The ice cold winter months may seem like a long way off now, but Christmas has a habit of creeping up on us, and it’s always better to be prepared than get caught out. The past two consecutive winters have seen severe cold snaps cause disruptive winter weather here in the UK, and the extreme temperatures are showing no signs of letting up for this coming winter as our climate becomes increasingly unpredictable. So what if, at a time when you really need your heating and hot water, your boiler stops working because your pipes have frozen in the cold weather?

What can you do about it?
Make like a boy scout and be prepared. Prevention is always better than cure, and if you get yourself set for the Winter months now, then you can sit back and relax going into Autumn safe in the knowledge that you’re ready for whatever the weather throws at us!

One of the most common heating problems during winter is frozen and burst pipes, and the most immediate consequence is a lack of heating and hot water at a time when you need it most. This is bad enough; but, unless your home insurance covers you for this type of eventuality, you could also end up paying hundreds for locating and accessing the leak, repairing it, and fixing any damage caused by the water. What’s more, if the burst pipe is hidden away somewhere under the floorboards or in the walls, you could also end up forking out for repairs to demolition. In December last year, the Association of British Insurers (ABI) announced that a whopping £1.8m in insurance claims is paid out to customers every day for ‘escape of water’ (which includes leaks from burst and frozen pipes).

Prevention is best
You should check that your water pipes are well-lagged in any places where they vulnerable to freezing, such as in the loft or down exterior walls. If you have a condensing boiler, it’s also worth getting a FrostSentry device fitted to your condensate pipe as this is most vulnerable to freezing in the extreme cold. The FrostSentry device works by constantly monitoring the outside temperature and will automatically warm the pipe as soon as the mercury falls below 2.5C. So you can fit the device now and then just leave it to do its thing whenever the weather starts to get colder.

The other thing to remember is, keep your heating working regularly during the winter. If you’re going away for a few days, keep it ticking over on low just to keep the water flowing the take the edge off those colder temperatures.

Find out where you can buy a FrostSentry device for your condensate pipe here:
https://teddingtonheating.com/frost-sentry/