How to get your boiler ready for winter

The purpose of the following advice is to provide useful tips for our Customers and is not designed to replace professional advice. It does not necessarily deal with every aspect of a topic and if you are in any doubt, you should consult a qualified expert for their help. You should never attempt to carry out any activity which may put you or others at risk or which may cause damage to your or anyone else's property and the activities described must not be attempted by anyone under the age of 18.

Always read any manuals and safety instructions alongside the advice.

With winter around the corner, we’re all counting on our boilers to keep us warm as the temperature drops. To ensure your central heating doesn’t let you down this winter, it’s crucial to keep your boiler in the best condition possible.

So, what are the most important things to look out for in the winter run-up? We’ve prepared this handy list of the top five tips to keep your boiler ticking all season long.

Arrange a boiler service

An annual service is vital to ensure a warm home and dependable central heating system, especially during winter. As a Places for People customer, you’ll automatically get an annual boiler service, so it’s worth checking your records or calling us to check when your next service is due.

During your boiler service, the engineer will clean all the parts and components in your boiler and check they’re all in working order. Even if everything appears to be running as it should, an annual service is usually needed to keep your boiler’s warranty.

Insulate your pipes

During the winter, standing water that's been produced during the condensing process can cause a problem for your boiler. Your system can stop working if its external condensate pipe freezes.

Pipe insulation and a low but consistent heating temperature will help you avoid pipe freezing. But if you are caught short by a frozen pipe, pouring tepid water over the pipe in question will do the trick. Take a look at our guide to managing frozen pipes for more guidance.

Bleed your radiators

Your radiators are the veins of your heating system, and pumping warmth around your home and bleeding them will ensure that your central heating works efficiently. Look out for radiators which are colder towards the top, this usually suggests the appliance is full of air rather than water, reducing the output of your heating system.

For more information, why not check out our handy guide to bleeding radiators?

Check your boiler pressure

Did you know, if your boiler loses pressure, it can affect its efficiency? Your pressure should read between 1 and 1.5 bars on your boiler pressure gauge when your boiler is cool. However, if your boiler is at its maximum temperature, it can rise to 2 bars. This increase is due to expanding water heating up, giving you an incorrect reading. For accurate results, always test your boiler when it’s cool.

If your boiler is still reading higher, you might need to contact Places for People to organise a boiler check-up.

Thankfully, you can repressure your boiler yourself with just a few simple steps. It’s always better to check the manufacturer’s manual before starting the process, but you can find our step-by-step guide to repressuring a boiler here.

In conclusion

Taking our boilers for granted is something we all do, but we don’t know just how vital they are until something goes wrong. However, with a few straightforward tasks, we can keep our homes running smoothly and cost-effectively throughout winter. In the meantime, why not check out some of our other handy guides to home maintenance and DIY.