EPC, EPC, how misunderstood are you?
I am often contacted by clients to carry out an EPC for their properties, and my first question always is “Why do you need an EPC?”.
This simple question, a good 80% of the time, reveals that the client doesn’t really need an EPC at all! Usually, they want me to carry out an EPC to measure the thermal performance of their properties, and EPCs are not really what they should be asking for.
Let me explain; EPCs do give people some information about fabric thermal performance, but the reason why EPCs have been created is to give people a rough indication of how much it would cost to heat the property in a typical scenario: its just not the right ‘tool’ for the job.
There are many reasons why we should not be using EPCs for gauging the fabric performance of a building:
The above (plus more) reasons should highlight why they should not be used as a tool for fabric performance assessments of properties; yes, they do give some data, but in my view, it is a mix of incomplete and imprecise when used for a fabric performance evaluation.
EPCs were designed to be done as fast as possible, with little input as possible (to reduce human error and to give a standardised report) so that people could have a relatively inexpensive way to compare properties before purchase or renting. They typically are carried out in 1 hour (it depends on the size and complexity of the property) and require very little customer input (if at all).
On top of the above, if the property has been ‘retrofitted’ in any way, some of the fabric might have been improved considerably, and an EPCs is likely not going to reflect that; assessors carrying out EPCs are not allowed to do invasive inspections because that goes beyond the scope of the EPC.
EPCs are very good for what they have been designed for; to provide quick and impartial results of the cost of heating a property with the existing fuel and heating system.
For analysing the thermal performance of a building, I always suggest having a proper fabric and energy assessment done; these will give a much more accurate result, with the whole existing fabric assessed.
Unfortunately, the difference in cost between an EPC and such an assessment can be considerable, especially if the property is big, so some people are put off and will still prefer to use whatever the EPC will come up with.
There is really no substitute for having an experienced assessor carrying out an in depth assessment of your home, using a combination of specialised equipment and science proven methodologies.
The reports we offer our clients include pretty much everything that you will find in a property, and can be customised and tailored to exactly what the customer wants taking their budget into consideration; we measure all the thermal elements, we calculate all the thermal resistances (u-values), we analyse all the opening, we calculate all the thermal losses in their existing conditions. Everything we calculate is based on what we find: our inspections also go beyond of what is in front of us, by using borescopes and thermal cameras to gather what we cannot see.
We model everything from scratch using the full dataset of the standard assessment procedure (SAP), which is used as a standard modelling tool for new buildings and building control approvals.
The amount of work needed and the complexity between a good fabric assessment and an EPC is night and day (and it is reflected in the price) but also is the result; the advice given is clear, precise and bespoke.
As you can see from the above, there is really no alternative if you want to understand how the fabric of your property performs under different conditions and scenarios.
Hopefully I have helped you in understanding some of the misconceptions about EPCs; please contact us and we will be more than happy to help you with any questions you might still have!