Everybody knows that the more efficient your boiler is the lower your energy usage and subsequently the more money you save on your gas bills. But how do you increase the efficiency of your boiler in the first place? Below are the top five ways to make your boiler as energy conscious as possible.

1. Replace it with a new SEDBUK ‘A’ rated condensing boiler! Obviously this isn’t the kind of thing you can do on the spur of the moment and it is a big expense but some new combi boilers have an efficiency rating of over 95%. This means that you can probably recoup your investment within a few years simply by lowering your gas bills.
2. Have an annual service. Some companies, such as British Gas, have monthly plans that protect your boiler against breakdowns and as part of the plan you get a free annual service. This service checks the main parts of your boiler and makes sure it is working at an optimum level of efficiency.
3. Arrange to have your entire system power flushed. Power flushing is a great way to remove all of the debris and limescale from your radiators and pipe work so that hot water can flow freely around the system to warm the house. The freer the water movement, the more effective the heating system is and the less your boiler has to work. In simple terms, you get the same level of heating but using a lot less energy. Unfortunately power flushing is a little on the expensive side however it does increase your boiler’s efficiency quite dramatically and it will save you money in the long run – especially if you have an older boiler and heating system.
4. Fit a magnetic filter and a limescale filter to your heating system. The magnetic filters available today are great for removing iron oxide from the system and this alone can improve your boiler’s efficiency and lower your energy consumption. If you then add to that a limescale filter you can improve the quality of the water entering the system and remove the majority of the limescale before it reaches the boiler and starts to effect its performance. Both of these additions are relatively cheap and can increase your boiler’s efficiency by quite a considerable amount.
5. Fit thermostatic radiator valves to all suitable radiators. These fantastic little pieces of equipment allow you to vary the radiator temperature in each of the rooms in your house so you can turn those you don’t use down and those you do use up. By turning little-used radiators down you use less energy and increase boiler efficiency – another easy way to save money.

There are plenty of other ways to increase your boiler’s efficiency so you end up saving money however the five above are easy to do and relatively inexpensive – with the exception of number 1! If you did all of the things mentioned above then you would have one of the cleanest and most energy efficient heating systems on the planet and it wouldn’t take that long to recover your investment.

Guest Article by Clare Lynock

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