Is Your Home Winter Ready?

It’s the time of year when most of us like to spend time indoors, getting cosy at home with the heating on and maybe a good book or film on the go. Most of us have experienced snow and ice in the last week so it is important that we all look to keep warm in our homes.

The met office has tips to stay safe and keep warm and get winter ready here. There is also help and advice from the government including where to get financial help here

It is important to check our gas and electrical appliances to ensure they’re in good working order and our homes stay safe and warm throughout winter.

To prevent any issues and to help keep energy bills to a minimum, regular maintenance makes sense. After all, the majority of home fires are caused by faulty electrical appliances and installations – our guide is designed to show you ways to reduce the risk of fire hazards in your home and ensure your home is fully winter ready.

Electrical Safety

Every five years, Nehemiah Housing carries out Electrical Installation Condition Reports (EICR). These are checks to keep you and your community safe, and they involve inspecting the condition of wiring, electrical systems and installations in your home. Any problems or potential issues such as old wiring or circuits being overloaded, are identified as part of this inspection so action can be taken to fix the problems.

In between these 5-yearly checks, it’s a good idea to be vigilant about your electrical safety. As a guide, get in the habit of doing the following on a regular basis:

• Turn off appliances when you’re not using them
• Inspect plugs and cables often
• Don’t use damaged plugs or cables
• Don’t overload plugs or extension leads
• Use a professional person to make changes to wiring, plugs and sockets

Gas Safety

Every year, Nehemiah Housing conducts a gas safety check in all our tenants’ homes that are connected to gas mains. This includes checking boilers and all gas appliances to make sure they’re safe to use.

A qualified gas engineer carries out the annual checks, and our tenants will receive a letter notification of the appointment in advance.

In between these yearly checks, inspect your gas appliances often and report any concerns straightaway to us. It might be an issue you have in your home or a loved one’s or a neighbour’s – whatever the problem, always let us know immediately so we can take action to fix it.

Checks you can carry out yourselves in your home to ensure gas safety, include:

• Check your smoke alarm often and change the batteries when needed
• Check your carbon monoxide detector often
• Report any concerns you have about any gas appliances

If you smell gas in your home, open your windows to let air in and turn off the gas mains tap near the meter – simply turn the handle to make it 90 degrees to the pipe. Once you’ve done this, leave your home and call National Gas Emergencies on 0800 111 999 to report the problem. They’ll advise you on the next steps and are available 24 hours a day.

What To Do In An Emergency

Sometimes, you need to act swiftly – we always recommend that our tenants are prepared in case of an emergency. Alert us as soon as possible when you spot a hazard in your home.

Examples of emergencies include:

• Water leaking through a light fitting – make sure the switch is off and you call us straightaway to report the situation.
• You smell smoke from a socket or fuse board – turn off the source of power and call us immediately to let us know.
• A faulty electrical product – switch off the appliance’s electrical supply and check the Electrical Safety First website to see if the item has been recalled. Do not use the appliance until you’re sure the issue has been resolved.

Nehemiah Is Here To Help & Support

We want all our tenants to be comfortable and safe in their homes – and part of this is making sure your home is winter ready when it comes to electrical and gas safety.

We have more information on our Staying Safe In Your Home page, and are here to assist in every way we can if you have a concern about an electrical or gas appliance or supply.  

To report an emergency or a concern about your home’s systems or appliances, we’re here to help. You can contact your Housing Officer or call us on 0121 358 0966 or email contact@nehemiah.co.uk and we will do all we can to support you and ensure you stay safe.