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Central heating
You can cut central heating costs by up to 17 per cnet simply by controlling your heating more effectively. Here are some things to look for:
Room temperature
You need to be able to control the temperature in each room. If you have central heating this can be done with a room thermostat and thermostatic radiator valves.
Your living room and bedroom should be around 21 degrees centigrade. Other rooms in your hour house should be about 19 degrees centigrade. These temperatures are important, if the temperatures go below 19 degrees centigrade you could be putting your health at risk if you are elderly, disabled or got other health problems.
Heating your house more than necessary will mean you have higher than necessary energy bills. If your room thermostat is set above 21 degrees centigrade, try turning it down by one degree – this could save you 10 per cent off your heating bills and you probably won’t notice the difference.
Temperature of stored hot water
- Hot water cylinder thermostat - this controls the temperature of the water stored in your hot water cylinder. For most people turning the cylinder thermostat down to 60 degrees centigrade is hot enough.
- Time switch /programmer - this allows you to set the times at which you want your heating and hot water to turn on and off.
Replacing your boiler
Replacing a 15-year-old boiler could save you over 20 per cent on your fuel bills. If you choose a condensing boiler this saving could increase to around 32 per cent and with the right heating controls, you could even save as much as 40 per cent!
If you are thinking of replacing your boiler, it's worthwhile checking out all the available options and choosing a system, which most suits you.
- Condensing boiler
Condensing boilers convert around 88 per cent of fuel into heat compared with 72 per cent for a new conventional boiler. This makes them the most efficient of all boilers as they waste the least energy. - Non-condensing boiler
A modern high-efficiency, fan-assisted boiler is the next best thing to a condensing boiler. If you replace a 15-year-old boiler with a modern, efficient equivalent could still save you up to 20 pence in the pound on your fuel bills. - Combination boiler ('Combi')
This type of boiler does the work of both a central heating boiler and a hot water cylinder all in one compact unit. This means you either have more space in your airing cupboard, or you don't need one at all. Installation costs may be lower and fitting is usually less disruptive than with a conventional boiler.
However, as the hot water heats on demand it runs more slowly and this means it will take longer to run a bath. Combi boilers are popular where space is limited, as they do not need a hot and cold-water tank. Combi systems are also a little more efficient than conventional heating systems because there is no hot water tank
Electric storage heaters
These work by storing heat during off-peak periods when electricity is cheaper and releasing it into the room the following day and evening. The input usually has to be adjusted to anticipate the following days weather but some storage heaters have their own thermostats that do this automatically.
There are currently significant grants and discounts available for improving the heating in your home. Please visit our grants pages to find out more.
Contact details
South Derbyshire District Council
Energy Officer
Civic Offices
Civic Way
Swadlincote
DE11 0AH
Tel: 01283 595974
Online: contact form
email: energy@south-derbys.gov.uk
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