An efficient heating system can cut your costs and your carbon footprint.

When it comes to heaters, don’t be lured by low purchase prices alone. “Basically, the cheaper it is to buy, the more expensive it will be to run,” warns Mick Harris, technical advisor for the Alternative Technology Association.

So which heating options are energy-smart and eco-friendly (besides an extra jumper)?

Generally, space heaters are more economical than central heating. “To be efficient, it’s ideal to heat your main living areas rather than your whole house,” Harris says. “Put a super-efficient gas heater in your living area and keep little electric heaters in the bedrooms to turn on for twenty minutes at the start or end of the day.”

Among space heaters, high-efficiency natural gas models and slow-combustion wood heaters both score low ongoing costs and low greenhouse emissions. Top star-rating reverse-cycle air conditioners are energy efficient, but produce more CO2 if they use coal-fired electricity from the grid.

Power-hungry portable electric heaters fare the worst, so use them sparingly. Oil-filled column heaters normally use less energy than comparable bar radiators or fan heaters (which cost about 40 cents per hour, according to Harris).

With central heating, ‘zoned’ systems are best, because they allow you to heat only the areas you need. For long-term frugality, go for high-efficiency, ducted natural gas, or a hydronic system powered by gas, solar or slow-combustion wood. Some existing central heaters can be retrofitted with zoning – ask a heating specialist.

When your old white goods conk out, it’s wise to buy efficient new ones, says Ian McNicol from Sustainability Victoria. “Energy prices are certain to rise over the life of the appliance – typically about 13 years – so the savings from buying high-efficiency products will get bigger and bigger.”

To help you choose well, government regulations require that key appliances carry labels detailing their energy and water use. From next year, governments also plan to take over the industry-run rating scheme for gas appliances, starting with water heaters.

For now, all the labels carry up to six stars – the more stars the better. They also include a standard consumption figure in the sticker’s central box to make it easy to compare like-products. You’ll find the labels on all white goods, as well as air conditioners, gas space and water heaters, toilets, urinals and fittings such as taps and showerheads.

Wide-screen televisions are our newest power-guzzlers. “The energy consumption some of the bigger TVs can be as large, if not larger, than a refrigerator,” says Mr McNicol. Last November, the federal government introduced voluntary television energy labelling and it’s slated to become mandatory from 1 October 2009. TVs will also be the first to be rated up to ten stars for the super efficient – other products will follow.

“With a one star improvement, the appliance can be from 10 to 30 per cent more efficient, depending on the appliance type,” Mr McNicol says, “and they’re not necessarily more expensive upfront.”

“If you seal a building, you can increase its energy efficiency by 30 to 40 per cent,” says environmental building consultant Jan Brandjes. “Whenever there’s a slight pressure difference between inside and outside, air will always travel through gaps. It’s like a pinhole in the bottom of an aquarium.”

Because of draughts, the air in an average Victorian house is replaced 1.5 times every hour on a calm day, according to Mr Brandjes. In strong winds, the exchange rate can be up to 20 times per hour. “Fixing air leakage is the cheapest and easiest way to save energy,” he says.

Common leaks include exhaust fans, wall vents, downlights, and chimneys and evaporative coolers (without dampers). There are usually cracks around doors, windows, skirting boards, cornices and floorboards. Also watch out for gaps around internal doors to heated areas and to ventilated rooms such as bathrooms or toilets.

Hardware stores sell a wide range of draught-excluders, weather-strips, caulking compounds and fillers. “Most people can seal the majority of leaks by themselves for very little money,” Mr Brandjes says. He estimates that gap-sealing materials for the average house will cost DIYers about $200.

To get the best results, however, Mr Brandjes suggests hiring professionals, such as Air Barrier Technologies, to test and draught-proof your home. An expert job on a difficult house can cost over $1000, including labour. “Even then, it’s a good investment with a short payback period,” he says.

It might signify a job well done, but that new paint smell can be bad for you. The volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in conventional paint give off low-level toxic fumes that can worsen asthma and cause headaches, among other health problems. They also add to air pollution. “On exterior surfaces, the ‘off-gasing’ of VOCs produces smog,” says Daniel Wurm, from Green Painters. Happily, there are eco-friendly options.

Low VOC

Most brands offer low VOC coatings in the full range of colours, for about the same price as premium grade paints. To avoid greenwash, Mr Wurm recommends products bearing the Good Environmental Choice Australia tick. It certifies that the product is low VOC and that its manufacturing process met environmental performance standards.

Natural paints

“If you’re serious about making a difference to the environment you can’t beat natural paints,” Mr Wurm says. They’re made from renewable or highly abundant resources such as clay, linseed oil and citrus oil, and come in a wide range of colours. The only catch is cost: up to double the price of standard paints. “But in comparison to a house, it’s still a very small amount,” he says.

