Make sure your home is winter ready

Winter is here and we’ve got our big coats out, but we should also get our homes weather ready. Here’s how to prepare for the cold temperatures.

Protect your pipes.

You can get free lagging here(opens in a new tab) if you are a South East Water customer, or for less than £3.00 from any DIY store. Lagging is a foam cover for your pipes that protects them from freezing. Lagging your pipes also lowers the cost of heating your water.

Keep your home warm.

You can put a sheet of tin foil behind your radiators to help spread the heat and install draught excluders on your doors to stop the cold air from getting in. We also suggest keeping the heating on low, even when out of the house to prevent frozen pipes.

Bleed your radiators.

This can be easily done by turning the valve counter clockwise with a radiator key until water drips out. This will release any air bubbles and make room for the hot water to heat your home.

Locate your internal stop tap.

If your pipes do freeze and burst, your internal stop tap will be your saviour. If you’re prepared with the location of your internal stop tap, this will prevent water damage.

Find an approved Plumber.

Having an approved plumber ready in your phonebook will take some of the stress away.

Click here for more tips and videos to use in an emergency.