Homes & Gardens

As winter takes hold, with plummeting temperatures predicted for Exeter, it’s important to consider ways of keeping your home warm without it costing a fortune.

Here, seven industry experts from the Heating Installer Awards share their advice on how to save you money and energy and why using your trusted, local tradesman is key. Take back control Have you considered changing how you control the temperature in your home? Many homes across the UK have outdated thermostats, such as dials; installing a more modern, programmable tool will generally mean you can run the system for less...

Selling your house can be one of the most frustrating, drawn-out processes that you ever have to deal with in life. As if moving home isn’t stressful enough, the potential chain fall-through or the cheeky viewers who put in a laughably low offer make it even harder.

It is easy to get disheartened along the way and feel that you are never going to sell your property or that you won’t get anywhere close to your asking price. The most important thing is to always stay positive, you might be losing faith but out of the blue someone will view the property and put in a reasonable offer...

As we get older, we react differently to the cold and become much more vulnerable during the winter months. Many are not aware of the serious effects the cooler temperatures can have on an elderly person’s health, such as increasing the chance of chest infections, as well as related health problems including heart attacks, strokes and pneumonia. In fact, in a recent article, Professor Mike Tipton of the University of Portsmouth, revealed that deaths among elderly people increase by around one per cent for every 1C drop in temperatures below 20C. With this in mind, the Heating Installer...

Every year we hear growing reports of the amount of vermin spreading across the country - from giant rats to swarms of wasps. In recent years (2013 and 2014), the British Pest Control Association has carried out studies to find the most vermin filled locations in the UK. This is based on the number of call-outs compared to the population of the area.

No matter what preventative measures we take, if you want to avoid becoming infested by vermin, then making sure you have effective rat traps might be a better option than waiting until it is too late.

Types of vermin – We...