Avoid using GAS and ELECTRIC !

toria27

Really love this thread we just had a letter from our supplier saying our direct debit is going up from £28 per month to £75!! and thats without us having the heating on at all yet dread to think what the winters going to be like whats everyone elses bills like??? I am definetly using some of the tips i've read on her.

OH thinks I've become obsessed with this website hehe!! I can't help it I never want to miss any new tips.

Anyway heres what iv'e been doing (and I don't know if it's been posted anywhere) we have a conservatory that leads off our dining room and the sun is on it all day it heats the room up really well even in the winter, so anytime I feel a bit chilly I just open the doors up and the heat then spills into the rest of the house it works really well ( doesn't work when its snowing or really really freezing but definetly for the next couple of months). We've got an open plan ground floor the only door is the one leading to the hall and stairs.

We had a new front door fitted in the summer so hopefully that will help (the draught used to be awful) I like the idea of foil behind the radiators I keep meaning to do that.

Keep the tips coming!!

MIRRY_2

Because I was poorly last night, I left my husband to cook dinner for the kids whilst I went to bed.
This morning Ive woken up to find our dish washer left on all night....
I wonder how much this cost me in electricity ?

mad-mum_3

foreverskint wrote:

It is a bit annoying though is it not, that this is the sort of conversation that someone on a pension might be having.......not people on a reasonable salary? I just feel for anyone on a pension, and it is a timely reminder to look out for elderly neighbours this winter. Maybe a nice fleece blanket as a neighbourly gift?

I agree with the sentiments but... my mother is a pensioner and gets fuel allowance and all sorts of extras because she is a pensioner but she is much better off than we are , she is rarely at home as she is usually away on holiday somewhere (a luxury we have not had in years:rolleyes: ) so her fuel and heating costs are low despite the house being like a sauna when she is at home. She gets £100 towards her heating costs each year. Our income is just above the level to get benefits and sometimes it does all seems so unfair when all we seem to do is struggle. She gets pensioner tarrifs at every event she attends, whereas we have to pay full price and at any family event she gets accomodation provided as a pensioner obviously can't afford a hotel whereas we cop for the cost of a hotel or can't go. I love her dearly but... sometimes I could cheerfuly wring her neck.

Before anyone criticises me yes I do know there are lots of pensioners ( and families) in a much worse position than we are,

we have just put in a woodburner ( using small redundancy payout) to try to cut fuel bills for coming years as OH can lay his hands on free wood. Also going to make paper bricks but we do not have many papers so not expecting to make too many.

I have seen summer clothes used to fill sausage dogs and then washed through in the spring when the sausage dog is no longer required.Make sure it is not going to get damp where you use this. If you do not have any material in the house often there are scraps to be had in curtain/ sewing shops.

We have often used the outside as a fridge for cans/ wine etc at christmas.

We tried economy 7 for a while but our bills went up as it turned out our daytime usage was too high ( we did not have a tumble drier or electric heating) and the items we were using electricity for could not be used overnight as we had been adviced to go onto it by the electric company they did refund the difference to us as they had given us bad advice:T .

Check your double glazing if it is old some of our panes have failed and are therefore no longer providing the level of insulation they should but we can't afford to replace them as yet.

Does any body know if having lights turned low on dimmer switches is more economical than having them high? Also can low energy bulbs be used in circuits with dimmer switches if they can be switched on to full power straight away.

Chipps

Most of the pensioners I know are always on holiday, too! And that's not just those with extra pensions. Maybe for some it is the natural habits of thrift & OS lifestyle that they have learned over the years.
I don't begrudge it to them, although it can be difficult to get in touch with them when they are always gadding about!!!!!

kittiwoz

mad-mum wrote:

Also can low energy bulbs be used in circuits with dimmer switches if they can be switched on to full power straight away.

No, they can't.

tootles_2

We are pensioners, live on a very restrictive income and are not on holiday all the year, in fact we have to go out of season or we cannot afford to go at all, and its not to posh hotels or abroad....but to self catering accomodation which really is not change for me......

We are away at the moment..house sitting.....its a change.....but not really a rest, we sit at a house I used to look after, so I still end up doing jobs which have obviously not been done for quite a while......and I never leave without cleaning the bedroom and bathroom we have used and washing and ironing the sheets etc.......

We do get a fuel allowence which we used to use for Christmas, but this year its going to have to go to pay for the gas and electric we use......so there will be no luxuries for us this year.......we pay our fuel bills by dierct debit and are just waiting for the increase to come through..... I have a feeling its going to be waiting for us when we get back tomorrow.......so all my old skills are going to have to come into play to keep warm this winter. I have stopped using the tumble dryer even on E7 I do leave the heating on 24 hours, it cycles when the temperture drops so the house is always warm and the boiler does not have to labour to warm up a cold house, we found it worked very well last year....The thermostat is turned down to 18oC, if we feel cold we either put on a fleece or use a fleece blanket or a quilt to keep warm.

Imelda

This thread has given me so many good ideas, I am going to set up a spreadsheet to monitor my weekly usage (and the cost, I pay by DD and want to know if I am using more than what I already pay so that I don't get a shock when the bill arrives) does anyone else do this? Or is this really anal?

Chipps

Hi Tootles - yes, I agree. Those pensioners I know are not away on posh hotels or abroad for their hols, it's coach holidays (as they are carless), or day trips & short breaks arranged through clubs.
Either way, they are almost always out!!!!
Just like you, they are using their OS skills to make the best out of what they have. The other thing I notice is that they tend to have/use far less electrical gadgets & gizmos, eg no d/w or t/d etc. My grandma at 97 has only recently acquired a washing machine - before that she washed by hand & then used the spin dryer. (which she claims is far superior to a t/d!)
Her one luxury is having the heating on - she only got central heating a few years ago, when she found that hauling coal was a bit too much!

Having less electrical items definitely saves the electric bill.

starlite_2

My grandparents can no longer manage their coal fire due to ill health and had gas central heating installed for the first time in their lives. With the level of heat they are used to they are finding they are running up huge bills which is awful for them.
I plan to print out some of this thread and post it to them as I think there are a lot of ideas here that will help them, so thanks to everyone!.

Rebecca_Coleman

You can buy cling film for windows from Wickes and probably other DIY stores. We have used it and it is hardly visible but makes a lot of difference to the rooms. It costs about £5 per pack and does two large windows or lots of smaller ones. We have also used polypropylene but find the cling film less claustrophobic as well as much less expensive. If you want to open the windows in summer you would have to rip it down and it is not reusable.