Winter is coming, so it’s time to prepare your home for the changing of the season. Follow these simple steps to ensure you keep your home running safely this winter.

Burst pipes can be an unnecessary nightmare in winter, leaving you without heating and potentially some nasty water damage. It’s vital that you do all you can to prevent this during the more turbulent weather months, so the first thing to ensure is that you can locate your stopcock. The stopcock controls the flow of water in your house, so if there is a suspected burst pipe it can cut the water supply in a timely manner. A great way to prevent your pipes from freezing and, in turn, bursting is to ensure they’re properly insulated.

It’s important to bleed your radiators at least once a week, as there can be a build up of air trapped, which can, in turn, prevent warm water from circulating within them. Due to this, it can take longer to heat up your home, and cost you more money on your gas or electric bills. Typically, there is a valve on the radiator, which needs to be turned until you can hear a hissing sound. Using a cloth and the bleed key handy, collect any liquid that may leak from the radiator, and as soon as it is just water escaping, turn the valve back again.

Whilst this may not be at the top of your list of things to do, servicing your boiler this winter could potentially save you a large chunk of money further down the line. This also provides the opportunity for a service engineer to check for any other problems.

With today’s current affairs, it’s more important than ever to be aware and to keep track of how much you’re spending. Most gas and electric companies can supply them free of charge, and it gives you the option to send accurate readings, potentially lowering your costs.

Unfortunately, power cuts can come part and parcel with the colder weather, so it’s important to be prepared for the worst. Stock up on batteries, torches, matches and other supplies so that you’ll never have to stress should the lights go out.