We are recruiting Retrofit Assessors and Coordinators

Cartrefi Clyd is looking for individuals interested in Retrofit to become Retrofit Assessors.

Cartrefi Clyd is a partnership of social enterprise across Wales, led by Cwm Arian Renewable Energy (CARE) now delivering impartial professional retrofit advice across Wales, currently primarily via the Green Homes Wales scheme.

We have a network of Retrofit Assessors (RAs) across Wales carrying out the surveys as part of this process. The data collected by the RA in each house survey are then fed back to our Retrofit Coordinators to be written up into a professional retrofit report for the client.

We are looking for more RAs to join the scheme and to help us to make our coverage complete across Wales. If you are interested in promoting retrofit, might you be interested in training as an RA and help us to deliver this advice?

Training as a RA is not onerous, it is basically an enhanced Domestic Energy Assessor. If you are potentially interested in this, do contact us to find out more at info@cartreficyld.cymru or on 01239 920097.

At present the work would be part time and depend on demand, but retrofit skills are becoming very much in demand and the volume of this type of work is only likely to increase. There is an option for a full time role in North West Wales.

We are in particular short of RAs in the North East of Wales, but there is potential for this work wherever you are in Wales.

We would also be interested in hearing from Retrofit Coordinators interested in helping us to deliver our advice. This is a more advanced training requirement to become a Retrofit Coordinator, but if you are already a Retrofit Coordinator, or think that you have a background that would make you suitable for this role, please do get in touch.

Retrofit in the Long Term: Why It’s Worth the Investment

Are you living in your forever home? How do you see your life and lifestyle in the years to come? Do you want to live more sustainably?

These are the questions that those looking to start their retrofit journey should ask themselves. Retrofitting your home is a long-term project – upgrading your insulation, ventilation systems, windows, energy generation and more offers far-reaching advantages as we move towards a different future.

Retrofitting – the process of improving your home so that it works better for you in terms of energy, air quality and warmth – is becoming more and more popular.

It not only boosts your home’s liveability, it reduces its environmental impact and strengthens its durability for the future. It allows you to take control of your energy use, meaning that you won’t be as affected by a volatile energy market, and in the end it allows you to become less reliant on large, extractive energy companies in order to live your life.

Investing in retrofitting is all about creating a home that works better for you, the environment, and future generations—one that doesn’t just survive, but thrives, for years to come.

However, taking the time and financial investment in retrofit your property is a big step, and the sheer amount of information needed can be overwhelming. That’s why Cartrefi Clyd are here, to offer independent, expert advice and guide you through the process.

Contact us today to book your bespoke, independent retrofit assessments from one of our expert team of assessors.

If you have found your home for life – make your life better with Cartrefi Clyd.

What Retrofitting Is and How It Can Transform Your Home

It’s late February, and your home has been exposed to cold temperatures and wet conditions for the best part of four months. You may be starting to feel it –  the drafts are colder, your bills are more expensive, there may be condensation on your windows.

For many, this is a part of living in a house in Wales – the reality of a Welsh winter, combined with some of the least efficient housing stock in northern Europe makes it a familiar situation. However, it doesn’t have to be this way. Your home doesn’t have to be in a constant struggle with the elements. You can retrofit your property – and make a real change in your life.

Retrofitting is the process of improving your home to make it as sustainable, comfortable and environmentally friendly as possible. It’s like giving your home a makeover, but focusing on the things that will make it work better for you; no more drafts, plenty of ventilation, and real control over your energy use.

With the Cartrefi Clyd service, one of our team of expert retrofit assessors will visit your property and talk you through what could be done to bring it to its full potential. This includes installing new insulation, upgrading windows, installing renewable heat pumps and a new heating system, utilising energy efficient appliances or installing renewable energy. Each home is different, and the measures you will need to take will be unique to you. With the Cartrefi Clyd service, we consider how you live and how you want to live.

Retrofitting is a long-term investment in your comfort. There will be upfront costs to seeing a project through, but doing so will allow you to have more agency over your energy use, and be insulated from any further shocks in the energy market.

The first step is to book an assessment for your property. Get to know what the steps you need to take are, how to take them, and when. Our team would be more than willing to guide you through the process.

Remember, the cold, damp climate of a Welsh winter doesn’t have to come into your home – retrofit! Change your home for the better, and make it work for you.

Get in touch to book your assessment now.

