It’s fair to say that this time of the year can be a financial minefield…

With bills from Christmas still lurking, more problems than usual with the car, the kids activities starting up again and the start of the new tax year looming, it’s all money, money money. Add to that the cost of heating your home and hot water during this chilly part of the year and it’s no wonder we can tend to feel a bit glum.

At Roost Heating, our aim is always to help customers out with cutting ongoing heating costs as much as we can. Our fully qualified, gas safe heating engineers are full of bright ideas about how you can improve your heating efficiency and save energy. Some heating system improvements like switching to solar heating or completely upgrading your heating system may be a longer term investment for you, with an initial outlay followed by longer term efficiencies, but other changes can be implemented quickly and at a very low cost, so you can start saving straight away.

Here are some plumbing and heating ideas that you can easily put into action to shave off a little bit from your household heating bills (and some  are ideas which we can help you out with too). Easily actionable, they’ll improve heating efficiency and reduce energy usage because as we all know, every little bit helps. If you’re already a moneysaving expert when it comes to your heating and hot water and these simple tips are old news, why not give us a call and we can make some suggestions for tailored energy saving next steps for your household heating system, which you can consider for the longer term? Alternatively a boiler upgrade could help make your home heating more energy efficient.

1. Pimp your radiators

If you have radiators which are fitted to outside walls, you can fix reflective tin foil onto the wall behind them to push more heat into the room. It’ll warm up more quickly and mean your radiator won’t need to work continuously , or as hard – and  that means less energy used. If you think your radiators are inefficient, consider a Roost Heating powerflush which can clear the sludge and get your radiators working more effectively. 

2. Stop the draughts

Badly fitted doors, sash windows, letterboxes and keyholes can allow gusts of wintry wind to bring the temperature down. Simple fixes like draught excluders, adhesive foam strips or fabric stuffing can make a surprising difference. Keeping internal doors closed can help too, particularly if some rooms are more draughty than others.

3. Check your insulation

Around 30% of heat loss from your home is through the roof. If you have no roof insulation, your insulation is very old or it’s not evenly distributed it could well be costing you money. Review your current insulation and add more/new insulation and it can make a significant difference to how warm your house feels and how hefty your heating bills are.

4. Consider your bath’s insulation

If you’ve got a cast iron or pressed steel bath but you like a leisurely soak you might find yourself topping up with hot water rather a lot. Adding insulation underneath and around the bath will keep the water warm for longer and save energy.

5. Upgrade your thermostats to smart controls

Effective thermostats will mean your heating and hot water systems are working as efficiently as possible without you having to worry about them (or keep fiddling with them). Opt for controls with load and weather compensation features and consider smart, mobile phone linked systems like Nest or Worcester Wave which are surprisingly cost effective.

6. Switch to thermostatic taps and showers

For safety as well as hot water efficiency, it’s advisable to have thermostatic taps and showers.

7. Drop your home heating thermostat a degree or two

It sounds obvious, but lowering the setting of a room thermostat by just 1 degree Celsius can reduce fuel consumption by up to 10%. Put on an extra layer and think of the saving!

The above tips are easy to implement into the average home and can certainly help cut central heating and energy bills. If you do want to look at larger scale solutions to make your home heating and hot water production more efficient, more eco-friendly and more economical in the long term, get in touch with Roost Heating. Just as an example, according to recent figures from the Energy Saving Trust, adding solar water heating panels to your system will give you up to 60% of your hot water for free and our Roost Heating engineers can advise, design and install a state-of-the-art heating system to suit you – and your budget. Just get in touch to find out more.