Environment - Surveyors probe energy efficiency payback

green herring? at current prices PV panels can take decades to pay for themselves

Insulating walls is the most cost effective way to reduce carbon footprints in the home, while installing electricity-generating solar panels might send a message, but is unlikely to give value for money when it comes to cutting energy bills.

That's according to a price guide published by the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) which compares the outlay required to install energy saying measures against how long it will take them to pay for themselves.

The guide also looks at how disruptive the green improvements are likely to be.

Cavity wall insulation comes out tops and particularly shines in terraced properties, where less external walls mean a smaller bill resulting in a payback period of as little as three years, and saving of as much as £145 per year thereafter.

Read the EDIE article in full