Green Deal MSE Guide Discussion

John_Pierpoint

Let us know here how you get on.
The Mark Group could be the largest "independent" company in the Green Deal.

When I was installing PV 15 months ago, I used the Mark Group as a base line, they were doing the quotes for the big retailers, such as Tesco.

Their estimate was too expensive and more to the point they could not meet the March deadline, when the subsidies would be cut.

The representative was a pleasant young man, who had taken his training seriously, (ie more of an engineer than a commission driven salesman and he was due to go back into the training course for more "green" technologies).
However a PV roof panel installation is a simple stand alone product, when installed on a roof without shading issues. As things worked out in reality, when I got another installer to do the work, I disagreed with him on two issues:
Roof Cramming - on a roof facing "sideways" from the property - I don't care what it looks like neither I nor any neighbours have a clear view of it - the criterion of getting maximum financial return is more important.
He was armed with a plug in circuit tester and got a bit excited about its earth resistance reading - correctly as it turned out BUT he failed to diagnose that I had a standard "TT" electrical supply of 1960s vintage. It was advisable to upgrade the earth to modern standards but there was nothing fundamentally dangerous about the existing wiring.
[The electrician who did the eventual installation, also failed to analyse the existing circuit correctly and some time later I had a meter cupboard full of smoke].

There really is no substitute in this increasingly complex world, for understanding what you are trying to achieve technically and financially, before you buy something.

Coulsdon_Town

sheffield_lad wrote: »

Gloucester_Lad wrote: »

would therefore suggest that we go back to a grant subsidy system to finance (or part finance along with interest free loans) improvements to a minimum standard with the money coming from general taxation. Not levies on energy bills general taxation like income tax, so everyone able to contribute does.

What do you mean go back? To what exactly? Warm front was a grant scheme which cost over £330m per year yet very few folk qualified in fact if you were not on pension credit or invalidity forget it.

Saying taxation will pay for it is all nice and fluffy but that's not the way it would be received it would need a pot of over £1 billion per year to cover the population it would rightly be seen as a cost to the taxpayer we could do without given the state of the nation. No government repeat no government no matter which colour will go back to grants they are gone. We need to find a way for the less well off to be able to reduce their spending on fuel bills and increase their comfort without paying money up front. The GD offers this.

Remember current deficit (how much we are short every year), is £122b ish and current debt (how much we have racked up already and owe back), is over £1 trillion!!!

As stated previous GD is not going away as Labour also support it.

I imagine G. Lad means go back to C.E.R.T. (carbon emissions reduction target) grants. This was what gave free loft and cavity insulation to over 70's and some others, and subsidies to all depending on the existing insulation. The money came from effectively a surcharge on everyone's energy bills i believe. At the end of last year it became free insulation to everyone for a few months as take-up hadn't met targets.
Labour may support green deal at present but they won't be the government for 2 years (or 7 or 12), and i'm beginning to think the tories may let it die before then - some of them hate it.

johnnyhardcore

Has anyone had any experience with "One Green Place"? I was trying to get some information/an assessment booked with them back in March and they couldnt have been harder to deal with. Messages unreturned, promises for callbacks not reliable etc. Nice people but I have just given up on it.

We were hoping to use this to get very out of date/problematic/drafty metal frame DG windows and doors replaced (also hoping to make the house look nicer to boot) but from comments in this thread it seems DG isnt worth doing on GD???

Sorry if I have missed comments in the thread covering what I'm asking. Some of the posts are a bit "Wall of Text" or indecipherable to me.

nanb1536

Hi, I contacted the energy saving trust in February ,who confirmed that I was eligible for ECO funding for solid wall insulation and they forwarded my details to Scottish power, eventually I have been contacted by Scottish power ,who told me that they and all other energy companies were only doing boilers, loft and cavity wall insulation and to try again in 6 months to a years time. I don't understand this as even the energy saving trust did not know this. Where can I get help with this

Scottish_Power

nanb1536 thanks for your post. We have referred your request to see if there is anything we can do to help. Please e-mail details to [EMAIL="social@scottishpower.com"]social@scottishpower.com[/EMAIL] and when I have a response I will let you know.

