TAKE CONTROL OF YOUR HEATING BILLS
With households facing another winter of high energy bills, B&ES, the Building & Engineering Services Association, urges households to take control of their heating system to get these bills down.
27 October 2015 – Despite price reductions by the Big 6 energy companies, the average dual fuel tariff is still a substantial £1265 pa – the level it was in 2014. So for millions of households facing another winter of worryingly high energy costs B&ES, the Building & Engineering Services Association, is urging homeowners to take control of their heating systems to get these bills down.
B&ES say that although 95% of homes have a boiler, 70% of them lack even the most basic heating controls such as a room thermostat; half of all centrally heated homes don’t have both a thermostat and thermostatic radiator valves (TRVs), and 800,000 homes have no heating controls at all.
Yet, as they also point out, 84% of domestic energy consumption is used for heating and hot water, with 60% alone used on heating, and so getting in control of your heating system can be a major step towards keeping energy use – and bills – down.
Paul McLaughlin, chief executive of the Building & Engineering Services Association (B&ES), has some timely advice, “Installing a room thermostat in one room and thermostatic radiator valves (TRVs) in all other rooms will maintain each room at the required temperature all year round, and no heat is wasted by keeping rooms warmer than they need to be. By installing and using boiler heating controls correctly the boiler will run more efficiently and use less energy to maintain a comfortable temperature resulting in lower energy bills. Households can start saving straightaway by adding controls to their existing system; heating controls can be fitted at any time – not just when replacing the boiler.
“There has been much publicity and hype about the advent of ‘smart’ heating controls – Smartphone apps and internet enabled controls – but the very notion of moving to a smart home is too big a leap for most households. Internet based smart heating systems may grab the headlines but with so many households lacking even the most basic of controls let’s not run before we can walk. If you are interested in having more effective heating controls installed, like TRVs, your local reputable, registered heating engineer will be pleased to offer expert advice and of course undertake the work. A few simple ‘low tech’ controls and a relatively small investment will reap dividends with a very quick payback on the cost.”
For information about the services offered by B&ES members in the residential sector visit: www.trustmark.org.uk.
Ends
Issued on behalf of the Building & Engineering Services Association (B&ES) by Next Step Marketing Ltd
Media enquiries to: Rhian Kelly. Tel: 44(0)1256 472020;
Fax: 44(0)1256 471010; E-mail: rhian@nextstepmarketing.co.uk
Notes to editors
Since its formation in 1904, B&ES, the Building & Engineering Services Association (formerly the HVCA) has represented the interests of companies engaged in a wide range of building and engineering services including domestic heating and renewable technologies.
B&ES members are subject to regular, third-party inspection and assessment of their technical competence and commercial capability, carried out by an independent certification body at least every three years.
B&ES members who undertake gas installations are registered with Gas Safe – the gas safety watchdog body – and are also members of TrustMark, the Government-endorsed scheme designed to direct customers towards reliable tradespeople.
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