How To Make Electric Heating Better For Your EPC Rating

Keeping a close eye on your home’s energy efficiency doesn’t just control how much energy you’re using and how much is going to waste. Your energy efficiency affects how marketable your property is as it’s one of the factors that potential buyers and renters will be looking for. EPC ratings rank your property’s efficiency, giving it a grade that will let you know if you need to take action and improve your energy efficiency. It’s something to consider for your own benefit too as you could save a lot of money down the line, especially if your home isn’t suitably insulated or relying on heaters that are old and not economical. 

Your heating system is one of the factors that will affect your EPC rating. This blog goes into how updating old electric heaters will help your energy consumption and how it might effect your EPC rating. 

What is an EPC rating?

EPC (energy performance certificate) ratings are a legal requirement when buying and selling a home. The ratings are graded from A (most efficient) to G (least efficient). You will be expected to take action if your property receives a poor rating before putting it on the market. After receiving your rating, you’ll also be given advice on how to improve your efficiency. 

If you want to arrange for an assessment, you’ll need to contact an accredited assessor. You find out how to apply for an assessment on the gov.uk website here.

When do I update my EPC rating?

It’s important to have an up-to-date EPC as you can be fined if you sell or rent without out. You will need to update your property’s EPC rating every ten years as a minimum. If you’re selling or putting a property on the market, it’s a good idea to arrange an assessment first and make any improvements beforehand. 

You should always contact an EPC assessor when making home improvements to your property as these factors can change your overall EPC rating and is is important to make sure you are making the right decisions for your property.

What does an EPC cover?

An assessor will look into many different factors when checking your energy efficiency. Your average energy consumption is just one of them. When reviewing your property, the assessor will look into the following:

• The property’s structure and floor construction
• The age of the property, type and dimensions
• Insulation in walls and roofs
• Windows and their glazing
• Heating systems
• Lighting
• Type of hot water

How to improve my EPC rating

Following from an assessment, you’ll be given recommendations on how to improve your rating. The main recommendation to improve your property’s rating is to update insulation – especially if the property is older than twenty years. Roof and loft insulation can make a huge difference to energy efficiency, preventing heat from going to waste. 

If your property is less than twenty years old, the chances are that your house will score fairly highly as modern properties are built with high levels of insulation and double-glazing. However, it could well be that your heating and electricity are letting the side down due to high energy consumption. If that’s the case, you may want to consider upgrading parts of your system.

Are my electric heaters the problem?

The truth of the matter is that if your heating system depends on electric heaters, at present, it will negatively affect your EPC rating. The ratings are focused on how expensive a property is to run in terms of electricity. Compared against a central heating system running off gas, an electric heating system will still fall in terms of CO2 ratings because of how much electricity they need to run. Although in use, some electric heating systems might be as efficient to run as gas central heating, the current EPC calculations do not marry up with the pace the industry is moving. 

Of course, improving your insulation will mean your electric heaters won’t need to work as hard to heat up your home – which will help your energy consumption. It doesn’t change the fact that as far as EPC ratings are concerned, electric heaters are a problem when relying on non-renewable energy. 

What can be done if you have an electric heating system?

Thankfully, modern electric radiators are a lot more energy efficient. Since 2018, EU regulations have changed the standards for electrical appliances in terms of their energy consumption. With that in mind, electric heaters manufactured since those changes don’t draw as much electricity as older heaters and comply with Lot20. Oil-filled heaters, electric fan heaters and old storage heaters all have more efficient alternatives that give you greater control of your consumption, lowering the costs of running your heating system. 

So if your property has heaters that are older than 2018, it may be worth replacing them. 

Should I replace electric heaters with storage heaters?

If your concern is to satisfy an EPC rating, usually for rental properties, High Heath Retention night storage heaters will provide the highest rating for your EPC. Although most domestic properties favour other electric heating methods due to the draw backs associated with HHR night storage heaters. Night storage heaters are designed to make use of a lower cost energy tariff based on economy 7. Storage heaters therefore are only beneficial if your property has an economy 7 electricity tariff. Otherwise, they’re using electricity that costs just the same no matter when it’s storing electricity for use during the day. While storage heaters are arguably more energy efficient than some more hungry heaters that are available, their modern counterparts are the better option in use as they are more easily controlled and provide instant heat whenever you want them to. 

How can Dynamic Heaters improve my energy efficiency?

Our range of German Electric Radiators are designed with efficiency in mind, built to produce as much heat as possible from every watt of electricity. If your existing electric heaters are bleeding your electricity dry and proving too costly to run, our radiators offer a more efficient alternative. All our radiators come with a 15 year warranty and are CE approved, TUV and Lot20 Design Compliant. Although, they might not be best for every scenario. We would advise it best to contact us and discuss your requirements with one of the team. 

Why choose our German Electric Radiators?

1- 40 minutes of stored heat for every 15 minutes of electricity used

Our electric radiators are built with Magmatic heat stones fitted inside. These stones are like the bricks in a storage heater and retain heat when the radiator is powered. The radiators use both heat generated from the electricity mains and the stones, meaning that less electricity is used while it’s heating up the space. In well insulated properties, for every hour that the radiator is in use, only 12-15 minutes of electricity is consumed. 

2- 50/50 split of convection and radiant heat

Making use of both types of heating methods, our radiators can heat up a room in no time at all. With warm air currents moving through the space, there are fewer cold spots than would be the case for an electric heater that relies on radiant heat. 

3- Heat for 1 hour after being switched off

Even when switched off, the radiators keep a room warm. The magmatic stones built into the radiator can keep radiating heat for up to an hour after being powered off. A well insulated room can stay warmer for much longer. 

4- Wifi controlled with dedicated smartphone app

Our radiators can come with built in smart technology that interfaces with our dedicated app. You can control your radiators away from home and automate multiple radiators to come on when you want them to. Our app regulates your energy usage on top so you are fully aware of how much running your heating system is costing you. 

What are my next steps?

If your EPC rating needs improving before you can put your property on the market, we can give some advice if your electric heating system is the cause of concern. Not only do we supply electric radiators, we also are experts in renewable energy solutions and hot water solutions also. To really get the top score on your EPC, you can have Solar PV installed at your property, reducing your dependency on the national grid. We can also handle removing any old boilers and heaters from your property, as well as installing new radiators or water heating systems to replace the outdated central heating system.

Arrange for a free survey here with our electric heating specialists

If you have any questions, feel free to give us a call on 01202 986047.