Please note, THE DATE TO SUBMIT INITIAL EXPRESSIONS OF INTEREST HAS NOW PASSED, but forms submitted afterwards can be held in the waiting list, as free slots may become available. Please don’t let the date stop you from applying, we are looking into the possibility of buying more cameras too, so please fill out the Initial Expression of Interest form if you haven’t already.

Great news! Due to the success of the first Thermal Imaging Cameras Loan Project in Suffolk communities throughout autumn 2022 – spring 2023, The Suffolk Climate Change Partnership (SCCP) is running the scheme again.

What is the Thermal Imaging Project?

The project enables Community Groups and Parish/Town Councils to borrow thermal imaging cameras and appropriate equipment in order to carry out community heat loss surveys for households in their community. As the images are easiest to interpret when it’s at least 10°C warmer inside than out, this is mainly a winter activity, and we will be running the project from November 2023 to April 2024.

Why take part?

By surveying homes, you can help reduce heating bills for homeowners in your community by helping them find ways to make their homes more energy efficient, so they stay warmer for longer. Equally importantly, improving the energy efficiency of homes in your community will reduce the homes’ carbon emissions, helping Suffolk reach its ambition of net zero by 2030 and becoming the Greenest County.

How does it work?

The cameras can be used to scan homes to identify potential areas where there is excessive heat loss, to help pinpoint where homeowners could install additional insulation in walls or draught proofing around windows and doors etc. Results can be used to encourage people to undertake easy DIY fixes, enable community bulk purchasing of materials such as loft insulation, and signpost households to schemes which can help those on lower incomes such as Warm Homes Suffolk.

Training will be provided in how to use the cameras and how to interpret the heat loss images, and resources will be made available to support communities and groups. We are in the process of arranging a webinar with some of last year’s participants to enable shared learning and knowledge.

A small group of volunteers from each Community Group or Parish/Town Council will be required to carry out the surveys. This means the team will be confident and able to produce better results than if homeowners conducted the surveys themselves. It also means that the team can survey more properties during a loan period than if the equipment was loaned to individuals, which ensures improved efficiency and tracking of the cameras. Naturally, the number of volunteers needed per community will depend on the number of properties involved, and the availability of the volunteers.

The loaned equipment includes: 2 easy to use cameras that attach to smartphones (one iOS compatible and one Android), a portable charger for the cameras and high-vis vests. The equipment will be stored with Camera Hosts around the county to facilitate easier collection and return of the equipment ready for the next borrowing group. The length of each loan will be calculated based on the estimated number of properties to survey in your community. Last year the loans ranged from one to four weeks.

To register your interest in the project, please complete the Initial Expression of Interest form: https://forms.office.com/e/8pWK8J2g0T by Monday 21st August 2023 to enable full planning of the project.

Once expressions of interests have been collated, the team will be in touch to discuss the loan period and booking.

Please do share this if you are aware of any other community groups that might like to participate in this project, and we look forward to your survey response.

FAQs

Yes! Please visit our Training Page where there are several videos to help you. Each camera will be held by the Camera Host who is a Thermal Imaging Champion and will be happy to give you further instructions when you collect the camera if needed.

The person who has signed the agreement form on behalf of the Community Group or Parish/Town Council. We understand that accidents happen and just ask that you take good care of the cameras when in use.

The cameras work best when it is at least 10°C warmer inside than out, so are primarily cold weather tools.

To be compatible with the FLIR ONE Pro cameras, your device must meet either of these minimum requirements:

  • Android – version 9.0.0 or newer, with a USB C port
  • iOS – version 13 or newer

In each lot of loaned equipment, there are 2 cameras: one iOS compatible and one Android compatible.

The camera takes 40 mins to charge and will last around 1 hr. Please note your phone battery will also be reduced while in use. Therefore, a portable charger will be provided with the cameras with 2 USB points.

The results may show areas of heat loss and there are lots of different things you can signpost to the homeowners to fix this. Please visit the Next Steps page to find out more. And, Warm Homes Suffolk can help households if their gross household income (from all sources) is less than £30,000. Warm Homes Suffolk particularly want to hear from people who live in homes with a low energy rating (band D, E, F or G).

Yes, under Government legislation, domestic private rented properties are required to meet a minimum energy efficiency standard before they can be rented to tenants. This is defined as an energy performance certificate (EPC) rating of E or above.

There may be some measures renters can undertake themselves (double glazing film, draughts excluders etc, see Next Steps for more) but there is also help for landlords if the property has a low energy rating:  warmhomessuffolk.org/landlords