Avoid unnecessary consumption: Save energy and money: Set heating to summer mode

Room heating isn't necessary in the summer, but hot water is still flowing: This is possible in summer mode. When and how homeowners can best convert their heating, and how much they can save as a result.

To prevent unnecessary energy consumption during the warmer months, homeowners should switch their heating systems to summer mode. The Baden-Württemberg Consumer Advice Center recommends this.

The energy-saving tip is actually quite obvious: In summer, the heating is set to summer mode so that it only produces hot water and no longer heats the room. However, this doesn't always work.

A self-regulating system will continue to kick in during summer operation when it gets too cold – for example, at night or during a drop in temperature during a summer thunderstorm. Many heaters have outside temperature sensors that register such weather changes and turn up the heating accordingly, explains the German Liquid Petroleum Gas Association. Residents sometimes don't even notice this – with the result that their smart heaters consume unnecessary energy.

However, if you turn off the heating completely, there's a risk that the water will come out of the tap cold if you have a central hot water system. Furthermore, legionella bacteria can then form in stagnant water. Therefore, residents should only turn off the heating completely if they get hot water decentrally via a boiler or instantaneous water heater.

Summer operation from permanently mild nights

Owners can switch their heating to summer mode on the system itself or via the heating app. In modern systems, this sometimes happens automatically. Nevertheless, it's worth checking.

According to the Consumer Protection Center, the best time to switch is when nighttime temperatures consistently exceed 12 to 15 degrees Celsius. The switch is worthwhile: According to current estimates, summer operation could save up to eight percent of heating costs per year.

Open valves fully during summer operation

Consumer advocates advise against setting the thermostatic valves on radiators to the highest setting, rather than to the zero setting. Otherwise, they could jam—which could lead to a heating failure in the fall. Thanks to summer operation, the radiators don't heat up.

Tenants generally don't have access to the heating system and can't adjust the summer mode themselves. Therefore, before turning the thermostat valves all the way up in the summer, they should check with the landlord or management to see if the heating has already been adjusted.