Home Energy Surveys & Advice in Lancashire
Are your energy bills going up? Do you already have solar panels and wonder if you're getting the most from them? Are you thinking about a home battery, or a move from a gas boiler to an air source heat pump? Do you charge a car at home and want to do it as cheaply as possible?
I can help with all of that, through a home survey or a remote advice service. Either way you get independent, plain English advice based on how your home actually uses energy, not on a sales pitch. I don't sell or install anything.
- You send me your smart meter readings, recent bills, EPC and any photos or quotes you have
- I run the numbers on your real usage: tariffs, battery sizing, solar, heat pump running costs and EV charging
- You get a clear written summary and a call to talk it through
- No visit needed, so it works wherever you live
- A visit to look at your heating, insulation, ventilation, windows and how the house is used
- Action plan £295, or full written report £450 (up to 3 bedrooms, +£50 per extra bedroom)
- Recommendations ranked by cost, savings and payback
- Includes suitability for solar PV, battery storage and heat pumps
Already got a quote?
If you've been quoted for solar panels, a battery, a heat pump or insulation, I can check it independently before you sign. I'll test the installer's savings estimate against your own meter data, check the system size and payback, and give you the questions worth asking. Quote checks are part of the remote advice service.
What the home survey covers
- Heating system, controls and hot water
- Loft, wall and floor insulation
- Draughts, ventilation and damp risk
- Windows, doors and lighting
- Your energy bills and usage patterns
- Suitability for solar PV, battery storage and heat pumps
Thinking about a home battery or solar panels?
Batteries and solar panels can cut your bills, but what they actually save depends on how your home uses electricity. Installer quotes are often based on rules of thumb rather than your own readings. I use your smart meter data to model what a system would really save in your home, before you sign anything.
You don't need solar panels to make a battery work
A battery can pay its way on its own. On a smart time-of-use tariff, electricity in the cheap overnight hours can cost less than half the standard rate. The battery charges up when power is cheap and runs your home from storage through the expensive evening peak.
That works all year round, including winter, when solar panels produce very little and your bills are highest. If you have a heat pump or an electric car, the savings can be bigger again. Solar and a battery do work well together in summer, storing daytime generation for the evening, but whether the extra cost stacks up depends on your usage, your roof and your tariff.
What I check
- Your half-hourly smart meter data, so we know when you really use electricity
- The best tariff for your home, with and without a battery
- The right battery size, so you don't pay for capacity you won't use
- Realistic payback against the battery and inverter warranties
- Whether a battery, solar, or both makes sense for you
Good questions to ask an installer
- How did you calculate the saving, and does it use my own meter data?
- What would a smaller battery save, and what would it cost?
- Will it be set to charge in every cheap-rate window on my tariff?
- Who handles the network operator (G99) application?
Is a £6,200 home battery worth it with a heat pump?
A retired homeowner in West Yorkshire with an air source heat pump, solar panels and a plug-in hybrid was quoted £6,220 for a 10 kWh battery, with an installer estimate of £750–£900 a year in savings. We tested that claim against 12 months of his own smart meter data, including around 5,700 half-hourly readings.
A January day, before and after
The grey line is the electricity the home draws from the grid each hour on an average January day. With a battery (green), almost all of it moves into the cheap-rate windows, including overnight, and the house runs from storage through the 4–7pm peak. No solar is needed for this.
Household half-hourly smart meter data, January 2026, on Cosy Octopus. Battery simulated half-hour by half-hour: 9.2 kWh usable, 90% round-trip efficiency.
When does it pay for itself?
Cumulative savings against the £6,220 cost, assuming electricity prices rise 3% a year and allowing 1% a year for battery wear.
The finding: the battery would save money, but about half what was quoted, which pushes payback past the 10-year battery warranty. The household was already using its smart tariff well, charging the car and heating hot water in the cheap windows, which left less for a battery to improve. At around £4,500–£5,000 installed, the case becomes sound. Along the way we found the heat pump timings alone could save around £90 a year, at no cost.
Get the real numbers before you sign a quote
I can run the same independent analysis on your own smart meter data, so you know what a battery, solar panels, a heat pump or a home EV charger will really save. Remote advice starts from £150. I don't sell or install anything.
Book a home survey or remote adviceFigures are modelled from one household's usage at 2026 tariff rates and are illustrative, not financial advice. Personal details have been removed.
Add-ons
Drone roof and exterior inspection: +£75. Aerial photos of roofs, chimneys, gutters and hard-to-reach areas, flown by a CAA-registered, insured operator.
Thermal imaging: coming soon. Infrared images that show exactly where heat is escaping.
How it works
Get in touch with a few details about the property and what you want to achieve.
Survey visit or remote review. I visit at a time that suits you, usually within a week or two. For remote advice, you send me your meter data, bills and any quotes, and I do the rest.
Your plan. You receive your action plan or report, and I am happy to talk it through.
Areas covered
Blackburn, Burnley, Accrington, Clitheroe, Preston, Manchester and the surrounding areas of Lancashire and Greater Manchester. Remote energy advice is available anywhere in the UK.
Prices exclude travel outside the core area. Ask for a quote and I will confirm the price before booking.