Is it cheaper to drain down or keep the heating on?

For a short void, background heating is usually simpler. For a whole winter in a large property, a professional drain-down often costs less overall.

What is most often missed when draining down?

The boiler, cold water cistern and trapped water in waste traps and low points in the pipework.

Void property clearance

Winterising an empty property

Choose one route — heated or drained — and do it properly

The short answer

Burst pipes in empty properties happen when water is left in a system that then freezes. There are two safe routes: keep low background heating running with the loft hatch open and insulation checked, or fully drain the system down including traps and the boiler. A half-measure — heating off but water left in — is what causes the winter claims.

What the work involves

Deciding heated or drained, setting frost-protection thermostats or arranging a professional drain-down, insulating exposed pipework, and inspecting through the winter.

Rules and responsibilities in Scotland

Unoccupied insurance policies commonly specify either a minimum temperature or a full drain-down during winter months, and set inspection intervals.

What commonly goes wrong

Turning the heating off to save money while leaving the system full, and draining the radiators but forgetting the boiler, cistern and traps.

What it usually costs

Indicative ranges only, to help you judge a quote. They are not an estimate for your property — only the business doing the work can give you that.

Background heating over a Scottish winter costs less than one burst-pipe reinstatement and its excess.
A professional drain-down is a modest one-off cost and avoids trapped water in low points.
Pipe insulation in lofts and unheated cupboards is among the cheapest protective work available.

What to do, in order

1Check the insurance conditions before deciding heated or drained.
2If heating: set a continuous low temperature and check frost thermostats work.
3If draining: have it done properly, including the boiler, cistern and traps.
4Insulate pipework in lofts, garages and unheated cupboards.
5Inspect after every hard frost and record the visit.

Local detail for the Lothians

Top-floor tenement flats have pipework in cold roof spaces, which is where most Edinburgh freezing occurs.
External condensate pipes on flats freeze routinely during Lothian cold snaps and can be lagged or rerouted.
Rural properties on private water supplies need extra attention to exposed above-ground pipework.

When you need a professional

A plumber should carry out a full drain-down; a Gas Safe engineer for anything involving the boiler.

Common questions

Is it cheaper to drain down or keep the heating on?: For a short void, background heating is usually simpler. For a whole winter in a large property, a professional drain-down often costs less overall.
What is most often missed when draining down?: The boiler, cold water cistern and trapped water in waste traps and low points in the pipework.

Lothian Property is a property information and professional-introduction service operated by Maybury Scotland Limited. Lothian Property is not an estate agency. Where requested, we may connect homeowners with independent estate agents and other property professionals. How we work.

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Why standard cover lapses when a property is unoccupied, and what insurers require instead.
Damp and mould in an empty property
Why empty properties grow mould, and how to dry one out before reletting or selling.
Utilities and meters in a void
Readings, standing charges and who is on supply while the property sits empty.

Last reviewed 4 September 2026.