The winter has finally arrived with cold blasts from the arctic bring freezing temperatures to most of the UK. Winter is traditionally the time we look at the heating systems in our home to see if improvements need to be made.

Cost is the main factor people look at when deciding upon a suitable heating system for their home. But cost alone shouldn’t be the deciding factor. Some heating systems offer amazing long-term cost savings in terms of how much you spend every year on energy, and whilst these systems may have an initially high purchase price and associated installation costs the difference between these and cheaper systems can recouped in a matter of years.
Some of the ways you can get ready for the cold winter months include:
Make your home ready for the winter
If you have an old draughty front door or have a gale blowing through a broken double glazing unit it’s worth sorting these things out before the weather worsens. Other things you can do includes using stick-on strip insulation around windows to stop draughts, use draught excluders under doors and make sure your loft and walls are appropriately insulated.

Use a fireplace
If you are only using a couple of rooms it might be more cost effective to use a fireplace to warm the rooms instead of using your central heating system. This can especially beneficial if you have a free source of wood or other material to burn which can provide the heat you need.
Upgrade your central heating system
If your central heating system is old or the controls aren’t efficient you could be wasting energy. New ‘A’ rated systems can save you hundreds of pounds every year  and efficient heating controls can turn your heating on when it’s needed and off when it’s not, instead of wasting energy.
Install underfloor heating
Underfloor heating is an excellent idea in rooms such as the bathroom of the kitchen. Underfloor heating is an efficient way to heat a room as the heat is not lost as quickly as it is via conventional radiators.

Also because the heat radiates from the floor and because there is often residual heat in the floor, it takes longer to ‘cool’ the system down meaning there’s a feeling of gentle heating.
Install air source heating or ground source heating
New methods of providing heat in homes include air source heating and ground source heating. By extracting heat from a free and renewable energy source such as the air or the earth these methods of heating are cheap and cost-effective.