Energy Performance Certificates for County Durham, Tyne and Wear and Northumberland
What is an Energy Performance Certificate?
The Energy Performance Certificate is similar to those now provided with many household white goods. Just as these household appliances are rated on their energy efficiency, the EPCs have been introduced to allow the houses themselves to rated. The EPC focuses on features of the building itself such as age, location, size, condition, heating source and potential sources of heat loss rather than the domestic appliances. By considering the features of the building, the EPC also suggests realistic and cost-effective measures that can lead to an improvement in the efficiency of the home.
The certificate shows two ratings, the Energy Efficiency Rating and the Energy Efficiency Rating, outlined below. Both of these ratings show the present rating the property is classed as and the potential rating the property could achieve if all of the suggested measures were undertaken.
The Energy Efficiency Rating
The energy efficiency rating is a measure of the overall efficiency of a home. The higher the rating the more energy efficient the home is and the lower the fuel bills will be. This rating is displayed both as a percentage and graphically on a colour coded scale of A - G, A being the most efficient and G the least. A second column shows the highest rating the house could achieve if all the measures suggested in the EPC are undertaken.
Environmental (CO2) Impact Rating
The environmental impact rating is a measure of this home's impact on the environment in terms of carbon dioxide emissions. The higher the rating the less impact it has on the environment. As before the rating is shown both as a percentage and on a scale of A - G along with the potential rating the property could achieve.