1. Don’t leave it too late
It is normal to have your central heating off over the warmer months, and have your boiler switched to just the hot water mode to help reduce your energy bills. However, it is important to turn your heating back on early and check that everything is working efficiently.
A good way to test your boiler and heating system is to run your boiler and radiators at the highest temperature for around 15 minutes and make sure your boiler runs smoothly with no problems. Running this check, can help you identify any problems before you need your boiler the most.
2. Bleed your radiators
It’s normal for air to build up in your heating system over time, causing gurgling sounds, or the tops of your radiators feeling colder than you would expect. If this happens, you will need to bleed your radiators to make sure your heating is working at full efficiency and keeping your house warm throughout winter. After bleeding your radiators check your boiler pressure.
For a video on how to bleed your radiators, click here.
3. Check your boiler pressure
Your boiler pressure is usually indicated on the boiler by a dial. The optimum boiler pressure is between 1 and 1.5 when the system is cool. If your boiler has lost pressure, this is something you can quickly resolve yourself. Please refer to your boiler user manual or we’ve got a video available that explains how you can re-pressurise your heating system should you need to.
4. Frozen Condensate
Frozen condensate is one of the most common winter problems with modern boilers. If part of your condensate pipework is outside, then in very cold weather it may freeze. This could cause your boiler to stop working. You might hear a gurgling noise coming from the boiler and if your boiler has a digital display, you might see an ‘EA’ error code too. There’s no need to worry if your condensate pipe freezes. You can usually thaw it safely without the need to call an installer or plumber.
Find out more about frozen condensate including how to safely thaw a frozen condensate pipe, by downloading our guide here
5. Get your boiler serviced
Getting your boiler serviced before the extreme weather arrives is advisable to make sure your boiler is in optimum working condition. This will reduce the risk of you encountering any surprise problems during the winter months.
