Avoid using GAS and ELECTRIC !

starlite_2

You could make a wooden four poster frame really cheaply, and fairly easily especially if you have a reclamation yard nearby, and fit curtains onto it?

more girlfriend and aesthetically friendly?

starlite_2

You could then get gauze curtains for summer, which would be romantic and keep the bugs out

emmybee

If you have individual radiator thermostats (as opposed to a room thermostat), turn them all down to 1 or 2, except for the living/dining rooms which can be set to 3. You can then leave the central heating on 24/7, remembering to turn the living/dining rooms down to 1 or 2 at night. It costs far less for the heating to be topped up occasionally than for the boiler to be on full blast twice a day to heat a cold house.

If you have an immersion heater, leave it on 24/7: its internal thermostat will ensure it only comes on when necessary.

adouglasmhor

emmybee wrote:

If you have an immersion heater, leave it on 24/7: its internal thermostat will ensure it only comes on when necessary.

It will ensure it uses electricity to keep the temprature up all the time, get it insulated and use it as little as poss, ours keeps water hot for almost 24 hrs on one hours leccy.

sammy_kaye18

ok finaly am gettign sorted

came home today determined to get the blind up in my kitchen and the curtain rail up in my bedroom as have had curtains and blind sat baout for about a year now - and it bothers me the no curtains thing cos im in a ground floor flat and every man and his dog can see into our bedroom.

Anyway i tried drilling a hole today and bent the masonary drill bit so figured id use the one that works on steel and snapped it in two! !!!!!!?? i was also goign to just put up another net curtain wire and string curtains on there but it seemed a bit pointless really.so i rang the council at 2.45 and asked and they said there was metal beams there so i wouldnt be able to drill id have to put up a piece of wood, screw that to wall then drill into that.

Hello!!! who do you think i am Handy Andy????

um...no!! so i went back to town, into argos and brought two extendable shower curtain rails (£3.99 each) came home , put them up and in the bedroom put my curtains up onto it. now i have nicely hung curtains that fit nicely in my window and a rail ready for soem nets in my kitchen.

So finally i can line my bedroom curtains, line bens bedroom curtains and get sortign the rest fo the hosue so i can actualyl get near the radiator to let the heat into the rooms.

btw any ideas how to bleed the radiator as im a total dunce and my radiator in my bedroom gets half warm but the bottom of it is freezing and its a BIG radiator.

Austin_Allegro

May I just pick up on those who were talking about 'suffering' in the cold weather. I don't think anybody on here is advocating that people live in discomfort during the winter months in order to save money. My father had to scavenge for coal on slag heaps in the winter of '47 - now THAT is suffering!

Nearly all the tips on this thread are about simple and inexpensive changes to our lifestyles to maximise the value we get from energy - eg it really makes no difference at all to your lifestyle if you wear thermal underwear, but it could save you a lot of money on heating. Modern westerners are unbelievably wasteful of energy - we all know people who sit around in shorts and tee shirts in the winter, then wonder why they can't afford their heating bills!

Anyway...my next tip was found out accidentally. I keep my tellie on a chest of drawers with clothes in. A couple of hours of tv watching makes the draw underneath quite warm - so I now use it as a 'free' airing cupboard!

starlite_2

One thing in our house, which I can't get OH out of the habit of and really annoys me (and irritates our electricity bill too).
He'll wake up, put on the kettle, then go for a shower, put it on again, then get dressed, put it on again and forget about it whilst he watches the news , finally make a coffee, then drink half very slowly and reboil the kettle to 'top it up' with hot water as it's gone cold.etc etc.

Same happens when he comes home, he sticks on the kettele, then forgets about it.

Any tips? short of throwing it out and boiling it on the stove so he actually pays attention to it?

Poppycat

I got a windup torch last year from Aldi its great for emergencys, havent had to us it much

MIRRY wrote:

Today I notised robert Dyers shop had , wind up torches for £9.99 reduced to £4.99. It said it will last 30 mins then you need to wind it up again.

wish Id got one now cos that would be ideal for walking around the house room to room.

Picked up a really heavy blanket from the charity shop or £2 and it looks brand new !

Austin_Allegro

starlite wrote:

One thing in our house, which I can't get OH out of the habit of and really annoys me (and irritates our electricity bill too).
He'll wake up, put on the kettle, then go for a shower, put it on again, then get dressed, put it on again and forget about it whilst he watches the news , finally make a coffee, then drink half very slowly and reboil the kettle to 'top it up' with hot water as it's gone cold.etc etc.

Same happens when he comes home, he sticks on the kettele, then forgets about it.

Any tips? short of throwing it out and boiling it on the stove so he actually pays attention to it?

Make it for him? He'll think you're being all lovey-dovey but in fact you're doing it to save money! :rotfl:

dlb

We keep a flask at the side of the kettle, fill up what we dont use ready for next cuppa, but the other night filled it up and forgot to empty it when we went to bed, and next morning was still warm enough for the first drink of the day.
You could do that so your hubby doesnt even have to put the kettle on in a morning.