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Your home needs to feel warm and cosy, especially in the winter months, which is why it’s so important to keep up with your boiler and radiator maintenance. Most modern homes have central heating, but do you know what to do to look after your heating system, so it works efficiently when you need it to? It is essential that you carry out a few regular checks of your own, as well as services carried out by professionals so that you can keep your central heating working as it should. Below, we’ll look at a few tips that you can use to help you get the most from your boiler and keep it working seamlessly throughout the year.
Check your water pressure
If you find that your radiators aren’t heating as they should be, it may be worth checking your water pressure. Your water pressure needs to be at the right level so that your boiler can continue to pump water around the system and into your radiators – if the pressure is too low, it may not be heating them as effectively as it should be. You can check your water pressure by looking at the gauge on your boiler – it should be somewhere between 1 and 2 bar for optimum heating, however, you should double-check with your manufacturer’s instructions to make sure.
Check your radiators
You should get into the habit of checking your radiators and if they are working correctly. Turning your heating on and going around the house to feel whether they are heating up as they should is advantageous. If you feel any cold spots, you can rectify these yourself or ask a plumber to come and help you if necessary. You should do this throughout the year but carrying out these checks in the summer is best, so you can fix any issues before the cold sets in! There are a few main processes that you should carry out when it comes to maintaining your radiators, they are:
- Bleeding: This helps to get your radiators back to working order if you can feel cold spots, or it is not heating up correctly. You can do this effectively yourself, quickly and easily. All you’ll need is a wrench or radiator key, and a bucket to catch the water that will drain from the system.
- Balancing: This is crucial if you find that some of your radiators are heating more effectively than others within your system. It is a case of turning your boiler on and walking around the house to see whether your radiators that are closer to the boiler are heating more effectively than those further away in the system. Although it’s not as easy as bleeding your radiator, it is something that can be done to keep your heating working as it should.
Keep up with services
This is essential when trying to maintain your central heating. Ensuring that you get your boiler serviced each year is key. You should make an appointment with an engineer that can diagnose any issues before your boiler breaks down – this way you can get the most from your boiler and maximise its lifespan. Boiler repairs can be costly, and you can’t live without your heating! So make sure that you schedule a time to get your boiler serviced, so you can benefit from cost-effective, efficient heating when you need it most.
Lag your pipes
When the weather gets cold, the water in your pipes may freeze due to the drop in temperature, which can impact how well your heating works and could cause a boiler breakdown. To prevent this from happening, another great way of maintaining your boiler is to lag your external pipes. This simply means wrapping them up and keeping them from freezing. You can do this easily yourself with the lagging that is available at any DIY shop. This is something that can prevent boiler issues from occurring when you need to heat your home the most.
