Get Bill Smart (GBS) was an action research project that operated in the Greater Hobart area of Tasmania.  It trialed an innovative community capacity building approach to low income energy efficiency and compared it to a more conventional, well-practiced in-home energy efficiency upgrade approach. The community capacity building occurred in the suburbs of Clarendon Vale and Rokeby.  GBS trialed approaches to energy efficiency as part of the Federal Governments' Low Income Energy Efficiency Program (LIEEP). 

Householders involved in Get Bill Smart all lived with low incomes, which tended to create barriers to making comfort and energy efficient changes at home. Householders also often lived in very poor housing stock  (because that was what was available and affordable). This housing was cold and costly to heat.  Despite limited financial capacity and under-performing housing stock GBS was able to work with householders to create various positive energy and comfort outcomes.

GBS evidence showed that in-home education and upgrade visits by Home Energy Helpers improve energy productivity by reducing energy use and increasing thermal comfort.  The In-home education and upgrades approach delivered 1.4 kWh/day of energy savings and had a simple payback of 10.3 years and cumulative cost benefit ratio of 0.8  Community Capacity Building combined with in-home education and upgrade visits  delivered 2.8 kWh/day of energy savings and had a simple payback of 9.7 years and cumulative cost benefit ratio of 1.3. Above and beyond the energy savings households reported improvements in warmth (thermal comfort) and reduced condensation.  These positive improvements indicate the project to have benefits to the health system and not just energy bills.

Final reports for the Get Bill Smart Project are now available for download

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY (What did we do and what it all means 16 pages)

FULL REPORT (this includes billing data analysis, survey data, cost benefit analysis, organisational review - excluding detailed study, 220 pages)

DETAILED STUDY (Case studies and analysis of individual households 292 pages)

The Get Bill Smart Project was funded by the Department of Industry as part of the Low Income Energy Efficiency Program (LIEEP). A consortium of three organisations; Mission Australia, The University of Tasmania and Sustainable Living Tasmania, delivered the three year Get Bill Smart Project, with SLT responsible for project management and service delivery.

For further queries please contact Anton Vikstrom at Sustainable Living Tasmania on 03 6234 5566.