Heating
Once you have fully insulated your home it is time to consider upgrading your heating system. For most people the most efficient and cost effective means of heating a home is gas central heating with a good heating controls package and a condensing boiler. If you live on your own in a small house or flat this might not be the best option - a gas fire might be sufficient. A great deal depends on how many rooms you have and how much time you spend at home.
Heating costs
Gas is less expensive than electric heating and, generally, has lower carbon dioxide emissions The typical annual cost of heating a three bed semi detached house is:
- Gas central heating with condensing boiler: £764
- Gas central heating with conventional boiler: £914
- House-coal central heating (open fire with back boiler): £828
- Economy 7 night storage heaters and immersion heater (for hot water): £1,087
- On-peak electric heaters and immersion heater: £2,033
Replacing a gas boiler
If you are replacing your gas boiler, building regulations require an energy efficient condensing boiler to be installed.
Boilers have energy ratings similar to those found on electrical appliances, and are rated 'A' (best) to 'G' (worst). An 'A' rated boiler will be 90 per cent efficient or above, whereas a 'G' rated boiler will be less than 70 per cent efficient. For more information on boiler efficiencies, and a list of all boilers available in the UK, go to Seasonal Efficiency of Domestic Boilers in the UK website.
Heating controls
Different heating systems have different heating controls. For example, if you have gas or oil central heating, you should have the following:
- Timer/programmer
- Room thermostat
- Thermostatic radiator valves (TRVs)
Providing a full heating controls package will cost roughly £200 and will pay for itself in around three to four years in reduced heating bills.
If you have electric night-storage heaters each heater should have its own controls. Most will have two dials - one is often labelled 'input' and the other 'output'. The 'input' or 'charge' control determines the amount of heat that goes into the heater during the night. The higher the setting the more heat is stored - and the greater the cost. The 'output' or 'boost' dial controls the rate at which heat is released during the day. It is worthwhile practicing with these controls until you get it just right for you.
Hot water
Those of you with a gas central heating system will get your hot water from the same boiler that provides the heating. If this is a 'system' boiler you will also have a hot water storage cylinder, often in an airing cupboard. If you have a 'combi' boiler you will not have a separate hot water storage cylinder, as the water is heated instantly by the boiler.
Other possibilities include hot water storage cylinders heated by a room heater with a back boiler or by an immersion heater.
If you have a hot water cylinder it should have a thermostat. This should be set to 60 degrees celsius.
Modern hot water cylinders have 50mm to 80mm of factory-applied 'spray foam' insulation. If your cylinder does not have insulation, for example bare metal - you should fit a jacket. The jacket should be at least 80mm thick and will cost between £10 and £20.