Friday, February 14

EPC Belfast “There are two parts in the production of the Energy Performance Certificate” 

The accredited individuals that produce Energy Performance Certificates in Belfast, Northern Ireland, are called Domestic Energy Assessors (DEAs). They may be self-employed or work under an organization like an energy company, estate agent, etc.

This article is produced by Belfast based DEAs who say that there are two parts in the production of the Energy Performance Certificate:

  • Site survey: The domestic energy assessor inspects the client’s house.
  • Data input: The assessor enters data in the software to create the energy performance certificate.

Domestic Energy Assessment

Front elevation 

Once the home is for sale or to let, the assessor inspects the elevations of the house and take notes of the period of build of the main dwelling and all extensions. He will also take photographs that prove the structure of the property. The energy assessor will record the style of the property whether it is detached, mid-terrace, semi-detached, bungalow, a flat, etc.

Rear elevation  

After the complete assessment of the front elevation, the surveyor will visit the rear of the property and take pictures of the rear elevation. He will photograph everything located at the back of property like a boiler, its model, and the oil tank if any.

Inside the house

Inside of house the DEA will take photographs of the radiators, heating programmer, wall thermostat, and thermostatic radiator valves as evidence of the heating control system. Further, he will record details of the gas heating system, if any, as an alternative to the oil heating system. So he will take pictures of the boiler, including its make and model.

In the house’s interior, the assessor will take the images of windows, glass thickness, and window frames types (timber or PVC). Lastly, he will check the room lights and count the number of energy saving bulbs in the main rooms.

The DEA will measure the width of the exterior wall and record the type of wall structure, such as stone, brick, or timber. Additionally, the assessor will record the insulating material of the wall.

Loft insulation and its depth

If the marketed property has the roof space, the surveyor will also need to photograph the loft insulation and its depth.

Feeding data in RdSAP 

During this stage the assessor will gather all the data about the property from the site survey and put it into the computer software which is known as RdSAP software. Domestic Energy Assessors don’t own the software. Instead, they work on their Scheme’s cloud software. The assessor will lodge everything regarding the building through the user interface system and produce the energy performance certificate (EPC) of the property.

The energy efficiency rates from 0 to 100. The low rate indicates faulty energy performance. The digital copy of the EPC of Northern Ireland stays in the NI EPC Record for almost ten years.

If you own a property in Belfast and are planning to sell it or let out it, make sure that you search online for home energy certificates Belfast to get the best quotes.