Eon free cavity wall and loft insulation?

SiD the Turtle · 5 Sep 2017 at 12:00

With summer deciding it's done I've been looking at cheap and easy ways of insulating my house, as apart from 90s-period loft insulation, it has pretty much zero insulation. Can't afford to replace the old aluminium windows or the old boiler yet so was looking into cavity wall insulation.

Previously when I looked you had to be on benefits, retired etc to qualify but the Eon offer is apparently regardless of status. I've booked an appointment for them to come round and assess if the house is suitable. Now I'm aware of the horror stories about damp, but assuming that checks out (SE England, not exposed to driving rain etc) what's the catch? It's completely free and should save me some money on heating the house.

Skillmister · 5 Sep 2017 at 12:14

In order to qualify for funding towards energy saving home improvements from us
you must:
 own your home or rent from a private landlord, and also
 qualify or live with someone who qualifies in either section A, B or C below:
A Receive one of the following benefits (Pension Credit Guarantee Credit Element, Income-related employment and support allowance (ESA), Income-based jobseeker’s allowance (JSA), Income support)
OR B Receive Tax Credits
OR C Receive Universal Credit

Seems pretty clear cut that you still need to be on benefits? Where did you see otherwise?

Psycho Sonny · 5 Sep 2017 at 12:22

get solar panels with a battery - £8K.

run a electrical heater with a built in thermostat.

profit without damp.

Steampunk · 5 Sep 2017 at 12:26

SiD the Turtle said:
With summer deciding it's done I've been looking at cheap and easy ways of insulating my house, as apart from 90s-period loft insulation, it has pretty much zero insulation. Can't afford to replace the old aluminium windows or the old boiler yet so was looking into cavity wall insulation.

Previously when I looked you had to be on benefits, retired etc to qualify but the Eon offer is apparently regardless of status. I've booked an appointment for them to come round and assess if the house is suitable. Now I'm aware of the horror stories about damp, but assuming that checks out (SE England, not exposed to driving rain etc) what's the catch? It's completely free and should save me some money on heating the house.

Unfortunately, decent windows and loft insulation are by far the biggest benefits for insulating a house.

Skillmister · 5 Sep 2017 at 12:31

Psycho Sonny said:
get solar panels with a battery - £8K.

run a electrical heater with a built in thermostat.

profit without damp.

Yet another sensible suggestion from Psycho Sonny for someone who can't afford to replace windows or boiler :rolleyes:

Psycho Sonny · 5 Sep 2017 at 12:34

Skillmister said:
Yet another sensible suggestion from Psycho Sonny for someone who can't afford to replace windows or boiler

companies will install them for free so long as they own them. so you get the leccy for free.

SiD the Turtle · 5 Sep 2017 at 12:46

Skillmister said:
Seems pretty clear cut that you still need to be on benefits? Where did you see otherwise?

Apologies for the red top link, but it seems to be a brand new deal:

https://www.thesun.co.uk/money/4365...e-on-and-you-dont-even-need-to-be-a-customer/

SiD the Turtle · 5 Sep 2017 at 12:48

Steampunk said:
Unfortunately, decent windows and loft insulation are by far the biggest benefits for insulating a house.

Windows are on the list, once our finances are in better shape. The offer also seems to cover loft insulation. The stuff we've got is pretty old but it appears to qualify under the Eon free deal too.

Steampunk · 5 Sep 2017 at 13:14

SiD the Turtle said:
Windows are on the list, once our finances are in better shape. The offer also seems to cover loft insulation. The stuff we've got is pretty old but it appears to qualify under the Eon free deal too.

I would hunt around, as there are often offers to be had eg we got our cavity wall insulated free when we bought a boiler, but we could have had the loft done instead. There are also companies around that will do the work and charge the government for all but a token fee. It's also possible to put more insulation in the loft quite cheaply, as places like B&Q will often have insulation on offer that you can just roll out into the loft. When I did mine, I think we bought a load of rolls for about £7 each that would normally be £45. The worst part is getting the old stuff out if you are so inclined to go the whole hog and replace all the old stuff with modern insulation (depending on the age of the house).

You do have to consider whether it would be better putting that money towards windows, as they do have a massive effect if you're replacing drafty aluminium that's transmitting cold in from the outside. As per cavity walls and boilers, there are often companies doing scrappage schemes through the government, but you need to check if/how much you are expected to contribute to that. Old windows can easily account for 50 percent of your heat loss, so replacing them can give a huge benefit. You want to do as much as you can to reduce drafts through doors and windows, as these will make the house cold, ie close doors, thick curtains, draft excluders, chimney balloons, etc.

SiD the Turtle · 21 Dec 2017 at 12:37

So update: so far this has been a complete waste of time and effort.

Booked in my Eon visit, took a day off work to find the contractor they allocated was based in Birmingham (about 100 miles away as the crow flies) and he didn't show.
Booked in an nPower visit too. They came round when my wife was off and told her 'the bricks are too small'?! Even though the neighbor (adjoining semi) had it done last year.
Finally got the new Eon contractor round and he said they could do it and would give the findings to Eon. I haven't heard anything back, and the guys at Eon don't seem to have any records. They sent me a 'how did we do' survey though.

Bah.

Spook187 · 21 Dec 2017 at 19:17

Psycho Sonny said:
companies will install them for free so long as they own them. so you get the leccy for free.

Please don't tell me you gone down that road for a few hours of free power.

Psycho Sonny · 21 Dec 2017 at 21:37

Spook187 said:
Please don't tell me you gone down that road for a few hours of free power.

nope i bought mine through ikea

dholdi · 21 Dec 2017 at 21:55

Psycho Sonny said:
companies will install them for free so long as they own them. so you get the leccy for free.

Which isn't a good idea.

Spook187 · 22 Dec 2017 at 10:08

Psycho Sonny said:
nope i bought mine through ikea

Good man, don't like the way these company's offer "Free" power and they own all the panels, my father in law fitted his own on his house and outside buildings(he bought them through the heating and plumbing business which they also install panels) and makes a decent return on them on the old generous tariff.

Psycho Sonny · 22 Dec 2017 at 10:25

dholdi said:
Which isn't a good idea.

why not?

if you cannot afford to buy panels then you get free leccy.

obviously you don't get the feed in tariff or the money for the excess but free leccy is free leccy. the only problem you have is when you come to sell the house you need to buy out the company that owns the panels. but chances are if you cannot afford panels the chances of you selling up to move into a big home is slim to none anyway

dholdi · 22 Dec 2017 at 13:28

I think you answered your own question there.

SPG · 22 Dec 2017 at 14:09

I work full time,

I took all the existing loft insulation out (was old and flat and a hogwash of stuff) phoned up british gas to get inspected, they sent a chap around and said yes no problem and fitted new stuff free of charge. (I have my energy with EON)