Choosing an energy efficient property
Article by Giorgos Droggitis (postgraduate student at the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens)
Hello, my name is Giorgos and I am a postgraduate student at the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens. For the past 4 years, ending last summer, I lived in the university’s dormitories where I had no bills to pay as my rent was all-inclusive. As a result, my awareness of energy saving, and its benefits was low.
At the beginning of 2018, I got involved with the SSO campaign. Many useful tips and information on energy saving were brought to my attention and changed my way of thinking and my quality of life! My first contact with the SSO campaign and the student ambassadors took place via Facebook, after which I met some of them in person.
Since September 2018, I have been renting an apartment in town. Since the SSO/SSO+ campaign raised my awareness on energy issues, I was able to make the right choices and find a suitable and cozy flat. I knew by that time what to look for! As a result, I rented a house with the highest Energy Performance Certificate rating (EPC) in my new neighborhood. It has double glazed windows and the appropriate thermal insulation in the walls. I also equipped my home with energy-efficient appliances and changed my daily habits in cooking, heating and lighting. Eventually, this helped me compared to my friends who were not informed, to receive lower bills and attain a better thermal comfort in my home.
My advice to those looking for their future apartment is to always check that the EPC of the property ranges between A and D, to ensure that it is effectively insulated, thus achieving lower heating and cooling costs. Furthermore, some energy saving tips I learned from the SSO campaign, and I strongly recommend to you all, are: put a lid in your pot while cooking, wear warm clothes instead of increasing the thermostat and buy “A+ label” electrical appliances. I feel lucky to have gotten in touch with the SSO campaign since it has helped me to reduce my cost of living and at the same time protect the environment...just from my home!
