Author: Kevin

If you want to advertise a property for let in Edinburgh, or anywhere in Scotland, you’re required by law to have an Energy Performance Certificate. These do exactly what they say on the tin; they’re an assessment of the energy efficiency of your property, giving the property a rating of A (very efficient) to G (not efficient). As well as a rating of the energy efficiency of the property, an EPC will also include recommendations on improvements you can make to increase the efficiency.

The Scottish EPC Register

We regularly hear from landlords who think that they once had these, but can’t find the paperwork. Thankfully, there’s a simple solution out there on the interweb. Since 2008 all properties sold in Scotland have had a Home Report, which includes an Energy Performance Certificate. To find out if an EPC already exists for your property you can check the Scottish EPC Register. This is the central register for EPCs in Scotland, and you can easily search for EPCs by postcode.

When should you renew your EPC?

As EPCs haven’t been around for long, if there’s already an EPC for your property you should still be able to use this until the ten years is up. However, you might want to refresh the EPC if significant changes have been made to a property. We recently visited a property in Morningside that had an EPC with an F rating. However, the landlord had recently fitted a nice new shiny combi boiler, central heating throughout and double glazing. The EPC rating went from an F to a high C, making the property much more attractive to potential tenants.

Energy Performance Certificate Edinburgh

If you’ve checked the Scottish EPC Register, and your property doesn’t have an EPC, we can help. To arrange an appointment for an EPC for your property just click here, or email us at info@legionellaedinburgh.com

 

They do say every day’s a school day – here’s some of our favourite finds from March 2017

The Asbestos Cold Water Tank

We’ve heard of these, but this was the first time we’d met an asbestos cold water tank in the flesh. Sitting quietly in a cupboard in a basement flat in Canonmills was this beast. While an asbestos water tank isn’t immediately dangerous, the tank was very old and doesn’t meet the current plumbing standards, so we’ve recommended to the landlord that they remove this and replace it with a plastic cold water storage tank.

 

 

The rusty cold water tank

We still occasionally find old metal cold water tanks, which are normally heavily rusted. But this one definitely takes the biscuit. You can see from the photos below that it’s so heavily rusted small leaks are starting to develop on the outside. It’s only a matter of time before this tank bursts, causing a significant leak in the property. Another tank to be replaced!

The feature fireplace

We visit a lot of properties, with all manner of quirks and interesting features. But this is definitely our most recent favourite. Rather than the bog standard Victorian feature fireplaces we see across Edinburgh, this property has a lovely feature storage heater.

What interesting sights have you seen this month? Send your best pictures to info@legionellaedinburgh.com and we’ll share them in our next newsletter!

It’s been a busy start to 2017 here at Legionella Edinburgh. We were back to business with a bang in January, carrying out legionella risk assessments, PAT testing, energy performance certificates and our other compliance services in Edinburgh, the Borders, Perth, Dundee and Fife. At the end of January we celebrated our two year anniversary. It’s hard to believe it’s been two years since we started offering legionella risk assessments and other services to the good landlords and letting agents of Edinburgh and beyond – time flies when you’re having fun!

Educational seminar with Envirovent

In February we hosted a well attended educational seminar for letting agents with our friends at Envirovent. We presented a session on legionella awareness, and Envirovent delivered a session on damp and mould, and how their products can help with these. We’re aware that there’s a real lack of regular training events for letting agents, particularly in Edinburgh. We intend to deliver educational events like this on a more regular basis. We’ll keep clients updated on this as plans develop, but to ensure you’re on our invite list for future events just drop us a line at info@legionellaedinburgh.com.

Cold water tank cleaning and remedial plumbing works

We’ve also been working to develop the range of services we can help with. At present we offer legionella risk assessments, portable appliance testing and EPCs in house. In partnership with key suppliers we also offer gas safety checks, EICRs, installation of mains smoke and heat alarms and other electrical works. We are currently exploring options with a local company to offer remedial plumbing works following legionella risk assessments, including cleaning of cold water tanks. We’re aware that finding tradesmen willing to carry out these works for a reasonable price has been a real sticking point for landlords and letting agents, and we’re keen to help solve this problem. If this is something that you would be interested in finding out more about please just let us know.

Letting Agent meetup – coming soon

In April we are planning on launching a monthly meetup event for letting agents; part social event, part industry networking and updates. Watch this space for more info.