UK householders are interested in investing in more sustainable forms of home heating that will reduce energy bills and be better for the environment, according to Wolseley’s survey of over 1,000 homeowners and tenants.
The research revealed that 34% of respondents intend to spend their money changing their heating system over holidays or other experiences this year. Almost half, 48%, believe it is important for their energy source to be environmentally friendly, while 52% will be considering the environment when they next renew their heating system and 72% of people saying they would seek a heat pump, hydrogen or other non-gas/oil boiler to deliver cheaper long-term energy costs.
However, the survey also identified challenges that need to be overcome to make sustainable forms of heating more accessible. In total, 55% cite high expense as the main barrier to installing more sustainable forms of home heating. Further, 60% said they had a lack of knowledge on the issue, with 36% wanting to wait until government funding becomes clearer before switching to more sustainable heat sources, and 24% not understanding the benefits.
Only 14% of people trust the government to provide clear and fair advice about their future heating options.
On the other hand, 74% of respondents said they depend upon specialist heating engineers and trade merchants to advise them on their heating options and system costs. Across the UK, 23% of people had already discussed options for a ground source or air source heat pump or a hydrogen/hybrid boiler as a more sustainable heating alternative, rising to 28% in Scotland but with the south coast region seeing a far lower figure of 10%.
Simon Oakland, CEO of Wolseley Group, said: “Transforming the way that UK homes are heated to reduce environmental impact will take time. There are big hurdles to overcome around cost and reskilling of existing heating engineers. Specialist merchants, like Wolseley, will be critical in providing the support, training and advice needed to increase the number of installers able to provide these new technologies.
“It is clear that the government and the home heating sector need to be working together more closely to accelerate this transition by making the available grants and subsidies clearer, and the options more understandable. The appetite for more sustainable home heating is clearly there across the country.”