Save energy and cash

It’s no surprise that Prince Charles, Leonardo Di Caprio and Robert Redford have all installed solar panels at their houses: turning a home’s energy supply green has long been associated with something only the rich could afford.

But as the Government leads the bid to cut Britain’s carbon consumption, it is encouraging Britons to make energy supplies more eco-friendly, and incentivising energy companies to make it cheaper for customers too.

It’s not just about installing loft and cavity-wall insulation - although you can find out more about that here: http://tinyurl.com/66zpz52 - but about both eco-warriors and penny-pinchers considering investing in generating a home’s own energy.

As fuel prices rise, installing green technology like a wind turbine, wood-fuelled boiler or solar panels could become increasingly good value.

First, find out what feature would suit your home - the Energy Saving Trust (EST) has a useful questionnaire on its website: energysavingtrust.org.uk. Then, examine the cost and various incentives available from energy firms or your local council.

Clean energy cash-back schemes are available for technologies like solar electricity and wind turbines: “feed-in” tariffs trigger a tax-free payment for any energy produced beyond your needs. The average home will have an annual income of about £1,200 in feed-in earnings.

On top of that, there are hundreds of grants and discounts available for installing energy-saving technology. The EST has a searchable database of schemes available all over London at http://tinyurl.com/ybp68qu.