Is your heating ON or OFF?

euronorris

Justamum wrote: »

As I and others on this thread have actually monitored this, I would beg to differ.

I think that depends on how each individual does it.

If you have the meter set to come on anytime the temp drops below 18, and the target temp is only 18, then the usage would be fairly low all year round. If, however, you did it manually, turned the heating on and then whacked the thermostat up to 24 in order to heat the place up quickly, you would probably be wasting a lot of energy and it could well be that this would consume more energy than the first option.

However, I do still believe that if you simply turned the heating on up to 18 only when needed, it would consume less energy than having it on and set to 18 all year round.

Edit: And what Sunnyday says.

Article about this subject:

But perhaps the most contentious discussion of all was the issue raised by Martinthehack. Should heating be left on low 24/7, or should it be timed to come on only when you need it?
"I've been leaving the central heating on 24/7 during the winter for a number of years now with the temperature left at 17/18c," said Martinthehack. "The result is lower bills and the house always warm."
Not many people seemed to be buying this argument. (Thanks to squareroot for providing some back-of-the-envelope figures.) A rare voice of support was fridihem who described their home in Sweden: "Super insulation, triple glazed windows, and a heating system that is always on 24/7, controlled by outside thermostat, which in turn controls the indoor computer on my district heating system heat exchanger. This is a small unit, about the size of a microwave, no noise, no smell, no emissions, and the house is always about +21."
This reminded me of a so-called "passive" house I visited last year just south of Dublin. Sure, if the home is super efficient then it might make sense, but who really has triple-glazed windows in the UK? It probably amounts to no more than a few thousand homes at best. The reality is that the UK's housing stock is, by and large, grossly inefficient and leaky. To leave your heating on all day, even down low, in any home that doesn't meet the very highest efficiency standards would be equivalent to burning money for fun. A few years ago I toured a home in Kent with an energy efficiency advisor and he said to me that the "I leave my heating on all day" myth was the one he heard the most often from householders. But he was adamant that it was, indeed, a myth. The EST spokesperson seemed to agree, too:

Leaving a radiator on all day is not efficient. We recommend getting to know your heating system and be aware of how long it takes to warm up and cool down your home. We have some great tips on our website to get the most out of your heating system.

But, personally, I particularly enjoyed LongFlap's advice: "Thermals from Uniqlo, chunky ethnic fleece-lined woolly hoodies from the market, and a session on the turbo (indoor bicycle trainer) for when it's really icy outside and in. My heating doesn't go on before 6 pm, but then I'm hard (more like a tight-fisted masochist in reality)."

http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2009/dec/21/central-heating-system

So, as Sunnydale says, it is largely down to the construction of the house and how well insulated it is.

Justamum

euronorris wrote: »

I think that depends on how each individual does it.
. . .
So, as Sunnydale says, it is largely down to the construction of the house and how well insulated it is.

We have ours on as low as the boiler can manage - there's no thermostat. Our house is damp and not well insulated, so if we didn't have the heating on low all the time we would have to have the boiler on quite high if we only did it for a couple of hours a day. The rest of the time we would be able to see our breath and our noses would be freezing. It gets so cold in our house that your hands don't work properly.

Hopefully this will be our last winter in this house.

euronorris

Fingers crossed for you Justamum! It can't be nice when it's that cold. At the very least, I hope we have a milder winter

suki1964

See my house is big and detached and sits along a corridor of very very high winds. Yesterday was in reality a really warm day - but the wind would have cut you ( great drying day mind). Today we are back to norm Sept temps and grey sky and the threat of rain.

If I kept my heating on all day at 18/20oC ( I have old folk here who need it to be at least 19 to feel warm enough to undress to wash) then id have 500quid of oil used in 6 weeks. So the heating is set at 20 - and comes on for short periods during the day so no room ever drops too cold and my oil ( fingers crossed ) will last me from now till Feb. Right now the heating is on for 4 hours a day and has been for most of the year. When it gets a lot colder it will be on for around 6/7 hrs a day and we will need to the stoves lit to keep the house warm enough for the olds not to get sick and for my joints not to seize up completely

So yes it is all down to individuals and their living conditions.

If you are cold, your house is feeling damp, or you are getting run down and achy from never being quite warm enough, then if you can afford it - put the heating on for a while - even if the "jones" on here aren't. Its not a competition, no one is any better then anyone else.

And if you are one of the fortunate ones who are still managing quite well - well done you but don't knock those that aren't on the same playing field

oldtractor

still off hurray

Torry_Quine

Still off here.

JaneDoe_2

Still Off, temp around 20 really enjoying the sun :j

shegar

Still off here , todays temp was 27 degrees, and its now 19 degrees at nearly 7 pm, so definately no heat needed.:D

MRSTITTLEMOUSE

We've needed air conditioning here today instead of heating its been beautiful.
At one point I lay on the stone floor in the kitchen to cool mysef down.
Just looked out on the seafront and lots of people out there doing what they do in high summer,only its dark but still lovely and warm.
Tonight people are sitting outside in the cafes and bars in summer tops and dresses,who'd have thought it at the end of September.
Hopefully we'll have a few days more of this with no need to even think about the heating.

bluebag

I've had to put the fans on in the upstairs rooms as it's roasting here. Long may it continue, more gas money saved for the really cold weather.

Just lovely watching the washing drying in the sunny breeze and all the little birds coming into my garden for food. Nice.