The decision to go ahead with plans for a bathroom refurbishment is often motivated by existing poor plumbing, wanting to upgrade and/or modernise, or to improve a home’s energy score. In this article we focus on the latter, and look at the options to improve your bathroom’s energy efficiency. With the cost of energy, fuel prices rising, and the Government’s drive to reduce Carbon Emissions, there seems no better time to improve our homes Energy Performance (EP) scores. Anyone wanting to sell their home is required to get an EPC (energy performance certificate) which tells you how energy efficient your home is (‘A’ being very efficient and a ‘G’ very inefficient). The certificate will also flag-up what needs to be done to increase your score.

Steps to improve your bathroom’s energy efficiency

With soaring energy prices, the following are bound to help you pay less:

• Replace shower head to an energy efficient model. These can reduce the flow rate while maintaining water pressure
• Replace light bulbs with LED lights
• Install a dual flush toilet with a setting to use less water as needed
• High efficiency faucet aerators will reduce water usage, and work by maintaining high pressure while reducing air flow
• Replace single pane windows and rotten wooden window frames – to eliminate cold drafts
• Modify bathroom routines – switch off lights as you leave the room, reduce water waste when brushing teeth, enter shower as soon as you turn taps on, reduce shower time to no more than 4 minutes, repair dripping taps, and choose to shower rather than take a bath. Steps that are kind to your wallet as well as the environment.

There is one further consideration you may not have thought about in your bathroom refurbishment plans: a waste water heat replacement device.

Have you ever stopped to think how much of your energy bill goes into heating your shower water? You may be alarmed to know that 15 to 30% of a typical home’s monthly energy bill is spent on heating shower water. Of that, about 90% of the energy used to heat the water quite literally disappears down the drain!

The energy department estimates that energy losses through heating shower water amounts to an estimated 80%. There’s a strong argument for taking action, and Zypho is the solution. This waste water heat recovery system can be fitted below the shower tray of all new home builds or bathroom refurbishments.

Zypho is a device that attaches to the drain of a shower, or to a bath fitted with an overhead shower unit. It uses the outgoing waste water to pre-heat the fresh cold mains water coming into the home.

How does it passively remove heat from water going down the drain? Waste water is run against a copper coil of incoming fresh cold water. While the two streams are kept physically separate, heat passes from the waste hot to the fresh cold. This process helps to lighten the load placed on the hot water generation system. The pre-heated fresh water is then directed to the shower tap.

Installing a Zypho WWHRS will not only lower the cost of taking a shower, but will also help to improve your home’s EPC profile (very appealing to potential buyers if ever you decide to sell!). It’s well worth considering – take a look at the range of models on offer here.