Combating energy poverty with home renovations

At some point, we have all liked to throw the house out the window. Be it to indulge ourselves or to celebrate something. What is certainly not sustainable is that we have to throw the house out the window due to poor energy efficiency at home, what is known as energy poverty. But more than throwing the house out the window to pay electricity or gas bills, it is rather that we throw energy out the window. And we also throw it out through the doors, walls and other places where cold or heat leaks in. To combat energy poverty, what we must do is precisely improve the insulation of those doors or windows through which we do not want to throw the house.

The energy poverty is a concept that became popular during the crisis, when alongside the increase in energy tariffs in Spain, many families were left without income due to job precariousness. However, many households can be energy poor even with significant incomes. This is because, to combat energy poverty, it is not enough to have a better salary, but it is necessary to adapt the homes to the needs of energy efficiency.

Let’s give an example. María is a pensioner and receives a thousand euros a month. She lives in an apartment of 80 square meters on the Mediterranean coast that was built in the 1970s and since then, no renovations have been made to it. It is a penthouse that gets strong sun in the summer and in winter, the roof is exposed to the elements.

María does not have air conditioning and chooses to spend the summers at another family residence she inherited a long time ago, as the heat in her apartment becomes unbearable. In contrast, in winter she needs to heat her home with electric heaters and radiators. The water heater is electric and so is the stove. Each winter month, María pays between 110 and 150 euros in her electricity bill. She has never considered it - she simply believes that energy has become very expensive - but she is a victim of energy poverty due to the poor conditions of her home.

María's case is that of many families in Spain. Specifically, it is estimated that up to 20% of households throughout the territory suffer from energy poverty. The way to calculate it is done with a percentage: if the bills for supplies exceed 10% of household income, the house is in a state of energy poverty.

How can this problem be solved?

Home improvements to combat energy poverty

The first step is awareness, realizing that there is a problem in the home and that it is necessary to combat energy poverty with renovations and not with air conditioning devices. A house with no energy efficiency will end up being, sooner or later, an energy-poor home. Because it is expected that supply tariffs will continue to rise.

Many of the houses in our country are poorly insulated with walls 25 centimeters thick where cold and heat leak in very easily. It should be noted that apartments on upper floors suffer the most. What can we do?

The first thing is to improve insulation. From the walls and facades to the windows and carpentry. Thanks to technological advances in construction, it is possible to apply interior plaster to the walls with insulating materials.

The windows and doors also need to be changed if they are old. Glass from two, three or four decades ago was very weak, but today they are highly insulating. When it comes to ceilings, painting them light colors helps make the sun more benevolent in the warm months.

Comprehensive energy rehabilitations can be costly, but emergency solutions for vulnerable households may be around 5,000 euros. And with this, not only is there a significant reduction in energy consumption and spending on supplies, but comfort also improves greatly.

On the other hand, we must take into account that it is necessary to combat energy poverty to avoid health problems. If the temperature in winter drops below 17°C, it is possible to contract diseases.

In order to improve health in homes and also to combat energy poverty, another important step is to install a mechanical ventilation system. In this way, we can improve our comfort in summers and winters, as it economically facilitates an air exchange. In summer, warm air is eliminated and fresh air is introduced in double flow systems, while warm air can be introduced in winters. Besides being the best solution to improve health in our homes with higher quality air.