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Home Energy Information

We now have a webpage dedicated to keeping warm after the earthquake.

 

Community Energy Action Charitable Trust was established in 1994 because it recognised that a warm and dry home is not just much more comfortable to live in but essential to the health of its occupants. And with insulation and efficient heating key to achieve a warm and dry home Community Energy Action encourages retrofitting existing homes. Subsidies are available for both middle and higher incomes and for those on lower incomes.

 

Another way Community Energy Action promotes warm and dry homes is by increasing the knowledge about home energy issues among householders. In this section you will find extensive information about keeping your home warm and dry at an affordable cost.

 

 

Energy Advice Service

If you still have questions about home energy efficiency after reading the home energy section on our website, you can contact the Energy Advice Service a free phone service hosted by Community Energy Action.

 

Outreach

Community groups, especially in low-income communities, can ask our outreach coordinator to come for a talk on home energy efficiency. Please be aware that demand for this service can be high in winter and we may have to prioritise.

 

 

Why is a warm and dry home a healthy home?

A warm home is not just more comfortable to live in, it is also better for your health. Research (Howden Chapman et al, 2007) has found that people, both adults and children, who live in a warm home have fewer days off sick and visit the doctor less often.

 

In cold homes condensation often becomes a problem. This encourages mould growth and deterioration of your home and/or furniture. Mould can trigger asthma attacks and can cause allergic reactions in some people.

 

A warm and dry home has health benefits for all people, also for young and healthy people. However, infants and children under five, older people, people with disabilities or a chronic illness which is affected by the cold such as diabetes, arthritis, heart and respiratory conditions are especially vulnerable to a cold and damp home.

 

The study mentioned above found that fitting insulation into older, cold houses is a cost-effective intervention for improving health and well-being of low-income communities. After installing insulation there were fewer reports of poor health and wheezing, fewer sick days taken from school or work, fewer visits to general practitioners and fewer hospital admissions for respiratory conditions among the studied people.

 

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What is a healthy home?

The World Health Organisation recommends that you heat your living room to between 18-21 degrees Celsius and bedrooms to 16 degrees Celsius. Living below these temperatures can put your health at risk.

 

Humidity is usually measured in relative humidity. At 100% humidity the air cannot hold any more damp vapour and any excess damp will condensate. Warmer air can hold more moisture than cold air and water vapour will condensate on cold surfaces such as single glazed windows.

 

The recommended relative humidity of your home is between 30-50% relative humidity during the heating season. The US Environmental Protection Agency advises that the way to control moulds is to control moisture in your home.

 

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Energy efficiency and the environment

An energy efficient home does not only benefit your comfort and health. It also has environmental benefits which will benefit the whole community.

 

Energy efficient housing can help to delay or avoid building expensive power-generation stations, which can have significant social and environmental impacts.

 

New Zealand as a country is also committed to reducing its carbon emissions. Energy efficient homes will help to minimise New Zealand's reliance on power generation stations like the coal-fired power station in Huntly, which is one of the biggest carbon emitters in the country.

 

If we do not reduce carbon emissions in the world, it is likely that we will experience a global increase in temperature, a rise in sea levels, more frequent extreme weather events and a change in rainfall patterns. These changes could affect our safety, health and well-being, our economy, industries, infrastructure, but also our biosecurity and our native ecosystems.

 

More on climate change and what you can do about it.

 

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How to achieve a healthy home

In general, installing (or topping-up) ceiling insulation, underfloor insulation, ground damp proofing and efficient heating are the most efficient measures to take in an existing home. Depending on the size of the home and what is already there, these can be substantial investments but well worth it. And there are subsidies available for most.

 

Community Energy Action tries to help all households regardless of income with surpluses from our ‘regular' subsidy programmes going to our charitable programmes.  

 

If you are living in a cold, damp home contact Community Energy Action now! Please be aware that our charitable programmes can get very busy over winter.

 

More about insulation...

 

More about heating your home...

 

(Dis)advantages of different heating systems...

 

Costs of different heating systems...

 

Other home energy issues...

 

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