With winter on the way, STEPHEN LEWIS seeks advice on how to keep your heating bills down - and how to prevent the misery of burst pipes.

WITH the cold weather on the way, now is the time to start thinking about winter essentials. How can you stay warm without breaking the bank? And how can you make sure your boiler doesn't go on the blink when you need it most, or you don't come back from your holidays to find all your pipes have burst?

According to Direct Line insurance, the average cost of a weather-related call out to fix your plumbing or heating stands at about £630. It's the last thing you want. So how can you make sure it is not going to happen?

Guarding your home against cold-related accidents should be reasonably simple, according to Sophie Smith, of the energy Efficiency Advice Centre in George Hudson Street, York.

The first thing is to make sure that, if you have gas-fired central heating, your gas boiler is working smoothly. As well as making sure your heating is safe, it could also save money, by ensuring your boiler operates efficiently, Sophie says. "It is important that everybody with a gas boiler gets it checked every 12 months or so." Any CORGI-registered gas installer should be able to give your boiler a quick once-over to make sure it is working smoothly. Alternatively, you could take out a maintenance contract with one of the big providers, where you make a regular payment in return for which they undertake to maintain your boiler in good working order.

That done, the next thing is to guard against pipes bursting. Lagging exposed pipes - in the loft, for example, or in the airing cupboard - is easy enough, Sophie says, and the kind of thing you can easily do yourself. Go to any DIY store and you should be able to buy lagging, usually in the form of a foam tube that is slit down one side, so that you can fit it around your pipes. Any pipes that are exposed and at risk of freezing should be lagged, Sophie says - it won't cost much, will save you money on your bills, and will protect your pipes against bursting.

As an additional safeguard, make sure that if you go away on holiday, you don't switch the central heating off altogether. Set the timer switch so that it comes on for just a couple of hours each day, Sophie suggests.

It is also a good idea, Direct Line advises, that before it gets really cold, you make sure you know where your water stop valve is - so that if the worst comes to the worst and a pipe does burst, you can turn the water off quickly.

Safety is one thing - staying warm is another. James Player of charity Age Concern, York stresses that it is vitally important for older people in particular to keep themselves warm during the winter months. Although it may sometimes seem tempting to turn the heating down to save money, warmth is the one thing older people must not skimp on. "It is literally a matter of life and death to keep warm," he says.

So how can you make sure your house stays warm without it costing a fortune? Taking a few simple steps to insulate your house better can drive down bills, says Sophie Smith.

First of all, she suggests, if you have not already had your loft insulated and cavity wall insulation put in place in your home (if it is possible in your house), it will be well worth doing.

Now is the time to do it, she says - because there are plenty of discounts and grants available, which mean that as much as three-quarters of the cost could be paid for you - or even more, if you're on benefits. Phone the Energy Efficiency Advice centre on 0800 512 012 to find out more.

Even if your home is already well insulated, however, there are still some simple measures that you can take to save energy and reduce your heating bills.

Set your heating timers so the heating is not on when you're out or in bed

Fit shelving a little way above radiators or storage heaters (leaving some space so that air can circulate). Warm air will then be deflected downwards where it is wanted, rather than rising.

Fit reflective panels behind your radiators, so that instead of escaping into the walls, heat is reflected back into your home. You can buy them from most DIY stores, Sophie says - but card wrapped in tin foil with the reflective side out is just as good.

Draught-proof windows and doors

Fit a brush-style draught excluder to your letter box.

Age Concern York, supported by Help the Aged, offers practical help for older people to keep them warm. Phone 01904 427150.

Updated: 08:57 Thursday, October 16, 2003