Whilst it is tempting to turn your heating right up at this time of year, this will result in a higher energy bill.
If your home has a ‘wet’ heating system, then it is likely that it will have heating controls installed, which may include:
A Programmer (or time clock) allows you to set specific times for your heating to be on and off, fitting into your daily routine. It may also control your hot water times if you have a hot water cylinder. Typically, you can set a couple of ‘on’ and ‘off’ periods throughout the day and can boost your heating for an hour if needed.
A Room thermostat helps prevent your heating system from using more fuel than necessary. When your heat is scheduled to be on, a room thermostat will turn your heating off when a desired temperature has been reached.
As an example, if you only have one room thermostat in your home, which is set to 21°C, then the heat in your home will only come on when your room temperature is below 21°C. Some homes may also have more than one room thermostat allowing different heating times and levels in different parts of a home e.g. living rooms and bedrooms.
Thermostatic Radiator Valves (TRVs) are often fitted to radiators to let you control the temperature of individual rooms. TRVs will turn heating off in individual radiators when a set room temperature has been met, and so they allow you to reduce the heat in rooms you aren’t using. This helps avoid excessive heating and saves money on your energy bills. However, note that adequate heat should be provided to all areas of a home to reduce the risk of condensation and mould growth.
By effectively using these heating controls, you can maintain a comfortable home while keeping your energy costs in check.
In 2023/24, Choice invested over £1.2m in new heating systems, including boilers and heating controls. This investment will improve comfort, and reduce our tenants’ energy costs and impact on the environment.
Alternatively, you may find that you have storage heaters installed at your home which use an economy seven tariff. Storage heaters work by drawing in electricity over the course of a few hours at night, storing this as heat, and releasing this heat during the following day.
If you have an older storage heater then you will need to operate your ‘Input’ and ‘Output’ dial regularly in order to maximise the heat that is charged overnight, for it to last the full day. The input dial will indicate how much charge the heater takes during the night, whilst the output dial will dictate how quickly the heat is released. During the night it is good practice to turn the output dial down fully so that heat does not escape while the storage heater is charging.
In some cases, you may find you have a more modern, smart storage heater, which will be more energy efficient than older storage heaters. On these storage heaters, you can set specific temperatures and heating times to match your needs, which may vary from room to room.
For more information on using your heating controls please visit our website at www.choice-housing-org/energy or contact us on 0300 111 2211.