Ask the Assessor: Peter Kay

How have you found your first few months as an energy assessor?

I’ve really enjoyed getting out there in the community, meeting people in their homes and visiting some interesting and beautiful places In Pembrokeshire. 

I have found that homeowners are appreciative of the way Cartrefi Clyd do things. They really see the worth in our personalised service – and want to hear how to reduce their carbon footprint while making their homes cosier and cheaper to heat.

What have you learned that you didn’t expect before starting?

The appetite to take action on environmental matters from members of the community has been encouraging.

I naively thought change would be driven by the financial benefits and reducing the cost of heating. Yes, the financial side is important to clients, and the reports do ultimately point to how to navigate the rising costs of energy. But it’s been humbling to hear that many homeowners’ motivation is to reduce their carbon emissions. It’s been a pleasure to be part of a service that sets out how to achieve this for my community.

Why did you want to get into this work?

To make a difference! – Having a growing family, I’ve been more and more conscious of the impact of our current energy use as a family and what that means for the future. I have a genuine interest in the relationship between energy advice and providing communities with independent advice and solutions.

Providing retrofit advice is one field I can make a change within. When the opportunity came up to join Cartrefi Clyd’s professional team, I jumped on the chance.

Has your relationship with energy changed? Or how you use your home? How about your community?

Yes completely! In the past I’ve stayed off grid from time to time, these experiences tuned me into energy production. If you live under those conditions, you have to be aware of the water flow, how the wind blew, how much sunlight there was. In those environments there are restrictions on the energy you can use and what time of the day you can use it.

Not everyone wants to live in those extremes however. Now this was at one end of the spectrum, and technology has come a long way since this experience. What being a part of Cartrefi Clyd has done is solidify the idea that energy comes from somewhere. Conserving energy has become part and parcel of what I do at home and in the community I’m part of. 

When did you start taking an interest in finding solutions to climate change?

Living in West Wales, a beautiful part of the world, I find myself amidst a number of pioneers in environmental solutions. One such pioneer is Cwm Arian Renewable Energy, a community benefit society with a wind turbine that generates enough green energy to power 450 homes. Additionally, they undertake numerous environment projects tailored to meet the needs of the communities they serve. 

What is the most common piece of advice you give to homeowners following an assessment?

Take your time reading the report! They’re written by a qualified Retrofit coordinator. There’s some technical information – it’s best explained as a mid-term plan for the improvement of your property. See it as stepping stones to making your home cosy, cost effective and kind to the environment.

Remember as well as insulation, ventilation is equally important – don’t be daunted! Break it down.

Why do you think Cartrefi Clyd offers something different?

We are professionals. The time we spend with clients, the independent advice and a focus on the home owner’s needs sets us apart. 

Cartrefi Clyd’s essence comes from Community Benefit Societies across Wales – we are a partnership of organisations based in our community, working for our community. The value of that can’t be over appreciated.

Five good reasons to retrofit my home and not buy a speedboat

So you’re thinking about retrofitting your home, but aren’t sure? Retrofitting your home is an investment, it takes time, energy and money. But does the benefit of doing it outweigh buying something more indulgent – a speedboat perhaps? Afterall, the cost of retrofitting my home is roughly the same, so why not? Here are 5 good reasons to retrofit my home and not buy a speedboat.

1.The cost of fuel

Our house has Calor gas central heating and a multi fuel burner in the living room. My wife and I both work from home in two separate offices, and neither of the offices has any heating at all. We’re OK in the summer because it’s nice and warm and we don’t need any heating, but the thought of buying another bottle of gas next month at £100 a shot is making me ill. It hasn’t been that long since it was £28 for a bottle. It’ll last a few weeks if we have the heating on for an hour in the morning, and an hour in the evening, and have a couple of showers and a bath. The other times, we’ll just have to be cold.

Coal and logs are the same. Burning lumps of carbon at £100 for about four bags which will last about four weeks so our living room can be warm for a few hours in the evenings is no good.

We could move to Spain and be warm, but we quite like Caernarfon!

2.Where’s my money going?

When I buy a bottle of gas from Calor to heat my home, where is my money going? Where does Calor get their gas from? Some quick research shows that “Liquid Petroleum Gas (LPG) is either produced at one of the UK’s 6 oil refineries or is imported to one of its 5 import points. Large quantities of LPG are transported directly to distribution depots across the country.” That means my money is going to oil refineries, and big corporate oil conglomerates that may or may not pay adequate taxes in the UK. Money well spent?

