Ealing Council is encouraging homeowners with older properties to take advantage of solid wall insulation grants of up to £6,000.

The grants are available to residents of 36 pre-selected streets in Elthorne ward, Hanwell, through the government’s Communities Fund programme, managed by the National Energy Foundation (NEF).

Free house tours are taking place in May and June of an already improved home to help residents decide whether solid wall insulation is for them.

The tours will provide a rare opportunity to get a touch and feel experience of a home with solid wall insulation. The host will also take any questions about the process of getting the work done and what is involved.

They take place on Saturdays in Willow Road, W5, on May 23 and 30, and June 13. But spaces are strictly limited. To reserve a space on the tour of your choice, book online at: www.superhomes.org.uk/tours.

Paul Loboda has externally insulated the walls of his 1930s semi-detached house in Willow Road, W5. In the coming weeks he will be opening his home to the public to share his experience of making this and other improvements.

He said: “The house was hard to heat and had pebble dash on the outside. We decided to go for external wall insulation because we wanted to give the house a modern look and we didn’t want to lose any floor space inside.”

His house is part of the SuperHomes network of older homes refurbished by their owners to achieve a carbon saving of at least 60%.

In Paul’s case, a 75% carbon saving was achieved through a combination of measures including floor, loft and external wall insulation, a new boiler, double glazing and solar water heating. Sunpipes were also installed to bring natural light to the interior.

Mr Loboda added: “When we moved in the gas bill was around £120-£150 a month. This fell to £30 a month with the external wall insulation. We went away for Christmas and when we came back the temperature inside the house had only dropped by two to three degrees with the heating switched off!”

Ealing Council is working with the National Energy Foundation to promote the insulation grants which are being provided by the Government's Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) as part of its Green Deal Communities programme.

Leader of the council Julian Bell said: “Residents who have had solid wall insulation installed report really impressive gains in both comfort and savings. We are pleased to be promoting a grant to help make this type of insulation more affordable to those living in properties that can be difficult to heat.”

To see if you live in a street that would make you eligible for a grant contact 01908 256945 or email gdcommunities@nef.org.uk. Householders have until June 30 to apply for a grant, although installation work can happen up until September 4.