Storage Heaters not warming house enough!

deansatch

I moved into a new flat (with an upstairs/loft conversion) a few months ago. The only heating it has is storage heaters. There are 2 heaters in the living room and one small heater in each of the other rooms (apart from the kitchen and bathroom which have no heating). There are no heaters in the passages or stairways etc...

Anyway, it's starting to get a little bit chilly outside and absolutely freezing inside so I have started using my heaters. I now have both living room heaters on full input and turn the output to full at around 6pm but it doesn't seem to be very warm in the living room, never mind the rest of the house. I have realised that there is no way they will heat the rest of the house, so I shut the door when I go in the living room after turning them up full. It still seems pretty cold i.e. I have to wear a jumper and my hands are like ice.

This worries me as it isn't even down to zero outside yet so I am expecting to be huddled under a quilt when the snow and frost starts.

Here are a couple of pictures of the living room heaters (both the same):

EDIT: I couldn't post the pictures because I am too new apparently.



What also worries me even more, is that even though I have them on EDF's economy 7 tariff, the living room heaters cost over £30 per month each to run...that's over £60 per month to have a not-so-warm living room and a freezing cold house. If I put the bedroom one and my office one on, it's going to be around £110 per month just to heat those rooms, making the other 2 bedrooms, the bathroom, and the kitchen still freezing cold.

The house is done out with rubbish double glazing...the type where the gap between the panes is only about 3mm and you can feel a cold draft if you stand next to them.

Can anyone tell me if any of this is normal and what I can do about it? My landlord doesn't seem to have any reason to change anything as technically, the house has heating and windows.

Cardew

The major complaint about storage heaters is they 'leak' heat during the day and are 'empty' with no heat left in the evening.

deansatch

The thing is, if I touch the living room heaters now, they are very hot. When I turn the output up to full, I feel a slight warm breeze coming out of the vent at the top (but only in the center). They just don't seem to heat the room up fully. It's as if the heat is leaving the room quicker than it is entering the room.

Swipe

What sort of temperatures are you getting in the various rooms? One person's idea of cold may be fine for another. Personally I'm more than happy to sit at 19C with a jumper on in my living room and perfectly happy to let my bedroom drop to 13C overnight.

deansatch

I haven't got a thermometer so don't know the exact temperature. However, would you be happy to be spending £110 per month on heating if it meant only 30% of your house was 'a moderate temperature' requiring a jumper and gloves (or hands huddled under your armpits)?

Swipe

deansatch wrote: »

I haven't got a thermometer so don't know the exact temperature. However, would you be happy to be spending £110 per month on heating if it meant only 30% of your house was 'a moderate temperature' requiring a jumper and gloves (or hands huddled under your armpits)?

Certainly not. I'd get yourself a thermometer though as a reference point to determine actual temperatures. And then if you get low readings it might be worth changing to a single rate tariff and buying a few oil filled radiotors if the storage heaters aren't up to the job or if the landlord won't replace them

noojam55

Awww the good old problem I had last year.

I found that putting the output to 0 in the day, and wacking it up to 4 rather than 6 made a difference. 4 used to trickle it out quickly and make it warm whilst 6 used to drain it in half an hour. The 0 through the day also made it tolerable when I got home. Make sure you close all your blinds/curtinas (if you can before you leave) and doors (defitntley before you leave). That way at least one room will be hot.

But I feelfor you, many a time I spent turning on the heaters in my room for half an hour thinking of the cost spiralling up. We were paying like you said about £110 a month in Winter and about £40 in Summer. It's a huge jump! Try what I said though, might surprise you!

deansatch

Actually, it turns out there is a thermometer on my clock and the living room is 19C. It is now at the hottest it can possibly get i.e. door been closed for about 2 hours with ouput up full on both heaters. So if that is the best it can do, does that mean when the temperature goes down to -3 outside I am going to be sitting in a living room at 12C-15C or even worse?

deansatch

noojam55 wrote: »

Awww the good old problem I had last year.

I found that putting the output to 0 in the day, and wacking it up to 4 rather than 6 made a difference. 4 used to trickle it out quickly and make it warm whilst 6 used to drain it in half an hour. The 0 through the day also made it tolerable when I got home. Make sure you close all your blinds/curtinas (if you can before you leave) and doors (defitntley before you leave). That way at least one room will be hot.

But I feelfor you, many a time I spent turning on the heaters in my room for half an hour thinking of the cost spiralling up. We were paying like you said about £110 a month in Winter and about £40 in Summer. It's a huge jump! Try what I said though, might surprise you!

I assume I won't be paying anything in the summer (thankfully) - NOTE: the £110 per month is 100% for having 4 heaters on, the rest of my electric is to be added on top of that.

noojam55

Have you got any windows in the flat? Are they properly sealed? I found most of my heat went straight out the window! I sealed them up using masking tape for the winter - it worked a treat.

Swipe

deansatch wrote: »

Actually, it turns out there is a thermometer on my clock and the living room is 19C. It is now at the hottest it can possibly get i.e. door been closed for about 2 hours with ouput up full on both heaters. So if that is the best it can do, does that mean when the temperature goes down to -3 outside I am going to be sitting in a living room at 12C-15C or even worse?

Depending on insulation, if you are getting 19C now, yes, I'd say @ -3C you are probably around that.