As we head into the colder months, our thoughts turn to ensuring our heating runs smoothly, so we can keep warm and maximise its efficiency. Here’s a simple explainer on correctly using your system’s thermostats and heating controls.
Understanding Your Thermostat: How It Works
It’s not always easy to work out the way the temperature needs to go on your thermostat to turn your home heating on. Some houses have the traditional thermostat dial, and some have digital displays.
The main point to understand is that the desired temperature must be higher than the current temperature for the boiler to kick in and the heating to come on.
Small Adjustments for Big Results: Gradually Increasing the Temperature
Here’s a thermostat temperature tip conundrum. Many of us have done it. What do you do if you feel cold at home and decide to put the boiler on? The temptation is to throw caution to the wind and crank it up as high as possible to get heat through the house.
Win-win, surely? Sadly not. The most efficient home heating tip we can give you is not to do that…
If it’s chilly inside, increase the thermostat temperature by one degree. Give your home some time to warm up (we recommend between 20-30 minutes). Then if you’re still feeling cold, adjust again by a further degree, giving another 20 minutes or so. Cranking the temperature up high won’t heat the house up faster, it just means it will keep heating until it reaches the set temperature.
Thermostatic Radiator Valves (TRVs): Optimising Room Heating
Thermostatic radiator valves are useful when considering home heating efficiency tips. They’re great to control the temperatures of the rooms you’re in, and the ones you don’t use too. If there’s a particular room you don’t use, then turn it down, or better still – completely off.
This time of year it’s worth going around and doing a spot check to make sure your radiator valves aren’t stuck or turned down after the summer as this will stop them from heating up. We suggest turning your heating on and letting it heat up. After 10 minutes, go round each radiator and check that they have warmed up. Adjust any TRVs that are turned down and check again. If any radiators aren’t heating up the TRV may be stuck, or it could be another issue. We would recommend giving us a call at this point to resolve the issue.
Using Your Boiler Timer for Optimal Heating: Heating When You Need It
Another great way to get the most from your heating controls as we head towards October, is to take a look at your boiler timer settings.
Set the timer so the heating comes on in the morning before you get up, so the house is warm. Then set it to switch off during the day when you’re not there, and on again in the evening so it’s warm when you get home and want to get snuggled up! If you are unsure how your boiler timer works, our engineers are always happy to show you during a boiler service.
Smart Thermostats: Taking Control of Your Heating Remotely
These days we’re spoiled for choice when it comes to great, energy-saving Smart thermostats such as Hive and Nest and they came to market at just the right time, with worries about rising energy prices meaning householders were looking for savvy ways to stay warm and save money where possible.
Hive and Nest are two of the best on the market and have smart technologies that learn your household routines, knowing when you’re not at home, so can turn the heating off accordingly. You can also use them to turn on the heating while you are out, so the house is warm for when you get home.
There are so many benefits to smart home heating systems. New boilers tend to come with smart controls now as standard, but the Hive/Nest can work well for older boilers and make them more efficient, so if you thought this kind of gadgetry was too new for your older system, it’s worth checking with a qualified heating engineer to see if it would work for you.
Utilising a few tips like this can make the most of your thermostat and heating controls, meaning you’re warm and snug at home through the colder months and getting the very best performance from your boiler and radiators.
If you have any questions or would like to arrange a visit from an engineer, Give us a call on 01453 763332.
