat better and have greater sound insulation too.

We're also starting to see triple glazed windows in a few homes too. I got a tad curious a few weeks ago and looked how triple glazing affects the EPC score. In short, there is a small difference between double and triple glazed windows, but it comes at a cost. You'd need to balance that cost against the marginal improvement in the score and consider if that extra spend could be utilised better elsewhere.

Consider Renewable Energy Solutions

Solar technology has had a large improvement over the last few years. Installations now are usually covering the majority of a homes electric bill and selling excess energy back to the grid through the Smart Export Guarantee. When completing an EPC on a home with solar panels we know the score is going to be good! It depends on a few different factors but solar panels generally indicate a minimum result of a Band C if the rest of the property pulls its weight too.

When you combine air source heat pumps with solar, this is where bands can be jumped. Free electric powering your heating system will accelerate your EPC score.

Grants through Manchester Council and Greater Manchester Combined Authority are available for both solar systems and heat pumps.

Improve Water Heating Efficiency

Most homes in Manchester have a combi boiler and their hot water efficiency is tied to their heating efficiency. For a newer boiler, this is not a problem. For older combi boilers, not only will heating have a low efficiency score, the hot water will too.

If you have separate hot water and heating systems, like a system boiler with a hot water cylinder or electric radiators and an undercounter immersion heater, you can likely gain a few points by upgrading just the hot water system.

Immersion heaters on a dual electric tariff do better than on single tariff. They heat the water up overnight when electric is cheaper.

Modern enclosed cylinders are assumed to have a good amount of insulation inside, improving the EPC score when compared against an uninsulated cylinder.

Solar technology has arrived to water heating too. Solar water heating panels look similar to conventional solar PV panels, but work like a heat pump. Solar energy heats up a refrigerant which is compressed as it boils (low temperature). This compression releases heat and indirectly heats the water in the cylinder. Free hot water!

Cost-Effective Ways to Improve Your EPC Rating

Improving your EPC score does not have to break the bank. There are low cost options that will move the needle in the right direction.

Loft insulation is always my first recommendation. Make sure you've got 270mm+ and no boarding compacting it. A standard sized house can have its loft insulated for less than £500.

If you've got single glazed windows, make sure they are draught proofed.

Energy efficient lighting can be installed in a full house for around £50.

Improve your heating controls. Install a programable thermostat and TRV valves. You may need the help of a professional plumber for this. You can find a plumber in Manchester on a site like MyBuilder or Checkatrade. For a few £100 you can have a fully controlled heating system.

Getting Your EPC Re-Assessed in Manchester

We've helped 100s of home owners and landlords in Manchester improve their EPC scores. We always start with a new EPC assessment to get full picture of the current result.

The rules and calculations surrounding EPCs change all the time so what was a D ten years ago, may now be a C or E band. This is due to the periodic rule, calculation, regulation and benchmark changes.

We give you an action plan to show you exactly what you need to do to get to the band you need.

Once the changes have been installed, we can reassess your property and generate a new EPC in the band you were aiming for.

To start your journey to improve the EPC on your Manchester home, book an EPC online or give us a call on 01925 699 321

If you've got more questions about the EPC, feel free to give us a call or check our FAQ section for EPCs in Manchester.