Heat reflective paints

Exterior paints are now available that are both insulating and low VOC. “They can cut your cooling costs by up to 40 per cent,” Mr Wurm says “They reflect solar radiation so they stop the heat from getting into your house in the first place.”

“Chooks have personalities,” says poultry enthusiast Debra Maffescioni. “In a group, there’ll be a shy chook and there’ll be one that runs straight up to you. They’re sensational pets.”

Conveniently, they also produce food – if you treat them right, you’ll get fresh, organic, free-range eggs. And if you’re a gardener, chicken poo is free fertiliser.

Ms Maffescioni’s business, Book A Chook, supplies (either for hire or purchase) everything you need to keep hens. She recommends that city dwellers keep smaller bantam chickens, rather than full size birds, which need more space and can be destructive. Most bantams lay an egg every second day (weighing about 45 grams). They’re easy to care for, even if you’ve got other pets. “Cats don’t bother chooks,” Ms Maffescioni says, “and most dogs can be trained to accept them. Visiting dogs are the biggest threat.”

Regulations

Check with your local council – each one has different rules. Nearly all will let you keep at least a few chooks without a permit. Most don’t allow roosters, but be sure to find out. “Keeping a rooster is good for the hens,” Ms Maffescioni says. “If you can do it, I’d highly recommend you do.”

Expenses

Pure breed bantams cost between $25 and $40. September is hatching time, but hens are in demand, so it’s a good idea to put your request in early. Ask Poultry Stud Breeders and Exhibitors Victoria for a list of local poultry clubs and reputable breeders.

Ms Maffescioni estimates that it costs about 20 cents per day to feed a fowl. Serve up table scraps and chook pellets or seed mix, available from pet shops and stockfeed suppliers.

Essentials

Bantams don’t need a lot of space – so long as you provide dirt for dust bathing, even an inner city courtyard will be enough room for two. They’re social animals, so you need to keep more than one. Chooks need shade, shelter and water. The coop must be fox-proof, and have a roost for sleeping and a nesting box for laying.

Grubb’s business, Very Edible Gardens, runs two-hour composting courses. “To get the balance right, every time you put in food scraps or something green, you should add something brown as well, like soaked cardboard, straw or autumn leaves.”

Worm farm

If you’ve got mostly kitchen scraps (not much garden waste), a worm farm is best. They cost about $80, or you can make one using polystyrene veggie boxes. Worms cost about $50 for 1000.

“They’ll quickly turn your food scraps into worm castings – black gold for gardeners,” Grubb says. He also recommends worm farms for apartment dwellers, “so they can turn balconies into mini food-gardens.” Bokashi Buckets are a super-compact alternative. “They’re great for dealing with meat scraps, but the result isn’t full of the best biology for your garden.”

Compost bin

A regular compost bin works well for green clippings and food scraps. Before you buy, contact your council for discount offers. If the bin doesn’t have air holes, Grubb suggests you use a drill to add ventilation.

Hot compost

To kick-start a new garden, make a cubic metre batch of compost. Layer green waste, manure, food scraps and straw, and turn it regularly. “If the pile is really big, it heats up in the middle and breaks down rapidly,” Grubb says.

“Now is the best time to get a solar panel system,” says Michael O’Connell from the Alternative Technology Association (ATA), “because the rebates – if you qualify – are never going to get better.”

Until the end of June, owner-occupiers can get about $8800 back on a 1 kW solar panel system – that’s enough to generate about a quarter of the average family’s electricity needs. To qualify for the rebate, your household must earn less than $100 000 and the photovoltaics must be wired into the mains grid.

From July, the rules will change again. The government is ditching the means test, but cutting the rebate to around $6500 for a 1.5kW system, depending on the current price of Renewable Energy Certificates. Then, later this year, the Victorian government will introduce a ‘feed-in’ tariff for up to 3.2 kW systems. They’ll pay homeowners 60 cents per kilowatt-hour for any surplus energy they put into the grid.

Mr O’Connell says that while the tariff is not generous enough, buying a 1 to 2 kW system does make sense in the long term. “Under a good case scenario you can expect a payback period of around five to ten years, and the system should last about twenty years.

You can cut costs even more by teaming up, even with a handful of people in your street. “With bulk purchasing discounts, we’ve heard of people getting panels at massive savings,” Mr O’Connell says. Ask around: enviro-groups, specialist eco-retailers and councils – especially in the inner-northern suburbs – are all organising buying groups.

Solar power will always be a big investment, so do your research. Remember that you’ll need unshaded north-facing roof space to get the best results.

The ATA recommends that you choose well-known manufacturers who offer long-term warranties (up to 25 years). Be sure to get a few on-site quotes and use accredited, experienced installers; there’s a list on the Clean Energy Council website.

You can save up to 45 per cent on heating and cooling with roof and ceiling insulation, according to the sustainable building design guide, Your Home.

