Light bulb moment for home energy bid

LETTER - Having a property on the market, I have just had to obtain an energy performance certificate to comply with new government regulations.

The property benefits from full uPVC replacement windows and doors.

Although the assessor made a note of thickness of the cavity between the glass he did not test to see if the glass was an energy efficient type.

It is a known fact that windows and doors are the most vulnerable area for heat loss in any property, so much so that the industry has put a lot of time, money and research in to this problem.

Just by changing the type of glass, spacer bar and filling the unit with argon gas you can make vast differences to the energy rating. In some cases from D rating to A rating.

However it appears this is not taken into consideration.

To make this even more ridiculous he then told me that if there is just one energy saving light bulb in the property it can make a difference to the overall rating of the report. Is this really the case?

If so, forget costly replacement of those draughty old windows and just change the light bulbs. This will reflect so much better on the certificate.

Roy Podmore, Shrewsbury