Heating for your home

It is important for your health and comfort to stay warm in ACT winters. Winter heating bills often make up about half of a home’s annual energy bills. That’s why we need to find warmth as efficiently as possible.

There are many ways to cut your heating costs, such as:

  • using blinds and curtains to keep out the cold or to let in the sun
  • sealing gaps around windows, doors and exhaust fans
  • keeping doors closed and only heating the spaces you’re using
  • turning down the thermostat to between 18 and 21˚C – every degree warmer costs you around 5–10% more
  • turning your heater off overnight or turning the thermostat down even further
  • turning off your heater half an hour before you leave the house
  • keeping warm when sitting down (extra layers, heated throw rug)
  • wearing slippers or socks
  • installing solar to help power your home
  • installing proper insulation
  • choosing energy-efficient heating options
  • choosing the most efficient windows, glazing and coverings that you can afford.

Attend one of our workshops for great tips on how to heat your home efficiently.

Did you know?

A heated throw rug will cost you less than 5 cents an hour to run. And an electric blanket or hot water bottle will use much less energy than trying to heat your whole bedroom.

Choose wisely

A well-sealed and well-insulated home will mean you could install a smaller, more affordable heater.

Consider the costs of running the heater, installing it and buying it.

Get to know the efficiency of different heater types:

  • Reverse cycle air conditioners are cheaper to run than portable heaters like radiators, column heaters or fan heaters. Reverse cycle systems are far cheaper than gas heaters.
  • Electric in-slab floor heating   is usually the most expensive heating system to run.
  • Portable electric heaters can be cheap to buy but expensive to run.
  • Radiant heaters work by heating you rather than the air. They allow you to keep warm without having to heat the entire room. Radiant heaters use a lot of electricity, so switch them off when no one is in the room.
  • Ducted central heating systems can run on either gas or electricity – though they are far cheaper on electricity. Because they generally heat larger areas of the home, energy use and running costs will be higher than for space heaters. By heating only those areas of your home that are in use, a ‘zoned’ system allows you to maximise energy efficiency.
  • Hydronic central heating systems heat water and distribute heat through radiators or pipes in the walls or floor. Hydronic systems can allow you to zone your heating area down to one room. They are usually gas-fired, but may also use a wood-fired heater, solar system or heat pump.
  • Wood fired heaters cause emissions and pollute the environment.

Did you know?

Upgrading your gas heating system to an efficient electric reverse cycle air conditioning system can reduce your emissions by around 14 tonnes over the system’s useful life. And you’ll save about $500 per year on heating bills. You may be eligible for an interest-free loan to switch from gas to electric.

Reverse cycle air conditioners

Using a reverse cycle air conditioner (sometimes called a split system) to heat and cool your home could save you 50 to 80% on your heating bill, compared with other options. This is the cheapest type of heating to run. For every one unit of electricity used, reverse cycle air conditioners turn this into 3 to 6 units of heat, making them 300–600% efficient.

Reverse cycle air conditioners will cool and warm your home. This means you only need the one system through all seasons.

Look for a model with a high star rating.

Clean your reverse cycle air conditioner and its filter to keep it performing well. Follow the instruction manual and clean both the indoor and outdoor units. Have your system serviced every year.

Ducted or wall-mounted systems

Ducted or central systems heat the whole house. The heat can be generated by a gas furnace or by an electric reverse cycle air conditioner. A gas system heats your home quickly, but a reverse cycle system will have much lower running costs, can be turned on 15 minutes before you get up and can also cool your home for summer.

Ducted systems are generally more expensive to run than wall-mounted heaters of the same type. This is because they heat much larger areas and as much as 30% of heat they generate can be lost through the ducting.

Ducted systems also reduce the thermal performance of your ceiling as outlet vents can be poorly sealed.

Wall-mounted heaters, such as gas, electric element and split system reverse cycle air conditioners heat one large room or a couple of adjacent rooms if there’s good air flow between them.

Using several split system air conditioners or a couple of split systems with multiple heads (multiple indoor units attached to one outdoor unit) instead of a ducted system is generally:

  • cheaper to buy and install
  • cheaper to run
  • more efficient per unit of heat delivered
  • able to heat and cool spaces that are being used
  • able to set different temperatures in different areas of your home
  • unlikely to reduce the thermal performance of your ceiling or floor.

Electric element heaters

Electric element heaters come in many types and sizes, including:

  • blower heaters
  • oil column heaters
  • bar radiators
  • infrared panels.

While they have different ways of emitting or distributing heat, the rate at which they convert electricity to heat (efficiency) is very poor – one unit of electricity produces one unit of heat. Due to high running costs, you should only use them in small rooms, for short periods.

If you use an electric element heater, make sure it distributes heat in a useful way. For example, a wall-mounted panel heater might put out a large amount of heat but if it’s on the other side of the room from where you’re sitting, most of the heat may be wasted heating the wall and ceiling above.

A heater with a digital thermostat can be set at a desired temperature. The thermostat will automatically switch the heater on and off to keep the room at this temperature. This means they’re potentially cheaper to run because they’re not on all the time.

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Acknowledgement of Country

We acknowledge the Ngunnawal people as traditional custodians of the ACT and recognise any other people or families with connection to the lands of the ACT and region. We acknowledge and respect their continuing culture and the contribution they make to the life of this city and this region.