A radiator mistake anyone can make when tallying bills – how to avoid it
WITH a winter chill still in the air, you’ll want to avoid a radiator failure that could drive up bills.
Snow fell in parts of Britain this weekend after the Met Office issued yellow weather warnings.
Thousands of households will turn on their radiators to keep things cozy and wait out the last of the cold.
But a simple mistake can cause bills to go up without making your home warmer.
If you have thermostatic radiator valves and your main thermostat is set high while the taps are low, you could be wasting energy.
This is because the valves simply prevent hot water from flowing into a radiator when a certain room temperature is reached.
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So if your thermostat is set to a certain temperature and your taps are turned down, you’re essentially asking your boiler to reach that temperature without feeling the full effect of your radiators.
Not only does this waste energy, it can also mean that your room isn’t as warm as it could be.
To solve the problem, turn down the thermostat and then regulate the temperature of a room via the radiator valve.
According to which?each setting on your tap corresponds to a certain temperature in a room.
To adjust your radiators to the correct setting, you can use the manual below from the consumer website:
- Zero – keeps your radiator valves completely closed
- Protection against frost institution
- – opens the radiator valves if your room is in danger of freezing A
- – leaves your room cold Two
- – close the valve when the room is cool Three
- – close the radiator when the room is comfortable Four
- – close the radiator when it is warm in the room Five
– keep the valve fully open
Other radiator mistakes to avoid
How to reduce energy costs and get help with FOUR major household bills
Nicholas Aukland, energy expert at Trade Radiators, says it’s a bad idea to place them behind a sofa, bed or other large, dusty furniture.
This is because they absorb the heat produced, causing less to rise into the room they are in.
Try to avoid placing your radiators near doorways or exits as this will also waste heat.
Checking your boiler once a year before bleeding the radiators can also save you around £300 in bills.
Daniel Khanlarpou, from Gas Guru and member of Checkatrade, said that if you try to bleed a radiator that has no air in it, water will quickly flow out.
This can lower your boiler’s water pressure and wreak havoc on the entire system, meaning your unit will need to be repaired.
Are you missing out on benefits?
You can use a benefit calculator to check whether you are not missing out on money you are entitled to. Charity The Turn2Us benefits calculator
figuring out what you could get. Entitlement is free calculator
calculates whether you are eligible for various benefits, tax credits and Universal Credit. MoneySavingExpert.com and charity StepChange
both have benefit tools powered by Entitledto’s data. You can use The Policy in Practice calculator
to find out not only what benefits you can receive, but also to find out how much money you have left every month after paying your housing costs.
Exactly what you are entitled to will not become clear until you make a claim, but calculators can give you an indication of what you may be eligible for.
And it can help clothes dry faster, but don’t put pants and socks on your radiator if you want to save money.
Joanna Flowers from British Gas told The Sun that this will stop the unit working as efficiently and could add £55 to your energy bill.
You can get other help with your energy bill
You may be able to get help through the Household Support Fund (HSF).
The latest round of funding is worth £842 million and has been shared between councils in England.
They then decide how to divide their portion.
But what you are entitled to depends on where you live, as each local authority sets its own eligibility criteria.
In the vast majority of cases, you are eligible if you receive benefits or have a low income.
You should contact your local council to see if assistance is offered. You can find out which local authority area you fall under by using the government’s online council finder.
But you have to be quick, because some municipalities have already allocated their share of the fund, while the fund closes on March 31.
However, there have been calls to expand it.
You may also be able to claim a free subsidy from your energy company if you are struggling to pay.
British Gas, Octopus Energy and EDF are among the major companies offering help.
In the meantime, it’s worth checking if you qualify for benefits, as the move could be worth thousands of pounds a year.
Do you have a money problem that needs to be solved? Get in touch by emailing money@the-sun.co.uk. Moreover, you can join us Sun Money chats and tips