US Edition 
'I make £4,000 a year being energy efficient'
Harold Armitage invested £19,000 to make his home energy efficient - and now makes almost £4,000 a year as a result.
Harold Armitage and his wife, Susan, have lived in their Thirties bungalow in Herefordshire for nine years. Mr Armitage, a retired energy-efficiency engineer, bought the property as a DIY energy-saving project and spent four years converting it at a cost of £19,000.
Measures installed include quadruple glazing, extensive insulation, solar water heating and solar PV panels.
The bungalow also has a wood-burning stove and water saving devices.
Mr Armitage, 65, believed his net annual benefit was almost £4,000 as a result of reduced energy bills and income from the feed-in tariffs on the solar PV panels.
He said: “It takes a fair amount of determination to do a conversion as a DIY project, but the technology has existed for years.
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“It was expensive, but we’re hedging against tomorrow’s fuel prices.”
He said: “It’s been apparent to me for years that the government has mucked up our power supply. There’s no need for anybody in this country to have energy poverty.
“The house is designed for maximum efficiency and the exterior looks no different from any other house.”
Keith and Kathryn Searle have lived in Buckinghamshire for 30 years, in a Seventies property which they have made more energy efficient over time.
Mr Searle said: “When we first moved in, the first thing we did was put more insulation in the loft. Shortly after that we filled the wall cavities with foam insulation.”
The pair installed an air-to-air heat pump last year, which heats the whole house.
Mr Searle said: “I don’t like waste in any form so energy conservation is a fairly natural thing for me to do.
“For us, it has been a great success. Maybe we just got lucky. I expect energy bills to rise, so I think what we’ve done will pay dividends in future. Our energy consumption has come down to just under 7,000kWhrs a year.”
He said: “We’ve made some mistakes along the way… but it’ll still pay off. Why would you waste your money if you don’t have to?
“If you don’t spend money on insulation, you’ll spend it on higher bills.”
Mr Armitage and Mr Searle are among those opening their energy-efficient homes to the public for SuperHomes week, from March 16-24. Visit www.superhomes.org.uk for more information.