Despite that, about four in ten Australian houses still go without. Dennis D’Arcy, CEO of the Insulation Council of Australia and New Zealand, says many homeowners don’t know what they’re missing. “People just assume houses have insulation. If you’re buying an old house, you’ve got to inspect it.”

If you’re one of those four in ten, you can now get insulated for free. TheEnergy Efficient Homes Package – part of the government’s anti-recessionary spending – offers up to $1600 worth of materials and professional installation for houses that have no insulation. Mr D’Arcy says the money will “more than cover costs in a very high percentage of cases”.

From July, eligible owner-occupiers will get the whole shebang by calling a government hotline. If you want it before then, get insulation professionally installed, pay upfront and receive the rebate later. Renters aren’t left out either – landlords are now eligible for up to $1000 for insulation in their rental properties.

Even if you don’t qualify for the rebate, it’s worthwhile checking your ceiling’s status – the insulation is probably gappy and underdone. Insulation’s effectiveness is measured by its ‘R-value’. For Melbourne ceilings, Your Home recommends a minimum level of R 3.7. As a rough guide, Mr D’Arcy suggests between 130 and 180 millimetres of insulation, at least.

There are many different products available: batts, foil or loose-fill, made from an array of polyester, wool, glasswool, cellulose fibres and more. For DIYers, batts are best. You can buy them from hardware stores and they’re easy to manage – choose what suits on price and recycled content.

When it comes to installation, follow the instructions on the pack, and make sure you cover all the gaps right out to the edges. If you choose loose-fill insulation, you should get it professionally installed.

In a typical home, windows cause more heat gain or loss than any other part of the building fabric. “Standard windows are like a thermal wound in the building envelope,” says Gary Smith, from the Australian Window Association.

You can heal the wound, but it will take good advice and careful thought. “There are hundreds and hundreds of options,” Mr Smith says. As well as cost and style, you need to consider the best fit for the window’s orientation.

When you make your choice, be aware of both the warmth that passes through the window and the frame (conduction), and the radiant heat caused when sunlight hits the glass directly (radiation).

A window’s conduction is measured by its U-value. The lower the U-value, the better its insulating qualities, and the better for your home. For insulation, double-glazing is best – or you can improve existing panes by retrofitting with (much cheaper) secondary window systems. Remember that the frames also conduct heat; preferred options are wood, high-performance or thermally broken aluminium, fibreglass or uPVC.

In Victoria, we spend more time heating our houses than cooling them – with a bit of planning the sun can help you do it for free. Make sure north-facing windows get direct sun in winter, but are shaded during summer. For these windows, choose products with a high ‘solar heat gain coefficient’, but at the east and west cut the solar heat by installing glass or films that are tinted, reflective or coated (‘low e’ glass).

Good windows are expensive up front, but will add to resale value and more than pay back over the life of the home. For the budget-conscious, Mr Smith suggests starting with living areas. “Begin fixing the main places where you spend your time. Better windows and glasses give you a huge improvement in comfort.”

Windows might be transparent, but they’re complex. This information is only part of the story so research thoroughly, seek expert advice and shop around. The Window Energy Rating Scheme website is a good place to start.

In the first of a series on how to reduce the ecological footprint of your home, Michael Green takes a look at water tanks.

“Tanks do fill,” promises Nigel Finney from the savewater! Alliance. If you want to install one, do it before the good rain comes. “They fill in the wetter seasons,” Mr Finney says. “That’s when you can get maximum use out of them for your toilets and laundry.”

In January, the federal government introduced a rainwater tank rebate, adding to the Victorian government’s offer. Altogether, you can get up to $1500 back on your system – depending on its size and use. You get a higher rebate for bigger systems that are connected to your toilet and laundry by a licensed plumber.

A 5000 litre, plumbed tank will cost about $4000 to $5000, so even with the rebates it will set you back thousands of dollars. Mains water is very cheap, so the payback period is long.

On the plus side, a rainwater tank gives you an independent supply for your garden, so you can water your veggies even under tight restrictions. A tank also helps reduce stormwater pollution and eases pressure on dwindling dams.

What size tank is right for you? A good rule of thumb is enough capacity for four weeks’ supply. For use in the garden, laundry and toilets, that’s usually around 5000 litres – though be sure you have enough roof area to feed your tank. The savewater! Alliance website has a guide to average rainfall, roof-size and tank capacity (as well as product lists and handy advice).

“You can put a tank just about anywhere,” Mr Finney says. They come in all materials, shapes and sizes: steel, fibreglass, plastic or concrete; round, slimline or bladders; and capacities from 200 to 100 000 litres.

If you want value for money, go for plastic, round, large tanks. “The cost per litre drops off dramatically once you start getting over 2000 litres,” says Mr Finney.

Maintenance-wise, you’ll need to clean gutters and filters regularly. A ‘first flush diverter’ is useful to drain the dirty, initial water that comes from the roof during rain.