Is your boiler breaking the bank over the winter?

After the excesses of Christmas and New Year, most households have to tighten the purse strings during January, February and March. Unfortunately this is also the time of year when we use the most energy in our home. It's cold, wet and dark – the heating comes on first thing in the morning and usually doesn't go back off until bedtime.

The sad fact is that very soon we are all likely to get that dreaded statement from our energy providers, telling us just how much gas and electricity we used, how much our account is in debit, and how much higher our bill is going to be.

And many of us are using way more gas than we need to, purely because our boilers and our homes are not energy efficient.

Is it time to replace your boiler?

According to the Energy Saving Trust, our heating accounts for 60% of our overall energy bills. Therefore, if your boiler is old and highly inefficient, replacing it with a modern, A-rated condensing boiler with a programmer, room thermostat and thermostatic radiator valves could save you up to £350 per year.

Of course, this does all depend on just how inefficient your original boiler was, as well as the size and type of house you live in. A large detached home is going to see a greater reduction in gas bills than a mid-terrace house or mid-floor flat.

What about servicing?

You don't always need to replace a boiler if it's no longer as efficient as it should be – sometimes your boiler may just need servicing. The fact is that a poorly maintained or faulty boiler is likely to waste money on your gas bills and if left unchecked, could even start to leak potentially fatal carbon monoxide (CO).

An annual boiler service, conducted by a GasSafe gas engineer, is essential for keeping your boiler running smoothly and efficiently all year round.

Use your boiler's modern controls to your advantage

Were you aware that reducing your room thermostat by just one degree will save you around £80 per year in heating bills?

No matter how old your boiler is, as long as you have a room thermostat, a programmer and thermostat radiator valves enable you to set your heating to switch on and off when you need them and set the temperature for each room in your home. Simply put, you only need to heat the areas of the home you use when you use them.

You can also utilise smart heating controls. A mobile app allows you to control your heating remotely. This means that wherever you are and whatever time it is, you can control the temperature of your home using your phone, iPad, android tablet or mobile device.

Bleed your radiators

Over time your radiators can become clogged with debris or trapped air. This leads to your radiator feeling cooler at the bottom or top – not what you want when trying to heat a room. In addition, if you find that your radiators are not an even temperature around the house, this is generally a sign of sludge build-up. The best solution is a power flush. This will remove debris that otherwise reduces your radiators' efficiency, meaning that your system will be able to respond faster.

Bleeding a radiator only takes around 10 minutes and can be done by a novice. All you need is a bleed key that fits your radiator valve (they can be bought at all DIY stores), a bowl and a cloth to catch any drips.

So don't sit waiting for that bill to arrive – make some changes and start reducing your energy usage now!