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Creating/Conserving Heat in my home.
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village_life
Posts: 336 Forumite
hi - first Winter/Xmas in our first home :beer:
since it got colder we're putting the central heating on more and more (we recently replaced our old boiler with a new Worcester-Bosch Combi that lives in the cupboard in the bathroom)
Our living room has one long radiator (that the sofa backs onto) and a smaller radiator near to the sliding doors leading to our conservatory....
we have no fire/fireplace and to add to the problem we're in the process of replacing our kitchen so our kitchen floor is orange tile straight onto concrete base.
we have had the central heating on for a while now (We have thermostatic valves on each radiator, currently set to 5 [max]) but two main problems in our house
1. living room is large 22" long and so takes AAAGGEEESSS to warm up
2. our landing/stairway doesnt have any natural light or radiators, and so doesnt generate any heat of its own....
not sure if there are many options open to us, but short of installing a fire/fireplace is there any tips for generating/maintaining heat a bit better..........
since it got colder we're putting the central heating on more and more (we recently replaced our old boiler with a new Worcester-Bosch Combi that lives in the cupboard in the bathroom)
Our living room has one long radiator (that the sofa backs onto) and a smaller radiator near to the sliding doors leading to our conservatory....
we have no fire/fireplace and to add to the problem we're in the process of replacing our kitchen so our kitchen floor is orange tile straight onto concrete base.
we have had the central heating on for a while now (We have thermostatic valves on each radiator, currently set to 5 [max]) but two main problems in our house
1. living room is large 22" long and so takes AAAGGEEESSS to warm up
2. our landing/stairway doesnt have any natural light or radiators, and so doesnt generate any heat of its own....
not sure if there are many options open to us, but short of installing a fire/fireplace is there any tips for generating/maintaining heat a bit better..........
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Comments
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If your new boiler is a condensing boiler they are designed to operate at lower temperatures than older boilers to maximise efficiency. This means your radiators will produce less heat and you may need bigger or more radiators to heat up quickly. If you increase the pump speed to get more heat the boiler will lose some of its efficiency. The sofa backing on the radiator will also reduce its output, probably by 15 to 20%. Keeping the curtains or blinds drawn at night will help. Putting a sheet of aluminium foil on the back of the radiator will help, particularly if it is an outside wall. Keep internal doors closed to the living room and use some form of draught excluders. If you have a chimney you could try putting something like an inflated plastic bag in it (but remember to move it if you light a fire. If you don't have double glazing you could look into some form of secondary glazing but that would be a bit expensive and your conservatory probably helps in that direction.
The landing/stairway needs heating. If you can't get a radiator in there then a small wall mounted electric convector might be the answer. Electric heating is expensive but you probably only need it in the coldest weather. The heater should be at the bottom of the stairway.
Otherwise I am afraid its more winter woolies!0 -
thanks for the reply - firstly we have double glazing throughout the house, and we always have curtains closed in the dark and internal doors closed where possible (we have a dog who "demands" open doors to some extent)
unfortunately, due to the layout of our living room, the sofa on the back of the radiator is somewhat mandatory - which is a shame
i hadnt realised the point about combi boilers so thats come as a bit of a surprise to me - as for the landing/stairs issue - there are no power points at hte bottom of the landing to install some sort of electric heating!? - also, it has a high ceiling so i am sure thats not helping either!!!!
oh well
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Hi
This might help see question 4 http://www.denverheating.co.uk/condensingboilersFAQ.htm
If your radiators were undersized by the original installer then you will need new ones
I'm sure there will be a rad size calculator out there somewhere on google.
Corgi Guy.
Ps.
In order to heat hot water instantly combi boilers will heat quite large homes.Ask to see CIPHE (Chartered Institute of Plumbing & Heating Engineering)0 -
Just thought I ought to mention that its "condensing" boilers that have a lower system operating temperature rather than specifically combi's, although a condensing combi will of course.
What about the floor? Suspended wooden floors can be draughty unless you have a fitted carpet with decent underlay.0
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