Common heating issues and how to solve them
We’re into the final winter push – longer days and warmer nights are on the horizon, and soon we will be switching our heating off for the summer. But for now the heating is still on, so let’s look at how to reduce heating waste as much as possible.
If you’re reading this, you may already know that Energy Sparks works with schools to help them reduce their gas and electricity use. We do this by analysing a school’s energy consumption data and providing bespoke insights and suggested actions to help them reduce energy costs and carbon emissions. The average reduction in energy use achieved by Energy Sparks schools last year was 10%, while the schools that made the biggest improvements achieved annual energy savings of 40%.
We believe that the whole school community has a role to play in energy saving and climate action, so we also provide a range of activities and teaching resources (as well as a special pupil dashboard for Energy Sparks schools) that allow young people to develop key skills while making a real-world difference for the climate.
Through our work with schools, we have identified a number of common heating issues that are relatively straightforward to solve, and which can help schools cut their energy bills and carbon footprint.
Below, we explore two common heating issues and how you can solve them.
How to set the right temperature at your school
The DfE recommends that schools have a set temperature of 18°C for normal classrooms. If temperatures are set too high, it not only means that more energy will be used during the day to keep rooms up to temperature, but also that your heating will likely come on earlier and heat for longer periods.
In fact, we often find that if temperatures are set too high people will start opening windows to cool rooms down, throwing money straight out of the window!
To help schools tackle this, we have designed a programme of activities called Smart schools stay at 18 degrees. This programme helps staff and pupils work together to investigate what is happening at their school and adjust heating settings as needed. You don’t need gas data or even an Energy Sparks account to run this programme in your school.
We have also put together some guidance about the best temperatures for other school areas, such as corridors and sports halls.
How to stop heating coming on too early
Another major issue for schools is the heating coming on too early in the morning (read about why this happens).
Our Give your heating a lie-in programme helps schools tackle this issue. The programme shows you how to use Energy Sparks to identify if your heating isn’t doing what you expect.
But how can you tell if your heating is coming on too early in the mornings?
Well, if your school is signed up to Energy Sparks then we can help! We conduct heating start-time analysis, which can be found on your heating control advice page*.
The table below shows an example where a school could have saved up to £62 in a single day by switching their heating on later. We also estimate savings over a whole year if our advice is followed. The heating control advice page includes charts that show the distribution of gas consumption during school days, which can help determine how well controlled the timing of the boiler is.
Note that if your school has underfloor heating it may take a few hours longer to warm up, but it still does not need to be on 24 hours a day.
You can also use your school’s gas overview chart† to observe your gas use during any day that has data available on Energy Sparks. Simply click on a bar to drill down into more detail.
Get inspired!
St John’s CofE Primary School and Nursery in Belper joined Energy Sparks in the summer of 2024 and is working with Derbyshire Council and their Let’s Go Zero Climate Advisor to improve the energy efficiency of the school.
The school has quite a complex site, with lots of connected buildings and a number of boilers. Controlling each boiler separately and making changes to their settings can be quite a challenge. However, when the headteacher saw the potential holiday savings, he was inspired to take on this challenge.
For the last two holidays – Christmas and February half-term – the head has used the school’s gas data on Energy Sparks to improve holiday heating settings and track savings.
The boilers are set to frost protection only at the end of term and, if needed, the head comes into school before the end of the holidays to get term-time settings back on and the school warm and ready.
The savings speak for themselves: during the Christmas holidays, gas consumption was down by 45% compared to the previous year, while in February half-term it was down by 33% despite colder temperatures. Over those three weeks of holidays, the school saved £700 and over a tonne of CO2!
Take action today
Already signed up to Energy Sparks? Why not complete the programmes above. Don’t forget to record any actions you take, as these count towards our Winter Heat Saver competition (closes at the end of March) and our annual scoreboard competition.
Need a refresher on how to make the best use of Energy Sparks? Take a look at our free online training for Energy Sparks users.
Not yet signed up? Why not book a demo to find out how we might be able to help you.
* Not sure where to find this? From your Energy Sparks dashboard, click ‘Explore energy data’. > Scroll down until you see ‘Heating control’ under the Gas section of the left-hand tool bar. > Finally, click on the ‘Analysis’ tab at the top of the page, and look at the table called ‘Central heating timings’.
† Not sure where to find this? From your Energy Sparks dashboard, click ‘Explore energy data’. > Click on the ‘Gas overview’ tab at the top of the page (above the chart).
