The underused boiler setting that could slash your energy bill by £112 a year
HOUSEHOLDS may not be aware of a specific boiler setting that could save you money on your heating bills.
The setting is the flow rate – and turning it down could save you as much as £112 a year.
The flow rate on your boiler is the temperature that your boiler can heat up to.
If you have a combi boiler for example, a lower flow rate means it will reuse heat and therefore make your boiler more efficient.
It should save around £112 per year, depending on the type of boiler you have.
You just need to tweak the heating thermostat on your combi boiler to reduce the flow temperature through your radiators.
This is the temperature the water leaves the boiler to heat your home.
How do I turn it down?
It shouldn’t be too difficult to do, but energy expert Ben Clarke from Trade Radiators has guided us through below.
But do note first of all that if your boiler has a hot water tank, you should get a professional in to make any changes to the flow temperature.
Ben says: “If you turn your flow temperature down too low with one of these boilers, you can make the water unsafe in your home.
“These systems aren’t designed to run on a low flow rate, so because the water is stored in a separate tank (hot water tank), the temperature can drop too low and become the perfect breeding ground for bacteria.”
Otherwise, if you have a combi boiler, it’s easy to safely change your flow temperature.
Look for two dials on your boiler – one for your home’s hot water, and one for your radiators.
You’ll need to turn down the radiator dial to decrease the flow rate, but consult your boiler manual to help you through the process.
Ben says: “On a combi boiler, you can turn your flow rate down as much as you want, but the lower the temperature, the longer it will take your home to heat up.”
What temperature should I set it to?
The ideal temperature is around 60/55c but some boilers may be set as high as 80c.
Ben explains: “After being installed, our combi boilers are usually set to a flow temperature of up to 80c, but this means that your boiler is not being as efficient as possible.
“As mentioned before, a lower flow rate allows a combi boiler to reuse more heat, and send it back into the system instead of losing it, therefore meaning that a lower flow temperature helps to make your boiler more efficient.
“I recommend turning it down to 60c. This would mean that you can heat your home to the same temperature, however you would be using less gas. You could also turn it down to 55c.”
Keep in mind that this tactic may cause your home to heat up slowly, particular if it’s large or has high ceilings, but it will reach the desired temperature either way.
Ben has confirmed that if you set your flow rate to 60c or below, you’d be saving 9% on your gas bill.
That’s roughly £112 a year in savings for the average house.
What other ways are there to save on energy bills?
Adjusting the flow rate on you boiler is definitely not the only way to cut down on energy bills.
For example, using the eco setting on your washing machine could save a whopping £63 a year.
That’s because it reduces the amount of water being used in the wash and therefore adjusts energy consumption levels.
And switching to eco-mode on the dishwasher could save another £28 a year because of similar reasons.
You can save a further £53 by simply using the spin cycle setting on your tumble dryer.
It will remove excess water from the wash which will help your clothes to dry faster.
Vampire appliances can also soak up the cash if you’re not careful too, like fridge freezers.
Keeping your fridge freezer clean can also save £45 a year – dust on the condenser coils can reduce the efficiency by as much as 25% says Which?.
And failing to defrost it for instance could be adding on an extra £150 a year.
Read more about costly vampire appliances, and how to cut down, in our roundup here.