Many households will be feeling the financial squeeze of rising energy prices and the wider cost of living crisis. As winter sets in, now is the time to take control of your home heating system, make savings and still keep warm during the cold weather months.
If you're looking for quick, easy and practical solutions to save money on your heating bills today, Eco Wizard are here to provide you with a range of significant yet simple ways you can save money and improve your day-to-day quality of life. From easy boiler adjustments to heat-scheduling Smart Controls, we're here to help you find the heat-saving options to suit you.
Turn Down Your Thermostat By One Degree
A simple twist of your thermostat dial to lower the temperature by just 1°C could cut your heating bills by 10%, according to the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF). In fact 'turning your thermostat down by 1°C could save as much as £80 per individual UK household'.
Although this simple method should be used cautiously by the elderly, ill or those who are immunocompromised, research has shown that young people - who have a particular proclivity to heating their homes to temperatures as high as 25°C - could really benefit from the 'One Degree' method.
Use Our Energy-Saving Smart Thermostats
Not only do Smart Controls give you easy access at the tap of a smartphone, tablet or PC, they can also allow you to precisely monitor and adjust your heating control settings.
At Eco Wizard, we offer you a range of cutting-edge Smart Thermostats designed to not only make your life easier but will also cleverly save you money on your heating bills. Many of our Salus Smart Thermostats allow you to create heating schedules, generate behaviour-influenced heating routines and even use weather information to efficiently control your heating for you.
Your Smart Thermostat can be set up to adapt to your lifestyle and daily routines, giving you more precise and intelligent energy-control so you never wastefully heat your home at the wrong time of day. The Salus RT310I Smartphone Controlled Thermostat can be used as either a standard up/down thermostat or you can choose to take advantage of the wireless communication function so you can control your heating settings from anywhere you like. Choose either to schedule or manually control your thermostat and make use of adjustable frost protection when the thermostat is off. It also comes with a Holiday Function and an easy to use app for complete, effortless control.
Cut Down On Electric Heater Usage
Electric heaters are great for a 5-10 minute blast to quickly change the temperature of a room. However, for heating over long periods they can be incredibly costly, and are usually more expensive to run than gas, if you pay by the unit. Electric heaters often have a few settings that you can easily adjust, but typically we would advise that you use these types of heaters sparingly and only if you need to quickly heat a room or a small flat. For longer periods of heating, make use of your central heating system if you can.
Maximise Boiler Efficiency
The double-edged sword of home heating. Your home boiler is the biggest burden on your yearly energy bill but central heating is still the most effective way to heat your home during the cold winter months. The best way to make it work closely to your advantage is to get the most out of your boiler efficiency.
To ensure your boiler runs at a lower cost, look to set the 'pre-heat' or 'hot water pre-heat' switch to OFF - if your combi boiler has such a function - and you could save around 5-10% on your bills. Although you won't recieve hot water instantly from your taps, your boiler also won't be heating water unnecessarily either.
We also recommend getting your boiler serviced before you start using it regularly again. Not only will you avoid the risk of emergency repairs, but it will also be running as efficiently as it possibly can by the time the cold weather comes calling. When your boiler is getting serviced, it's also worth asking the engineer about any switches that can be flicked to make your heating system even more affordable.
You could also look to install the Salus Inline Magnetic Central Heating Filter which will help attract any magnetic particles and prevent damaging debris and waste materials from entering your boiler system. The filter is designed to be fitted to your boiler system pipework and, because your boiler won't be hindered by unwanted debris, it will run as efficiently as possible, assisting in the reduction of heating bills in the long-term and increasing the lifespan of your system.
Draught-Proof Your Home
For those looking at cost-effective heat retention, opt for draught excluders. Go around your home and identify any areas allowing cold air to trickle in, such as front doors, keyholes, letterboxes, cracks in the wall or floor, pipe outlets and any other flaws that are either letting in cold air or allowing warm air to escape. You can tape these breaches or use relatively inexpensive and easy to use draught excluders in different shapes and sizes.
In draught-proofing your home, make sure that you aren't taping up any window or floor vents, as some ventilation is needed to prevent issues such as damp and mould growth. Although you may not significantly reduce energy costs, draught-proofing can contribute to the comfortable living experience of your home, which will be incredibly valuable over the winter months.
Opt For Thermostatic Radiator Valves
An incredibly effective and sure-fire way to save on your heating bills is by using a TRV (Thermostatic Radiator Valve). These smart radiator regulators make your heating system far more receptive to the surrounding room temperature, giving you indoor heating that is tailored to the size and individual requirements of each room.
In fact, "the average energy saving potential for TRVs in homes is 18% of the heating costs", according to BEAMA - the UK trade association for manufacturers and providers of energy infrastructure technologies and systems.
TRVs work by altering the flow of hot water into your radiator. When the room temperature becomes too warm, a valve head component will expand to close it, slowing or preventing hot water from entering the radiator entirely. If the room becomes too cold, the reverse will occur, with contraction of the valve allowing hot water to enter the radiator again.
The Salus TRV10RFM iT600 Smart Radiator Control Valve will let you accurately control radiator room heating and temperature from anywhere, in and out of your home. You'll also benefit from automatic valve adaptation, open window detection, a frost and limescale protection function and more.
Read our blog: How Do Thermostatic Radiator Valves (TRVs) Save Energy? for more information on how our TRVs can cut down energy usage in your home.
