With energy prices grabbing the headlines, Harborough based specialists Lewington’s are ready to help every home navigate its future central heating needs.
Lewington Heating was founded over 40 years ago by Kim Lewington as a ‘one man band’ heating specialist. Current Managing Director, Graham, joined as an apprentice when he was just 16, rising to run the team of over 25 staff based at the Welland Valley Business Park. Although the world has changed somewhat over the past 40 years, with environmental challenges and the cost of living at the forefront of people’s minds, Lewington’s values remain the same: honest and unbiased advice from a reliable and trustworthy team. ‘We offer a wide variety of heating services,’ explains Graham. ‘But we have really seen a surge in interest and need for renewable energy over the past few years.’ The team launched their Renewables Division in 2000, recognising that it is the biggest-growing sector in the industry. ‘We want to be able to give people the benefit of our experience and install the right heating system for your home. We’re not in the business of pushing the most expensive options. Instead, we recommend what will work best for you and your home. We will do a full assessment – on a performance, budgetary and environmental level.’ With gas and oil prices soaring, heating efficiency is a subject high on the agenda. ‘We often get asked if boilers are going to be banned in 2025, but this is not the case,’ explains Graham. ‘The new legislation states that there will be no new gas or oil boilers installed after 2025 in newly built houses. However, it has meant that many people are starting to think of alternative ways to heat their homes. We provide advice and installation of solar hot water, air source heat pumps and ground source heat pumps.’ Although most people are aware of solar power, air and ground source pumps are a relatively new concept. ‘They work in a similar way to air conditioning,’ says Graham. ‘Air source heat pumps sit outside your home and capture the heat from the air, it is then used to heat water and radiators in your home. It’s worth mentioning that not all homes will be suitable for this sort of heating. Due to the low working temperatures of a heat pump, Insulation is key. Newer houses will have better insulation, and therefore make better candidates for switching to this type of heating. Existing houses, where the insulation has been upgraded, could benefit from a heat pump, particularly where there is under-floor heating installed. ‘A good way to test if you think your home would be suitable, is to turn your boiler down to 45 degrees. If you can still heat your home and hot water at this temperature on the coldest of days, an air or ground source heat pump system might be for you. Once installed, you can disconnect from your gas supply entirely.’ Lewington’s were proud to be announced winners of the Worcester Bosch Environment Award in 2020. The awards are open to all Worcester Bosch installers in the UK, with entries judged from five different categories. Lewington’s won Best Installation of a Greenstore and Greensource Heat Pump. ‘This is a real accolade in the industry, especially to be awarded out of all the installers in the UK. As you can imagine, we were thrilled,’ says Graham. As well as being recognised by their peers, Lewington’s believe that customer focus is the key to success. ‘From the initial consultation right through to our after-sales service, customer care is particularly important to us,’ says Graham. ‘We are a Which? Trusted trader, and our experienced team pride themselves on providing fast, efficient, friendly service to homes and businesses across Leicestershire, Rutland and Northamptonshire, at a competitive price’. Being part of the local community and investing back into Harborough is also important. ‘We’re keen to sponsor local events and clubs. We currently support Harborough in Bloom, the Rotary Club annual SwiMarathon and the Harborough Singers annual concerts,’ says Graham. ‘With all four of our directors, and most of our engineers coming up through apprentice programs, we also want to continue to support this. We want to both expand our team and give the opportunity for the next generation in our community to develop meaningful, skilled careers.’ If you are interested in discussing your heating needs, please visit lewington-heating.co.uk or call 01858 433 333 |