Information - NFF
Information - NFF
Information - NFF
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Protect Your Family Home This Winter<br />
<strong>Information</strong><br />
The UK has experienced a few instances of extreme winter weather in the<br />
last couple of years and this has highlighted the need for all householders to<br />
prepare for cold weather and protect their homes during the winter months.<br />
Crown Copyright/MOD 2010<br />
The severe weather at the end of 2010 resulted<br />
in problems for thousands of people across<br />
the UK, including over 280 families in Service<br />
Family Accommodation (SFA) who experienced<br />
flooding either during the cold weather or in the<br />
thaw that followed.<br />
Flooding can cause a real mess, and structural<br />
damage, but families affected can also lose<br />
valuable possessions and personal items, as well<br />
as having to cope with the inconvenience and<br />
stress of dealing with the situation.<br />
Prevention is always better than having to cope<br />
with a flood so please follow this advice to help<br />
stop damage to your home and possessions<br />
when the weather takes a turn for the worse<br />
later this year.<br />
maintenance Helpdesk if you have any problems.<br />
You can’t beat heat<br />
It is your responsibility to look after your Service<br />
Family Accommodation. That means during cold<br />
and severe weather you should ensure that the<br />
temperature in your SFA does not fall below<br />
10°C – so don’t be tempted to switch it off if<br />
you go away.<br />
It’s not expensive to leave low level heating on<br />
constantly, as it is far better to spend a small<br />
amount to prevent problems, rather than incur<br />
the cost and inconvenience of a major clean up<br />
operation if your home floods due to a burst<br />
pipe.<br />
It is also a good idea to let that heat circulate to<br />
all parts of the house where possible, so keep<br />
internal doors open and ensure that rooms you<br />
don’t often use also benefit.<br />
If you are going away, consider opening the loft<br />
hatch slightly if you are worried about pipes in<br />
the attic – as the heat from the house will move<br />
upwards.<br />
any taps, pipes and cisterns that require attention<br />
and also any damage to insulation on outside<br />
pipe work too.<br />
Take special care with outdoor pipes. For outside<br />
taps you should shut off any isolating stopcock<br />
when not in use, and leave taps open.<br />
Going away to beat the winter<br />
weather?<br />
As well as ensuring your heating is left on, it is<br />
also a good idea to ask a neighbour to keep an<br />
eye on your house for you. They might be able<br />
to spot a problem and stop it, or report it early<br />
and avoid more problems. You can always return<br />
the favour next time your neighbour is away.<br />
So remember<br />
If you’re going away in cold or severe weather,<br />
you are responsible for ensuring that your SFA<br />
is protected from the frost and cold. Check the<br />
long range weather forecast if you’re planning<br />
to be away for more than a few days. And<br />
finally remember to follow these top tips…<br />
Be prepared<br />
Most people start switching on their heating<br />
in October or November, but as your heating<br />
system hasn’t been used for a while, some<br />
will discover that their heating systems are not<br />
functioning correctly.<br />
To make sure you are ready for winter weather,<br />
test run your heating system before winter sets<br />
in – ideally in September. If you identify any<br />
problems you’ll be giving your maintenance<br />
contractor plenty of time to fix these before the<br />
cold weather arrives.<br />
So test your heating system early and call your<br />
Crown Copyright/MOD 2010<br />
Water works<br />
If we asked you to locate the water main<br />
stopcock in your property could you find it now?<br />
Make sure you know where this is and that it<br />
operates in case you need it in an emergency.<br />
Contact your maintenance Helpdesk to report<br />
• Leave your heating on permanently on low<br />
with the room thermostat set to minimum<br />
of 10°C<br />
• Turn all your radiator valves on to full, leave<br />
all internal doors open and slightly open<br />
your loft hatch if you are worried about<br />
pipes in the loft<br />
• Isolate outside taps and empty them of<br />
water<br />
• Where possible, leave your keys with a<br />
trusted friend or neighbour – and ask them to<br />
check the house regularly while you’re away.<br />
Pay As You Dine<br />
Views Please<br />
Pay As You Dine (PAYD). What do you think of it? Let<br />
us know as we will be meeting the AFPRB (Armed<br />
Forces Pay Review Body) in October and want to tell<br />
them what you think. E-mail: admin@nff.org.uk. Over<br />
to you…<br />
HOMEPORT AUTUMN 2011 23
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