10 tips to reduce heating consumption

In winter we cannot do without home heating, but sometimes unconscious behaviors lead us to consume in excess, with consequences on energy costs and environmental impact. Read the 10 tips for saving on heating, suggested by ENEA - National Energy Efficiency Agency to optimize the heating of your home in a conscious way, protect the environment and save on your bill.

1 - Carry out annual maintenance on the systems

The decree n. 74 of 16 April 2013 establishes the obligation of a periodic check of the heating system. There are two types of control: ordinary maintenance and smoke control. The first consists of checking the operation and cleaning of the system and is essential for keeping the system efficient, containing operating costs. A system consumes and pollutes less with correct regulation and appropriate cleaning. The maintenance times are not unique, they depend on what is indicated in the boiler manual and on the installation technician, but it is always advisable to carry out a check on an annual basis.

Fume control, also called energy efficiency control, instead serves to analyze the combustion efficiency. The check must be carried out obligatorily every 1, 2 or 4 years, depending on the type of system. Upon successful completion, a blue or green sticker is issued (depending on whether the municipality to which it belongs has, respectively, more or less than 40,000 inhabitants), which serves to prove that control has taken place in the event of checks by the authority (the Region or Province for the green sticker, the Municipality for the blue sticker). In case of non-compliance with periodic maintenance, financial penalties are provided for by law.

2 - Check the temperature of the rooms

Reaching temperatures that are too high in domestic environments is not good for health and risks causing us to face high costs unnecessarily. National legislation (Presidential Decree 16 April 2013, n. 74) provides that the weighted average for the temperature internal temperature must not exceed 20° with plus/minus 2° tolerance: it must therefore be between 18 and 22°, even if 19° is sufficient to guarantee a comfortable home climate. Furthermore, as highlighted in ENEA decalogue, for every degree less you can save up to 10% on fuel consumption.

3 - Manage the switch-on hours

Keeping the heating running day and night is a useless waste of resources, especially since there are operation limits imposed by law based on the division into climatic zones of Italy according to the Presidential Decree 26-8-1993 n. 412. Therefore remember to check which zone your municipality corresponds to in order to correctly manage the switch-on hours:

• Zone A (e.g. Lampedusa): 6 hours daily from 1 December to 15 March;
• Zone B (e.g. Catania and Palermo): 8 hours daily from 1 December to 31 March;
• Zone C (e.g. Bari, Naples and Cagliari): 10 hours per day from 15 November to 31 March;
• Zone D (e.g. Rome, Florence, Savona and Pescara): 12 hours per day from 1 November to 15 April;
• Zone E (e.g. L'Aquila, Milan, Turin, Udine and Venice): 14 hours per day from 15 October to 15 April;
• Zone F (e.g. Belluno and Cuneo): no limitations.

4 - Install reflective panels

A simple and effective solution that helps reduce consumption in the bill is to use reflective panels, which are interposed between the radiator and the rear wall. This measure will allow less heat dispersion to the outside, since the panel will help to reflect it inside the room. A simple aluminum sheet may be sufficient, but there are pre-packaged and easy-to-install panels on the market.

5 - Screen the windows at night

The windows are one of the main entrance doors of the cold, so they must have high thermal insulation, both to avoid the dispersion of heat and to prevent the cold from entering. To this, during the night, it is good to add a screening that can be carried out both by means of shutters and blinders, which must be well closed, and by using heavy curtains.

6 - Avoid obstacles in front of the radiators

It may seem trivial, but in front of the radiators there must be no obstacles, to ensure that the heat can radiate throughout the room. Therefore, in addition to avoiding placing furniture in front of the radiators, it should also be avoided to use them as a tumble dryer.

7 - Evaluate the insulation of the home

The evaluation of the thermal insulation of the house allows us to identify the interventions to be implemented to improve its insulation. An advantage in winter, to retain heat, but also in summer, to prevent it from overheating. Furthermore, there are different types of state incentives, which allow you to reduce the costs of the interventions necessary for energy efficiency. Always rely on a qualified technician to evaluate the thermal efficiency of your home and the state of thermal insulation of walls and windows. You can save up to 40%.

8 - Choose innovative heating systems

Since 2015 it is mandatory to install only condensing boilers, which have a better energy efficiency than traditional ones. If you are replacing the heating system, you could also opt for the installation of an air-water heat pump, or even biomass-fired boilers and hybrid systems combined with solar thermal and photovoltaic systems. Remember that, in the presence of the necessary requirements, even these interventions can give you the right to state incentives for energy efficiency.

9 - Choose latest generation technological solutions

Technology helps us in managing domestic consumption. An automatic control unit is enough, which protects the boiler from power surges, and a chronothermostat, which allows you to program the system on and off, to obtain important benefits in terms of energy savings. There are also numerous home automation systems that allow you to adjust and control the heating system, even remotely, improving home comfort and reducing consumption.

10 - Install thermostatic valves

In buildings with centralized systems it is mandatory to install thermostatic valves on the radiators. It is a good idea to use them also in an autonomous system, since they allow you to regulate the flow of hot water in the radiators, preventing the set temperature from being exceeded. By doing this, it is possible to obtain a reduction in consumption of up to 20%.

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