Hot? Switch on the central heating

By Ryan Dilley
BBC News Online

Britain is baking. Railway tracks are in danger of buckling and the bookies stopped taking bets that the temperature record will be broken. So it must be time to turn up the thermostat on your central heating and stock up on antifreeze, of course.

Time to put on the heating, dear?

Think ahead a few weeks. The nights will be drawing in. The football season will be in full swing. Slade's Merry Christmas Everybody will be blaring out of speakers in every shopping centre. Surely this will be a fitting time to fire up your central heating?

Wrong. It's now, during the tarmac-melting heatwave when you should be putting your radiators back on, says British Gas.

The company has suggested that, although most people in the sun-baked UK are more concerned about how to keep cool in their homes, we should all spare a thought for how we'll stay warm come autumn.

"A central heating system has many moving parts which if not used over the long summer period may seize up," says Michelle Lambert, a British Gas engineer.

To give your pumps, pipes and radiators a mid-summer workout, you are advised to crank up the thermostat today. British Gas estimates that 10 minutes should do the trick - and will only cost about 4p.

Heatwave purchases A record 30,000 fans were sold by Dixons and Currys since Monday Also purchased, 100 electric blankets!

The company - which 3.5 million UK households pay to provide central heating repair cover - fears that systems neglected over the summer will only prove troublesome en masse come the cold weather.

During the second week of October - the so-called "switch-on" week when autumn turns chilly - the firm is called on to fix 78,000 central heating systems which have been dormant since spring. In an ordinary winter week only 35,000 breakdowns are reported.

"By keeping your system ticking over it may prevent a winter call out when demand for breakdown [repairs] is high," says Ms Lambert.

In recent years, British Gas has felt the heat over accusations that some consumers have been left in the cold during the busy winter months.

The company endeavours to despatch an engineer to a breakdown within 24 hours. But when demand peaks as the mercury falls British Gas "prioritises" callouts, with elderly people and households with children being put at the top of engineers' lists.

So putting on your central heating may not be so crazy, after all. But top up your car's antifreeze first.

Not enough antifreeze?

Though you could doubtless fry an egg on the bonnet, it is actually a very good time to check the level of ethylene glycol in your car's cooling system, according to experts.

Though the primary function of antifreeze is to prevent the water in your engine turning to ice in winter - the clue is in the name - the chemical additive also raises the temperature at which this water will boil. Given the current heatwave, this may prevent your car from overheating.

Those who go by Shanks's pony needn't feel left out in this flurry of counter-intuitive summer behaviour. Blazing August is when you might consider dusting off your winter shoes.

You may be sporting sandals or flip-flops now, but where will you be come rainy October if you have neglected to care for your more sturdy footwear?

"Winter is our busiest time," says Michael Charalambous of London's City Cobblers. "When it first rains, soles get thin as they get wet and stitching comes apart."

His advice? Get your winter shoes seen to now, while cobblers are enjoying a slack period.

Builders - good ones at any rate - seldom lack custom and many have most on their plates while fair weather allows them to get on with exterior work. It may also benefit homeowners to devote a sunny day to checking over their properties, it seems.

"And these ones were re-soled in August."

"Because it's sunny, that's all the more reason to check your roof, while you haven't got rain pouring through it," says Robin Hood-Leeder from the Federation of Master Builders.

Mr Hood-Leeder says checking for early signs of leaks gives you time to book a reputable builder before the heavens open. Come winter, the unprepared and desperate householder can fall prey to cowboy builders, he warns.

"People tend not to look up at their roofs in the summer. They should check for loose or missing tiles. It's often best to do this from your garden, with a pair of binoculars."

So binoculars at the ready? But do be careful not to look up at the sun through them.