3.Self-sufficiency?

Don’t you think it would be nice to use nature to create all the energy we need to live our day-to-day life, and not having to buy gas and coal and petrol ever again? I could put some solar panels on my roof and install a battery. The sun could charge the battery during the day, and in the evenings, we could have the heating on (powered by a heat pump), have a hot bath, watch the TV and live normally – all from the battery. We could even have an electric car and charge that too. Our house could be a mini power plant and we could get rid of those Calor gas bottles and be self-sufficient. No more bills!

4.Environment

Did anyone watch “Colli Cymru i’r Môr” recently on S4C? That was a fascinating programme and highly recommended (with subtitles if you don’t understand Welsh). It said everything you need to know about the environment and where we are with carbon. In a nutshell, we are meant to be entering a new ice age, and our planet should be getting colder, but the opposite is happening. The planet is getting warmer because the ozone layer protecting our environment is getting thinner and allowing more hot rays from the sun to penetrate through. This then causes the polar caps to melt and fires, drought etc in the hotter countries. This is all caused by us and our burning of fossil fuels. The amount of carbon in the air has nearly doubled in about 200 years, and things will only get worse unless we stop.

I often wonder what people 500 years from now will think of us burning our own planet when free energy is all around us.

5.Do I really want a speed boat?

Well, honestly, yes. I still want a speedboat. But if I look more into which speedboat I should buy, reality starts to kick in. After all an 8 litre petrol engine could do about 2 miles to the gallon, not the most fuel efficient. Maybe I could just have it in the garden to sit in.

Yes, I’m being a bit silly. Given the choice, I’d rather be warm and comfortable in winter while using my own electricity produced by my own solar and not support the big corporate fossil fuel companies who make millions from ordinary people needing to heat their homes and families.

But where do I start? Should I just buy a solar panel kit, heat pumps, start insulating?

Without the proper advice, the money I spend might be as much of a waste as that boat idea.

This is why Cartrefi Clyd is the first step in retrofitting. They are experts in this field, they can assess my home and give me a bespoke report, tailored to how I want to live in it. They can provide a clear pathway to mitigate any risks, and make sure that I’m spending my money wisely.

If, like me, you’re considering retrofitting your home, you can start the ball rolling by booking an assessment through Cartrefi Clyd.

“Cartrefi Clyd Offers Something Different” – Dewi Williams, Project Co-ordinator

I’ve wanted to work in the green community sector for a while, following the work of Community Energy Wales, YnNi Teg, Datblygiad Egni Gwledig and other groups local to me in Caernarfon. I’ve always been struck by the values that underlie their work – co-operation, putting people first, and working as not-for-profits.

Having the opportunity to join the Cartrefi Clyd team has come at the perfect time for me. It feels like a unique opportunity for what’s happening today. We’re seeing the energy sector developing rapidly, and the impact of fossil fuels on energy bills. We have no alternative but to be more efficient within our homes and use alternative renewable energy for everyday use. We want to see communities in Wales become more self-sufficient and less reliable on the external energy sources. Unfortunately, there isn’t much support to the average household to do this, and that’s where Cartrefi Clyd steps in.

When I saw the Cartrefi Clyd project, it felt like something that makes sense. I’m active in my local community as the chairman of our village hall committee. Many times I’ve been approached with the offer to improve the buildings through the ECO4 scheme. Unfortunately, like many others, we don’t fall under the eligibility criteria for it.

More and more of us are considering how we can reduce our carbon footprint as examples of its devastating effects multiply each year. But the gap in provision and advice for those of us who want to take action on decarbonising our homes has left many directionless.

This is what makes Cartrefi Clyd different. Some might have heard of past retrofit projects that haven’t shown the due care and attention that the Cartrefi Clyd approach has, and the costly damage this has had on people’s homes. Our assessors consider the whole context of the house – where it is, the climate that it’s in, how you live in it, the materials that it’s made of, and a range of other factors. They are fully qualified, and are based locally to the areas we cover – currently Caernarfon, Hermon (Pembrokeshire), Cardiff and Newtown. Our hope is to expand our service so that more of our communities can benefit from our service.

We are independent, and formed from local community organisations that people know and trust. This is why I believe that the Cartrefi Clyd service offers something different.

If you’re interested in booking a retrofit assessment for your home, get in touch with us and we’ll arrange for an assessor to contact you.