Thanks David

nanb1536

Hi Thanks I will email you the details, however ,Scottish power do have all my details and even rang me to tell me that they would not even consider doing any external solid wall insulation, only cavities ,boilers and loft as they were the cheaper options.

John_Pierpoint

Ofgem to investigate energy firms for missing home efficiency targets

Regulator to look at why British Gas, SSE and Scottish Power failed to reach carbon reduction targets

UK energy firms have not fully met their efficiency goals under the Carbon Emissions Reduction Target scheme. [Photograph: Heatseekers].

British Gas, SSE and Scottish Power are among six energy firms to be investigated by the energy regulator Ofgem after failing to deliver enough energy efficiency measures to UK households.
Under the Carbon Emissions Reduction Target (Cert), legislation which was in place until the end of 2012, the big six energy companies had to introduce measures such as installing insulation or switching a household's heating fuel from oil to gas to help reduce UK carbon emissions.
Under a separate smaller scheme, the Community Energy Saving Programme (CESP), the same suppliers had to deliver more complex energy saving measures to people in the most deprived areas of the country.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2013/may/01/ofgem-investigate-energy-firms-missing-efficiency-targets

Now we know why there was a "gold rush" of "free" insulation last autumn. I remonstrated with my installer about over egging on the size of my property - Would I be right that he was being paid by the dimensions insulated on the paperwork and no "surveyor" bothers to measure the size of the windows, when insulating the cavity walls?

Thursday 30 August 2012 15.15 BST:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/blog/2012/aug/30/free-loft-insulation-british-gas

Scottish_Power

nanb1536 wrote: »

Hi, I contacted the energy saving trust in February ,who confirmed that I was eligible for ECO funding for solid wall insulation and they forwarded my details to Scottish power, eventually I have been contacted by Scottish power ,who told me that they and all other energy companies were only doing boilers, loft and cavity wall insulation and to try again in 6 months to a years time. I don't understand this as even the energy saving trust did not know this. Where can I get help with this

We are very sorry for the inconvenience caused. Unfortunately it is the case that at present we are unable to offer solid-wall insulation to individual customers. Our ECO department now has your details on file and we do hope to be able to help in about 6 months time. We will be in touch if this service becomes available.

I hope this is helpful and I do apologise that you were given incorrect information.

David

Me_fishy_u_chippie

Scottishpowerwhateveryoureallyare,

Post all correspondence here - its a public forum for all. Certainly not a means for you to address relationship issues in private! Consequently, I feel its not appropriate so I have directed it to the administrators..............

I'd like to report this forum post/thread because...all communication on forums should be public AND not in private or, in the narrow interests of the BIG PLAYERS - apply one rule for all, or don't bother! Why give the biggest abusers of the market privileged status? In the spirit of fairness I have posted this to the forum!

Glug glug x

Cardew

Me_fishy_u_chippie wrote: »

Scottishpowerwhateveryoureallyare,

Post all correspondence here - its a public forum for all. Certainly not a means for you to address relationship issues in private! Consequently, I feel its not appropriate so I have directed it to the administrators..............

I'd like to report this forum post/thread because...all communication on forums should be public AND not in private or, in the narrow interests of the BIG PLAYERS - apply one rule for all, or don't bother! Why give the biggest abusers of the market privileged status? In the spirit of fairness I have posted this to the forum!

Glug glug x

Sorry but totally disagree with you.

The Utility company representatives have permission from Martin to post on the threads where their company is involved.

Over the years this has been allowed they have never abused their position. If they did posters would be on them like a ton of bricks.

Their input has always been valuable, giving their company's stance on general matters and offering assistance to posters on individual concerns - naturally the with the latter they cannot reveal personal details.

All in all, their contribution has been excellent and your post IMO has no justification.