With rising energy bills, many householders are asking what improvements they can do to their homes to make them more efficient. Many of these are in conservation areas or are listed. What can be done and what is worth doing? Impartial advice is hard to come by with so many people trying to sell their own product.

Last weekend and next, 62 homes across Dorset open their doors to visitors. The owners have made changes to their homes to save energy, some very basic and cheap solutions and some more technical changes. If you are thinking of installing cavity wall insulation, a heat pump, or solar panels, or a battery, go and talk to someone who has done it to find the pitfalls and benefits.

Open homes in Lyme Regis last week.

Next weekend there are still over thirty homes to go and visit – some of them require booking, others you can just turn up. As one of the open home hosts said: "Since I installed a heat pump and insulation in my house, my heating bills are less than £25 per month. Yet I see people on my street installing new oil-fired boilers which will cost ten times that much to run, and continue to burn fossil fuels which cause climate change. I simply don't understand it."

Among the highlights:

• A Passivhaus home in Weymouth
• Ground source heat pumps in Charlton Down and in Beaminster
• A homeowner who is experimenting with different wall insulations in Marnhull
• A youth club in Weymouth
• A church in Beaminster.
• An old damp rectory was retro-fitted with insulation made from natural materials
• The owner of the rectory project will be addressing a talk, along with a Retrofit advisor who has worked on listed buildings, in St Marys Church House Hall, South Street Bridport on 7th October at 7pm – free entry

Further details, opening times and how to book can be found here. Dorset Greener Homes is organised by Dorset Climate Action Network.