Survey information and preparation guide
This page describes what you need to do to prepare for a Cold Homes Energy Efficiency Survey Experts (CHEESE) survey, what will happen on the day, and how we will follow up with your progress afterwards.
Contents
Confidentiality
Results of our surveys and follow-ups remain confidential between you and The CHEESE Project, however, in order for us to be able to collect data city-wide on building faults and energy saving, etc. we may use anonymised recordings, photos of structure, and details of the survey for the purposes of analysis, publicity, fund-raising etc.
Payment
To save administration time for our largely volunteer staff, we do ask that you pay in advance for your survey. This is priced according to the number of bedrooms plus living rooms, because this affects the time taken on the survey. See our pricing for various sizes of homes.
Please make on-line payments to The CHEESE Project. Sort code 089299, account number 65811564 with your name as reference. Cheques should be posted to: Mike Andrews, General Manager, The CHEESE Project, 28 Seawalls, Seawalls Road, Sneyd Park, Bristol BS9 1PG.
Preparation for the survey
In order for us to conduct an efficient and successful survey, we need you to make some preparations before the survey:
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We recommend that you switch on your heating for 24 hours before the survey to thoroughly warm up the fabric of the house (this is to create a difference of at least 10 degrees between the house and the external temperature). Please make sure that all radiators are turned on; however you might want to adjust the temperature of individual radiators/rooms so that rooms do not become uncomfortable, particularly at night. Please also note, if you feel that you're unable to keep your heating on for this length of time, contact us at: surveys@cheeseproject.co.uk so we can work out the best approach for you.
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Switch off/stop any wood burners, open fires, Agas/Rayburns, gas fires etc. two hours before the survey. This is important since we will reduce the pressure inside the house during the survey, and this might draw exhaust gases or smoke into the house.
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For the same reason, block chimneys (with a pillow or cushion in a plastic bag, or a chimney balloon) and cover any open fireplaces to prevent soot from being drawn into rooms.
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Clear away any items that will make it harder to spot draughts and cold spots (e.g. on window sills, furniture in corners), and to make it safe for the surveyor to move around easily without tripping etc.
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Ensure there is a space for our thermal-imaging equipment, such as a kitchen table or worktop, and a nearby plug socket for charging.
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Two hours before the survey:
- Switch off the central heating.
- Open all curtains and blinds.
In order for us to be able to calculate the energy saving you may make after the survey, please retrieve energy bills (electricity, gas and possibly solid fuel) for the last three years if they available, or just the last year if not.
We need to know how many kilowatt hours (kWh) of energy you use per year, for each type of energy. Please look through your bills and calculate the total kWh figures to have them ready. USwitch has some good information on understanding your energy bills. If you are not sure how to do this, then we can calculate them after the survey with you.
During the survey
Please note:
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For a five room house (living and bedrooms) a survey will take approximately two hours, including a de-briefing at the end. Larger houses will take longer, a flat somewhat less.
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Two Energy Tracer surveyors will arrive. One will be the lead Tracer and they will usually accompanied by a trainee Tracer who will be shadowing and aiding them.
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A blower door will be fitted to a suitable external door. This is used to reduce the pressure inside of the house slightly (to induce draughts) and you will not be able to use the door for between 1 and 1.5 hours. In a flat this can prevent others getting access.
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We encourage your participation and engagement throughout the survey, since it is led by your own knowledge of the building and because it is important you see for yourself where heat is being lost.
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As the thermal survey is conducted you will be able to watch the images on a tablet computer.
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Children will probably enjoy the survey.
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During the survey a video with sound will be made, recording what is found together with interpretation comments by the surveyor and your own comments. Still thermal photos are also recorded.
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Following the de-briefing on the findings at the end of the survey you will be given a recording of the video and its sound commentary on a memory stick (or DVD if requested in advance). This will also contain information from The Centre for Sustainable Energy (CSE) on how to deal with energy saving opportunities.
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Finally, we will lend an energy-monitoring kit (a CHEESE Box to you for two weeks. This includes a meter which we will fit for you to your incoming electricity supply. This will be collected two weeks after the survey.
Follow ups after the survey
One month
We will ask you to feedback on the actions you have taken (or plan to take) as a result of the survey. We would also like to hear any thoughts or comments you have on the survey and use of the energy-monitoring CHEESE Box.
One year
We will contact you one year after the survey by telephone or email to find out how you are getting on. We would like to know:
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Your approximate energy use since the survey. This is to compare with the figures we recorded on the day of the survey. We would like you to calculate the total kilowatt hours of electricity and gas you have used that year, from your bills, as you did before the survey.
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What actions over the year you have taken to reduce energy use.
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We would also like to know how much money you have saved as a consequence of saving energy, from your bills.
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Any other comments that you might have.
Subsequently
We find that following a CHEESE survey, people may continue to take action for years afterwards, reviewing the video again and again as they gradually deal with the problems it reveals. We will always be glad to hear of your progress in retrofitting and energy/money saving.