Sustainable landlord renovations: 6 features worth replacing and how to do it

As a landlord, you have ultimate responsibility for your property, and for the comfort of your tenants within it. With the cost of living rising, and becoming net zero carbon neutral high on everyone’s agenda, making small sustainable renovations could make a big positive impact.

You don’t even need to make any major changes to have a significant outcome, keeping your costs down but still doing what is required to make your property more energy efficient and using sustainable materials to do so.

Lighting

One of the easiest wins is to change all the light bulbs and light fittings to be LED. These consume far less energy than standard light bulbs, whilst maintaining bright, intense illumination. Depending on the age of the property, you may have old strip lights in the ceiling. Swap these out for LED strip light or spotlights for a more modern and appealing feel, and to considerably decrease energy consumption.

When fitting spotlights upstairs, you will likely need to go up into the loft, so you may decide to strip out all the other lighting in the property and replace it all with spotlights in one fell swoop, saving on money, time and labour.

Wall lights are often less effective than down lights or ceiling lights, which can be positioned in the most useful place to disperse as much light as possible, or focus on a specific area such as a dining table. It is worth designing your lighting scheme with these in mind, for maximum effect and to save it from needing changing again further down the line.

Draught-proofing windows

Most homes already have double glazing nowadays. But, that isn’t the end of it. Over time, window frames can warp and glass can blow, meaning they are far less effective than when they were first fitted. If you have had your double glazing for over 10 years, it is worth checking it for draughts and other defects.

Research suggests that 20% of the heating in a home is lost through the windows, but actively draught-proofing your windows can reduce heat loss by up to 86%. This means that you won’t necessarily need to replace them if they are still in generally good condition. But, you can still make a difference. The same can be done with your doors, for things like letterboxes and keyholes.

Wall and loft insulation

Removing cavity wall insulation and replacing it with new material is a surprisingly quick and easy job. The old insulation can often be sucked out of the wall just by taking away a couple of outside bricks and inserting a tube. Then the new insulation can be fitted through the same entry method.

Because some old insulation could be made of harmful materials, it is important to get it disposed of carefully by a professional service. They may also be able to recycle some of the insulation to avoid it going to landfill.

With loft insulation, you generally won’t need to remove what is already there and can just fit new insulation on top, giving you double the insulation and being more effective. Sheep’s wool and hemp are particularly eco-friendly options to consider.

Bathroom fixtures and fittings

Not something that many people think about, but flushing the toilet accounts for 30% of the water usage in a property. Changing a toilet from a standard flush to a dual flush (two buttons, one for liquid and one for solids) or a low-flow model will reduce water consumption considerably.

You can do the same with your shower, particularly in areas of high water pressure. A low-flow shower head will reduce the water flowing down the plughole, but without compromising on performance.

Kitchen Appliances

Modern kitchen appliances are now much more energy efficient than their older counterparts. Landlords need to provide an Energy Performance Certificate when letting their property, and so changing appliances for ones in the A+-C rating benefits everyone.

Energy bills are increasing, so cutting down on the energy that is consumed by appliances around the home is vital – as well as being kinder to the environment. Nowhere is this more prevalent than in the kitchen, where fridges, freezers, washing machines, dishwashers and even kettles all contribute to energy use.

Flooring

This can be a tricky balancing act. Carpets are the most effective flooring for insulation purposes, but are the least eco-friendly option. Solid wood is the most eco-friendly, but will likely need to be topped with some form of rug to provide the heat, which rather negates the purpose. Laminate, vinyl and tiles are good compromises, being fairly sustainable but also helping to keep the heat in.

With a rented property, you want to make sure the flooring is hardwearing and durable, as tenants are unlikely to look after it as well as you might if it were your own house. Therefore, opting for something that is easy to keep clean and can withstand spills and heavy foot traffic is probably the best choice for your renovation.

Final thoughts

Although you won’t be living in the property yourself, making sustainable adaptations will be of benefit in the long-run, as you won’t need to carry on doing work, perhaps when you have tenants in situ. Long-term planning and using eco-friendly materials in your renovations will ensure that your property works for everyone, helping to save time, money and the planet.