The Christmas and New Year period is a popular time for holidays, but leaving your home empty during deep winter comes with a unique set of risks—chief among them being frozen pipes and a cold return. Shutting off your heating entirely to save money can often backfire, leading to a costly plumbing emergency.
At Brightside Heating, we want you to enjoy your time away with complete peace of mind. By following a few simple heating protocols, you can keep your bills low and your home safe from the threat of frost damage.
The Danger of Turning the Heating Off Completely
While it seems logical to save money by turning your heating off when you leave, doing so allows the temperature inside your walls and loft to drop to the same level as the outside. This significantly increases the risk of pipes freezing and bursting, leading to thousands of pounds worth of water damage.
The Golden Rule: Never turn your boiler off completely during the winter months, even for a short trip.
Your 3-Point ‘Away’ Heating Plan
A short checklist before you lock the door is all it takes to keep your system safe while you’re enjoying your time away.
1. Set the Temperature Minimum
The most critical step is maintaining a low, steady baseline temperature.
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Set the Thermostat: Set your thermostat to a minimum of 12°C. This is high enough to prevent pipes from freezing, but low enough that your boiler will rarely fire up unless absolutely necessary.
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Use Frost Protection: Check that your boiler’s frost protection feature is active. This is an internal safety mechanism that will fire up the boiler if the water temperature inside drops below a dangerous level (usually around 5°C).
2. Utilise Smart Control
If you have a smart thermostat (like Nest or Hive), you have the ultimate control.
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Remote Monitoring: You can check the internal temperature of your home from your phone, no matter where you are. If a cold snap hits, you can remotely boost the temperature for a few hours.
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Geofencing: Some systems allow you to set a maximum distance (geofence) from home. When you leave the area, the heating automatically switches to your ‘Away’ setting, and when you return, it switches back to ‘Home.’
3. Prepare the Plumbing
Before you go, take a few minutes to secure your water systems.
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Close Internal Valves: If you have external taps, turn off the water supply to them using the internal isolation valve and drain the tap by leaving it open.
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Open Cabinet Doors: In extremely cold weather, open the doors to cabinets under sinks. This allows the warmer air from the room to circulate around the pipework, reducing the risk of freezing.
If you are going away for an extended period, it’s also worth asking a neighbour or friend to check in on your property every few days. If the worst happens, they can quickly get in touch with an expert to prevent massive damage. If you do return to a problem, remember our team is available for Emergency Callouts.
Enjoy your holiday without worrying about your heating. If you need a quick pre-holiday system check or want to upgrade to a smart thermostat for remote control, we can help.
Call Brightside Heating today to schedule your pre-holiday heating check-up.