Households could save £87 with one simple boiler trick this winter

Brits could save up to £87 on energy bills this winter by lowering their boiler flow temperature, experts say. With the colder months now setting in, and many people turning on their heating for the first time, Nicholas Auckland, a heating and energy expert at Trade Radiators, has explained the one simple trick to lowering bills.

By decreasing your boiler's flow temperature to 55-60°C, Mr Auckland said this can save roughly 9-12% on energy bills this winter. This works out at savings of £65-£87, assuming a typical home uses 11,500 KWh/year of gas. The flow temperature is how hot the water is when it leaves your boiler to feed the radiators, and most boilers are set around 75-80°C from installation. However, the expert says this is too high for a boiler to run as efficiently as it should.

In order to lower it, Mr Auckland says to use the radiator icon on your boiler to find the flow temperature, and turn it down gradually starting at 60°C. This should be done on condensing combi boilers only, the expert added.

Lowering the temperature saves money as modern gas boilers are condensing, according to Mr Auckland. This means that they recover extra heat from exhaust gases when the return water is cool enough.

With very high flow settings, return water is too hot and the boiler condenses less, wasting potential heat. Reducing flow temperature to around 55°C-60°C helps the boiler condense more, so you use less gas.

Mr Auckland has reassured that the change will not result in your home being any cooler. Turning the flow temperature down to 55-60°C means that the water leaving the boiler is a bit cooler, and while radiators might feel less hot and rooms may take a little longer to warm up, the thermostat setting doesn't change and you can still reach the same room temperature, he said.

Once the house is up to temperature, comfort is the same.

"Lowering the flow temperature is a free, two minute adjustment that helps a condensing boiler do what it was designed to do - condense effectively and waste less energy," Mr Auckland said.

"For many households that's an easy £65 to £87 saving at today's prices, which can make the world of difference come Christmas time when money is tight".