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The honest guide toUK homes.
Property archetypes, on-gas vs off-gas, EPC interpretation: what's specific to your home.
Reading order: beginner first
Start at the top.
04 guides
- 01
The five UK property types: what they mean for retrofit
UK housing splits roughly into five eras: pre-1919 (21%), 1919–1944 (16%), 1945–1964 (~20%), 1965–1990 (~31%), and post-1990 (~12%). Each era brings a typical fabric profile and a typical retrofit sequence. Knowing yours tells you what order to spend in.
8 min read
- 02
On-gas vs off-gas heating: the geography, the economics, the future
Around 84–85% of UK homes are on the mains gas grid. Off-gas regions concentrate in the South West, Inner London, and East of England. Off-gas economics make heat pump conversion unambiguously cheaper to run than oil or LPG. That is why 39% of BUS grants pay out to off-gas homes.
7 min read
- 03
Reading your EPC: what the bands actually mean
EPCs band homes A (most efficient) to G under the SAP scoring methodology. 56% of English homes are now A–C, up from 26% in 2014. The 'potential' rating shows where measures could take you, and the recommendations directly affect Boiler Upgrade Scheme eligibility.
6 min read
- 04
The 1930s semi: a textbook retrofit case study
A real Smart Energie customer's journey from cavity-unfilled 1930s semi through fabric-first measures to an air-source heat pump, with the actual numbers, the actual sequencing, and the moments where the decision could have gone the other way.
10 min read
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