The winter months are well and truly upon us so do remain vigilant and stay prepared for cold weather by carrying out a few basic checks on your heating system.
If you turned your heating system down or off during warmer Winter weeks, it may be that you notice a couple of problems when you turn it back up. Here are a few things you should do and look for;
Turn your boiler up for a short period every month, even if it gets temporarily warmer
Doing this keeps water circulating around the boiler and prevents dust and sludge from building up inside the boiler.
Check your radiators
Whilst the boiler is on, check to see if the radiators are heating up properly. Radiators should be hot all over, with no cold patches.
If you notice that a radiator has cold patches at the top, it may need bleeding. You can read our guide on bleeding your radiators here.
If your radiator is not getting hot at all it may well need attention from a trained professional engineer.
Turn the heating up slowly
When even colder weather hits, it’s hard not to want to turn your heating up to maximum straight away. However, this is not the most efficient way to use your heating and might cause you to end up wasting money on your gas bill. Don't forget that this week is energy saving week!
Turn your heating up slowly to find a comfortable temperature. Remember that you can adjust the valves on each radiator to make the temperature of the radiator in each room warmer or cooler.
Avoid the temptation to turn the heating up high as soon as it gets much colder. It won’t make your radiators heat up quicker, it will just heat them to a higher temperature. If you want to find out more about how to save energy read about Big Energy Saving Week
Keep the area around your boiler clear
Boilers must be well ventilated to make sure that they don’t overheat. Keep the area around your boiler clear from items such as clothes, linen and luggage.
If an engineer attends and finds a lot of clutter around your boiler, it will be very difficult for him or her to do their job. They may even need to come back another day when you have had time to tidy the clutter away.
Set your heating on a timer
Keep your house warm by setting your timer to come on at the same times every day. This will maintain the warmth throughout the day and save energy.
You might want to set your heating to come on half an hour before you are due to get up each day and go off after you have been up for a few hours. You could set your heating to come back on for a few hours in the evening, when it gets cooler.
Elderly, disabled, very young and vulnerable tenants may need the heating to be on for longer. A room thermostat will help you to make sure that their room stays at a constant temperature.
If you need help setting your timer and controls, consult your manual or call a professional heating company.
Look out for your neighbours
Look out for elderly neighbours or neighbours with vulnerabilities or mobility problems. When freezing and icy weather continuously hits, they may have trouble getting to the shop to top-up their gas card or key.
If you are fit and able, providing them with your contact number so they can ask for help is a kind gesture. Even those with family close by may face difficulties getting help when roads are icy.
Here at QHS we will always try and reach vulnerable residents as a priority at all times. However, offering to help a neighbour with a simple task such as topping up their gas card will prevent the possibility that they run out of gas at all.