Avoid using GAS and ELECTRIC !

jscalow

bundance wrote: »

Whoever it was who thought of bubble wrap on the windows, big up to them, as its made my living room markedly warmer.

Glad the bubble wrap is working. as the sunlight comes thru the window the temp shoots up to low 20's c. as soon as the sun sets close your curtains, I tuck mine bind the curtains, or into the window ledge. Keep all your doors shut aswell. Happy heating !!!

lm07

What a great thread. Am still trolling through it all. Got my first estimates for electric and gas and thenI checked the meters myself. Gas is ok but the electric overestimated by about £9-10. Now I was going to ring them up and get it altered but given it will get much colder up here is it worth leaving it on as 'credit' in my eyes and then altering it later in a few months?
I did my first 24hours here of using no central heating. Was a bit of a challenge but achievable (lots of layers, was rooking around for bubble wrap, tucked some curtains in, closed doors, cups of hot tea etc).

cw18

Whether to leave the reading as it or get it adjusted really depends on what you think is going to happen to the price of your electricity !!!

If you think prices may drop before your next bill, then get it amended.

If you're on a fixed price that runs beyond the end of your next bill, then it doesn't really make any difference.

If you think prices will go up (either in general, or as you come off a fixed price contract), then leave it as is.

morganb

Still no heating on here and the bedroom thermometer reads 57 degrees (or 13.9) which is still quite warm indeed. Have invested in thicker curtains for the patio doors leading into the conservatory and made several draught excluders (see post 2547)

I am now going to take it one day at a time! However, local weather report shows a slight increase in temperature throughout the week so I might even make it to next weekend!

Have decided to just have on the radiator in DS2s bedroom (as his room is double aspect and gets colder quicker), one radiator on in the kitchen and one in the downstairs lobby area WHEN we finally turn the heating on. There's 15 radiators in this house!!!! Might also turn on the one in the dining room for when it's dinner time.

Good luck to all of you still on the challenge! And remember, it's not worth being poorly over, so if you do feel cold or sense damp, TURN THE HEATING ON.

ceridwen

Well - this is the first winter where I have been pretty aware (okay - at all aware) of temperatures in my house. So - I've got a thermometer and have been leaving it at various points in my house at times when the heating hasnt been on for hours to see what the temperature is. During current cold spell it seems to be the case that the kitchen and bathroom are averaging 13C left unheated and the other rooms 15C - so not awful/awful level - but too low. I'm working on the basis that if the law says minimum temperature is 15.5C - then the temperature will not be allowed to fall beneath 16C. I think I will probably aim for keeping the house at 18C if busy and 17C might do if I'm sitting round anyway (rather than having to have the house warmer to make myself move and get on with things) - topped up either way in the room I'm actually in if I feel the need with a halogen heater on.

HariboJunkie

ceridwen wrote: »

Well - this is the first winter where I have been pretty aware (okay - at all aware) of temperatures in my house. So - I've got a thermometer and have been leaving it at various points in my house at times when the heating hasnt been on for hours to see what the temperature is. During current cold spell it seems to be the case that the kitchen and bathroom are averaging 13C left unheated and the other rooms 15C - so not awful/awful level - but too low. I'm working on the basis that if the law says minimum temperature is 15.5C - then the temperature will not be allowed to fall beneath 16C. I think I will probably aim for keeping the house at 18C if busy and 17C might do if I'm sitting round anyway (rather than having to have the house warmer to make myself move and get on with things) - topped up either way in the room I'm actually in if I feel the need with a halogen heater on.

It was 8.5C in my kitchen this morning. It actualy felt warmer in the garden.

ceridwen

Haribo Junkie

I dont think I'll be moving in then any time soon;) Guess this could be an advantage here of being a mid-terrace - hopefully I'm getting the benefit of a bit of heating anyways....

lm07

Those using bubblewrap on windows - do you find it lets enough light and heat through during the day?

I've two large windows in my lounge where turning the handle in different positions it eithers pulls open like a door or I can lever it so just the top part opens. One window musn't have a good seal so I want to use the wrap on that one. Is it best to cover the whole window or just the edges (as it is quite big)?

I must have a problem with my heat settings/timer. I have the option of choosing hw only or hw ch. I went to put hw only on and found all my radiators heated up!! so it's not very energy saving. I find any hot water takes a long time to come through the taps and I don't often get through enough water in one time for it to become hot.
For washing up I turn on the hot water tap (which has quite a low pressure) and fill up the kettle from that. I then keep it flowing so it about half fills the washing up by which time the kettle is almost ready to boil and I add in that hot water.
I'm always shocked by the amount of water some people let run when brushing teeth though. They'll let it run at full force!
Enough rambles, now back to maintaining heat.

As for cheap bubblewrap.....I went to our supplies section at work to grab a spare cardboard box and it had some BW inside. So I think I shall ask for some more since no-one is using it!

cw18

lm07 wrote: »

I must have a problem with my heat settings/timer. I have the option of choosing hw only or hw ch. I went to put hw only on and found all my radiators heated up!!

Ours did that every year at the last house, and has done it here 3 years ago and again this year (late August).....

There's a box in with the pumb workings that has a 'switch' built in to direct the hot water around whichever part of the system your controller is telling it to -- but it can stick. I'd only ever known it stick that way, and got used to telling BG what the problem/solution was whenever I called then out to fix it (we have breakdown cover)

Our latest problem was we had hot water, but the heating wouldn't kick in (last weekend), so they were back on Monday to sort it -- and it turned out it was stuck the other way !!!!

Apparently these boxes have a life expectancy of just 2 years :eek:

oystercatcher

Im07 as said in above post , it sounds like your three way valve is stuck in the heating system. I've had this go wrong several times. One time it even started leaking and kept shorting out all the electrics that were attached to the heating, took 'the men' ages to work out what was causung the problem. It would be worth getting someone to look at it or you'll be paying for heating every time you just want hot water.

Oystercatcher