Livinghouse

‘As winter draws on, put your winter draws on.’ Whilst that might be sound advice, we think putting the heating on would be a far more effective way to survive the cold winter months.

So with the central heating fired up and warming your home, we thought some tangible advice might help take the edge off your heating bills.

It’s getting hot in here

Whilst we all love to be toasty indoors, milling around in summer attire says your heating dial is set to tropical. Home Heat Helplineadvise that ‘turning your thermostat down by 1°C could cut your heating bills by up to 10% and save you around £85 a year.’ You’ll be glad you followed their advice and popped another layer on when your bill arrives.

Dial it down

Remember that programming facility that lets you schedule your heating? You know the one that allows you to set the temperature for different parts of the day throughout the week? Well, it’s a good idea to start using it to take control of when your heating is on.

Which.co.uk suggests, ‘When you’re setting up your heating schedule, don’t forget to keep it switched off at times when you might be home and not need the heating on (e.g. overnight). Consider setting it to switch the heating off 20 minutes before you usually go out, as there will still be residual heat in your home.’

They also say, ‘You can reduce your heating costs by ensuring each radiator in your home is able to circulate heat properly – for example, moving furniture away, not using cabinets to disguise them, and making sure they’re not covered by curtains.’

Ooh, shut that door

We habitually close doors to shut out the draught and keep our rooms warm when the heating is on, but does it make a difference? According to Money Saving Expert, ‘Radiators, electric panel heaters and convection heaters all work by creating a convection current in a room. As hot air rises, it circles around to the other side of the room, cools and sinks and travels back along the floor to the heater to be reheated again. Closing doors makes sure this current remains within the designated space.’

Too hot to handle

Warming your extremities under the hot tap is inviting, but if your water temperature is set to ‘scorchio’ then you could be burning a hole in your pocket as well as your hands. Home Heat Helpline advise that your ‘cylinder thermostat isn’t set any higher than 60°C/140°F.’

Things that go drip in the night

Not only are dripping taps annoying, they can also cost you money. According to Home Heat Helpline, ‘a dripping hot water tap can waste enough hot water to fill half a bath in just one week.’ Wisely they advise that taps are turned off properly and leaking ones are fixed.

Take a look at our 5 Money saving winter heating tips and How to fix common central heating problems on our blog. And if it’s new radiators or underfloor heating you’re after, we can help with that too.