Radiators in the Credit Crunch - Spread a Little Warmth

Britain has witnesses its coldest winter in years, and as the credit crunch bites alongside Jack Frost, it's time you gave your radiators a little bit of TLC.

You may not give your radiators much thought – that is until it gets bitterly cold outside and harder to heat inside. And then there are the gas and electric bills. If something will act as a wake up call to give your radiators a health check, it's an astronomical utility bill. Times are hard, and the news is full of reports of elderly people turning off their radiators and risking ill health, even death, because they simply can't afford to heat their homes.

How efficient are your Radiators?

But having a warm home is crucial to our well being and health. It could be time you needed to replace old out-dated radiators or a boiler on its last legs. Or you may simply need to look at ways of maximising the efficiency of your radiators. The story of one pensioner, who was left with huge bill for her tiny one-bedroom council bungalow, reveals how inefficiency can cost. The pensioner speaking to her local press said a number of reasons led to the high bill – a broken thermostat so she couldn't adjust the level of heating, poor insulation and no radiator key to bleed her radiators. Perhaps the latter is the easiest and certainly cost-free way of improving the function of your radiators. Radiators filled with unwanted water are not as efficient, and heat poorly but still cost lots to run. Insulating your loft is also crucial to save money in the long term and make your radiators more efficient – its recommended you have insulation that is 200mm thick.

Other top tips of making sure your radiators are working at optimum capacity include:

• Using lined curtains during the winter, and drawing your curtains as soon as it gets dark
• Keeping your radiators on at a medium heat for longer rather than short bursts of high heat, this will help achieve consistent warmth
• Consider investing in double glazing if you don't have it already
• As well as loft insulation, there are government grants for those over 70 for free cavity wall insulation
• If you have an unused fireplace but the chimney flue isn't blocked off, hot air will be sucked up by cold air – you can buy inflatable chimney balloons for around £20 to fix this problem
• Invest in radiators with thermostatic valves so they can be easily turned down or off

Looking for radiators? Heatandplumb.com can help

Radiators come in many different shapes and sizes. But whatever your preference of radiator styles Heatandplumb.com is sure to have the right radiator for you. You'll find expert advice and top of the range heating and plumbing products at Heatandplumb.com call our dedicated customer service team on 0871 272 22 22 or fill in our online enquiry form.