Really ancient Creda heater.......

Hi

We have 2 really old Creda storage heaters but have been given different advice on how to use them economically.

One is a 79045B and one is a 79065B. They are both the same really, just different sizes.
They have two dials; a Room Temperature dial which goes up to 6 and a Auto Set Control dial which also goes up to 6.

We don't want any heating overnight (snug in bed!) but want a bit of heat in the early morning when we get up, and then we want to come home after work to a reasonably warm house too!

What is the best way to operate these storage heaters? I've been told to keep the Room Temp one down and the Auto Set one up at night but I've also been told the complete opposite! Obviously we don't want to be wasting heat and spending a fortune of electricity either. Any help would be most appreciated. It's getting so cold here even the spiders are leaving :-(

Comments

  • macman
    macman Posts: 53,008
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    Since you have storage heaters, are you on an Economy 7 tariff?
    No free lunch, and no free laptop ;)
  • Premier_2
    Premier_2 Posts: 15,141
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    They are always a bit of a balancing act to get them to work as you want.

    But essentially you were told correct the first time, room temp low, load setting high.

    That allows the heater to store heat overnight but not dissipate the heat too quickly.
    If you find you need more heat output in the evening, turn up the room temp then, but remember to turn it down again before you go to bed.
    "Now to trolling as a concept. .... Personally, I've always found it a little sad that people choose to spend such a large proportion of their lives in this way but they do, and we have to deal with it." - MSE Forum Manager 6th July 2010
  • mikey72
    mikey72 Posts: 14,680 Forumite
    The autoset is the input, lower number, less heat stored.
    Too little and it runs out, too much and the heat is wasted after you go to bed.
    Room temperature is just that, higher it is, the warmer the room, and more heat given out by the storage heater.
    Set both dials to about 4 to start, then adjust the room temperature up and down so you are comfortable when you are in.
    Over a period of a few days, turn the autoset down, until the heater is starting to cool as you go to bed, if it's cool too soon, turn it up a bit.
    When you go to bed, turn the output to 1, then turn it back up to whatever setting you found was comfortable when you need heat.
    When you are not in turn it down to 1.
    As for the morning, and when you come home, there is no timer on the room temperature, they are purely manual, so you either have to leave them higher than 1, and they will heat while you are out as well, or turn them up when you come in. If you leave them heating in the day, you will probably have to turn the autoset up.
  • Premier_2
    Premier_2 Posts: 15,141
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    mikey72 wrote: »
    ...Too little and it runs out, too much and the heat is wasted after you go to bed....

    How is the heat wasted?

    If the heater still has retained heat at the end of the evening, then less energy is used to recharge it during that night.

    Having said that, I agree the system isn't perfect and the more heat stored, the more heat dissipated. So if you find the room too warm despite having the room temp set as low as possible, then you should decrease the auto setting.
    "Now to trolling as a concept. .... Personally, I've always found it a little sad that people choose to spend such a large proportion of their lives in this way but they do, and we have to deal with it." - MSE Forum Manager 6th July 2010
  • mikey72
    mikey72 Posts: 14,680 Forumite
    It's wasted as it heats the room when you're in bed.
    I'm never seen a storage heater that kept the room too warm on 1, turning down the autoset to control the room temperature usually means they go cold in the evening too soon.
  • Thanks for all your advice, will give it a go! If I can't get it right a bottle of whiskey and a blanket should do the trick :-)
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