Cheap Heat

mark2004uk

Hi winter is upon us again and once again thanks to the wonderful government and the greed of gas and electric suppliers I can't afford to put the heat on, like many thousands more in the country.

What is the cheapest heat source we can buy, cheap to buy and cheap to run and warm.

I know in the past people have recommended the halogen heaters but im not convinced personally that they are cheaper to run

Ben84

That's a hard one as most all new fuels need new equipment which comes with a high initial cost. I've been exploring ways to use my existing fuels (mains gas and electric) more efficiently and effectively instead.

My best buy has been an electric blanket, which effectively takes care of overnight, which is the time I feel the cold the most. Cheap to buy (about £30), no installation cost, just plug it in, and despite electric costing significantly more per kWh than mains gas, it's far more targeted than running the central heating for the entire house and keeps me very comfortable while consuming a maximum of 50 watt, so it's cheap. The difference to my electric bill should be tiny, and yet it has made a significant difference.

You can also buy electric throws, which are ideal for any time you're sat down on the couch or chair.

I'm not using the central heating so much when cold and am heading to the sitting room if I can because it has a fairly efficient gas fire, so that I only have to heat the one room instead of the entire house.

Mankysteve

warm clothes.

hethmar

Do you have a source of cheap wood? You could look in your local free ads for a woodburner?

mark2004uk

We have an old fireplace but its boarded up, I am tempted to open it n have a look, the fireplace harth is wood, so thats no damn good lol

I would also have to ask a sweep to check the chimney.

I have just bought an elec blanket for mi bed, but due to having asthma it get worse by breathing in cold air, as its rented we have pre-pay meters in also, which is a damn shame...

We get this problem every year, i think pre-pay should get it cheaper, cuase we pay before we get it...

stilernin

I'm not sure that prepaying helps. Someone on another thread said that your money is held in a holding account until you are billed. The fuel costs what it costs when you use it IYSWIM

On another tack, I have a microfibre blanket under my duvet which is so snuggly warm that I doubt you would need an electric blanket all night. Actually, I bought another one from Netto for £8 yesterday which I'm going to use to wrap up in when watching the telly They are really light too and take no time at all to dry after being washed.

mark2004uk

stilernin wrote: »

I'm not sure that prepaying helps. Someone on another thread said that your money is held in a holding account until you are billed. The fuel costs what it costs when you use it IYSWIM

On another tack, I have a microfibre blanket under my duvet which is so snuggly warm that I doubt you would need an electric blanket all night. Actually, I bought another one from Netto for £8 yesterday which I'm going to use to wrap up in when watching the telly They are really light too and take no time at all to dry after being washed.

I will walk to netto today and have a look, I would not leave the blanket on all night anihow

mark2004uk

I thought about getting a calor gas fire for the living room where we are all the time, just to warm that room

Jon_Tiffany

mark2004uk wrote: »

I thought about getting a calor gas fire for the living room where we are all the time, just to warm that room

They put out a lot of heat but also a lot of moisture. You might find that you end up with damp walls unless you have good ventilation.

Cheapest heat in order (cheapest first)

- log burner with supply of free wood
- gas mains central heating
- calor gas/oil etc
- electric

spuunge

If you could afford to get a wood burning stove and can source a supply of free wood then I would recommend that. However, getting them installed is quite expensive and they have to meet building regs, so although you may save money on heating in the long term, short term and medium term it would work out more expensive overall.
Having said that, I love my stove and it keeps the whole house at a resonable temperature (and the living room is practically tropical!)

Seeing as switching to another heat source is going to cost either way, you're better off trying to contain the heat in your home for the longest time possible.

Are your curtains thermally lined? do you open them during the day to allow sunlight in and then close them at dusk to retain heat? Do you have a curtain over your front and back door?

Are all your doors kept closed? Its pointless warming up your hallway as you spend so little time in it.

Also, do you put on extra clothing when its cold? May seem a silly question, but how many of us walk around our home in just light trousers and a t-shirt? Why not snuggle up on the sofa in a nice fleece blanket or put on a jumper

Lastly, I am assuming that you have electric only, so do you ensure that nothing is left on standby, only boil water that you need, cover your saucepans when cooking etc?

You may do all of the above already, in which case I'm not sure what else you can do!

hethmar

Mark, Im sure you must have thought of it - but have you contacted local organisations which may be able to help you?