Solar panels, wind turbines, wood pellet stoves, ground source heat pumps … these are all ways of generating our own heat or electricity from free and abundant natural resources.

With the realisation that affordable fossil fuels are not going to last for ever, and that emissions from burning them cause untold chaos to the climate, it makes sense to use sources of power that are never going to run out: the sun, the wind, the flow of water and the earth’s heat. This can be done on a domestic scale as well as through national grids.

By generating some of our own heat or power at home we:

• enjoy the security of being independent of power companies and dodgy regimes
• protect ourselves from oil and gas price rises
• lower our carbon emissions, helping to prevent devastating climate change
• and have the pleasure of using cutting edge technology

To get the most out of any renewable energy (and to qualify for a grant to help with the cost of installation) it’s worth making sure that your house is as energy efficient as possible.

There are two main types of renewable energy. Those that produce electricity and those that provide space heating and / or hot water. If you don’t want to generate your own (or can’t afford it) the best way to get renewable electricity is to sign up to a green tariff.

The performance of most renewable energy technologies depends on the site where they are installed, so it’s worth doing researching what’s best for your situation. We’ve gathered together enough information to give you a good introduction and you can click on the links to get more detail.

• Hydro electricity
• Solar electricity (photovoltaic panels)
• Wind turbines
• How to sell the electricity that you’ve generated

• Biomass boilers and stoves (wood burning)
• Heat pumps (air source / ground source)
• Solar hot water (thermal)

• Combined heat and power (CHP)

Like virtually every area of life, the renewable energy (or should we say microgeneration) world has developed its own jargon which makes it more difficult for the newcomer to find out what it’s all about. We’ve put together a jargon buster to help you make sense of it all. We have tried hard to avoid jargon ourselves, but if anything’s not clear and easy to read do let us know.