With winter almost on our doorsteps, now is the perfect time to get your home prepared so that you and your family can feel cosy during the colder months. Before you turn up the thermostat, carry out the following checks so that you can stay warm and save money this winter.
Check your insulation
Making sure that your home is insulated properly before the height of winter can help prevent heat from escaping. Checking existing loft insulation, or even planning for insulation to be installed, will stop heat from leaving your home.
Simple temporary measures can also help prevent heat from leaving your property. Using thicker curtains and keeping them drawn helps trap heat in a room, as can placing rugs over non-carpeted flooring and keeping internal doors closed.
Check for draughts
Blocking draughts is a cheap and effective way to keep your home warm. Cold air entering your home through gaps in doors and windows mean that thermostats are turned up higher than necessary and heating is kept on for longer. Checking your home for draughts and draught proofing will reduce your energy bills and stop that unwanted breeze from making your home chilly.
Stop breezes by using draught excluders to block cold air from entering your home under doors, and apply draught proof strips to doors to limit the amount of cold air that enters your home this winter.
Make the most of your radiators
If radiators are currently blocked by furniture, like a sofa, then consider rearranging the layout of your rooms for winter. Placing sofas and chairs next to a radiator may seem like a good way to stay warm while sat down, but can actually prevent the heat from circulating the room efficiently. Move furniture away from radiators (even by a couple of inches) to help warm air move around the room with ease, and prevent your furniture from becoming damaged.
If your radiators don’t already have them, installing thermostatic radiator valves (TRVs) will help you save money on your energy bills. TRVs allow you to control the temperature of each individual radiator so you don’t have to heat unused rooms in your home.
Book a boiler service
Get your boiler serviced before the chilliest months. Annual boiler servicing can reduce energy bills and allow for any faults or issues to be discovered early, so you won’t be stuck with a broken boiler in the middle of winter. Having a Gas Safe registered engineer service your boiler before the coldest months will mean that fuel is used as efficiently as possible helping to keep your home warm and your taps hot.
If you would like DHS’ Gas Safe registered engineers to carry out boiler servicing for your Bristol home before winter arrives, then please get in touch with a member of our team.
Unit 2 Septimus Buildings 
