How do you heat your home cheaply?

helz228

Hi

We have a combi boiler, which has numbers 1 to 5 for heat level and radiators again with numbers 1 to 5 for control of water to them.

I have struggled for months to try and come up with a formula to keep the house warm but keep bills down. I dont like letting the house get cold and then when the heating comes on it having to take at least an hour to heat up!

I usually leave the boiler temperature on number 1 and have the radiators switched on full. The heating comes on twice a day, in the morning for 2 hours and then at 4 for 2 hours, it then gets cold as the night goes on!

Any help/advise would be very much appreciated!

Thanks

kev84

I wish i could have my boiler on that low blimey i have it currently on 24/7 and turn the heat down during the day to say 1. Old flat however and damp course was done early this year and i dont think it made much of a difference!

Costs are relativley cheap though since switching to npower - i am now paying £10 a week gas and £7 electricity. (Prepayment)

Have you tried uswitch ? are your bills estimated because they may be over estimating your bills which in turn is making it appear expensive?

IvanOpinion

I would agree with albert, it was something somebody told me ages ago was that it was better to turn the boiler up a few degrees and the radiators down.

The one thing I would add though is to make sure your system is properly balanced by adjusting the radiators. If you have a particular room that you want to be heated more quickly then ensure there is enough flow to that room.

Ivan

Kayak_2

If you turn the boiler temperature well up (4 or even 5 during the winter, unless you've got young children who could get scalded on the radiators) then it won't presumably take anything like an hour for the flat to heat up from cold.

Also consider putting the boiler on constant (on 24/7) and using the room thermostat to set the room temperature rather than a timer. That means you can set it 3-4 degrees lower half an hour before you go to bed and not freeze at night, and be able to turn it on again the following morning without it taking too long to heat up again. Same when you go out. Sounds strange if you're used to a timer but it can be a lot cheaper and more convenient particularly if you have variable bedtimes and times you are out of the house. No point in heating the house if you're not there!

Cardew

Kayak wrote:

Also consider putting the boiler on constant (on 24/7) and using the room thermostat to set the room temperature rather than a timer. That means you can set it 3-4 degrees lower half an hour before you go to bed and not freeze at night, and be able to turn it on again the following morning without it taking too long to heat up again. Same when you go out. Sounds strange if you're used to a timer but it can be a lot cheaper and more convenient particularly if you have variable bedtimes and times you are out of the house. No point in heating the house if you're not there!

Here we go the 24/7 versus timer debate again!

I would comment that if it heats up quicker in the morning, it will be because the room is warmer as the heating will have been on during the night; thus it will cost more. You don't get 'owt for nowt'.

It might be more convienient but it can't be cheaper - let alone "a lot cheaper"

impy78

We just don't have the heating on at all. We wear our coats in the house, and have these fury throw things that we wrap around when we're sitting about.

We're students, so we're trying to be economical...

caroline1973lefty

Kayak wrote:

If you turn the boiler temperature well up (4 or even 5 during the winter, unless you've got young children who could get scalded on the radiators) then it won't presumably take anything like an hour for the flat to heat up from cold.

I recently heard a talk from an energy consultant who said that turning the temperature up on the heating, doesn't mean your house heats up any faster, all it means is that it carries on heating up more, for longer, therefore probably wasting heat and money. He said you should set your thermostat and then leave it alone. Must admit, this was news to me, too.

Anyway I've had my heating on for a few hours this morning (flatmate puts it on!) but off now, getting a bit cold so I'm going to go for a walk in the sunshine!!

Cardew

caroline1973lefty wrote:

Kayak wrote:

If you turn the boiler temperature well up (4 or even 5 during the winter, unless you've got young children who could get scalded on the radiators) then it won't presumably take anything like an hour for the flat to heat up from cold.

I recently heard a talk from an energy consultant who said that turning the temperature up on the heating, doesn't mean your house heats up any faster, all it means is that it carries on heating up more, for longer, therefore probably wasting heat and money. He said you should set your thermostat and then leave it alone. Must admit, this was news to me, too.

Anyway I've had my heating on for a few hours this morning (flatmate puts it on!) but off now, getting a bit cold so I'm going to go for a walk in the sunshine!!

I think you have misunderstood the point Kayak was making in his first paragraph.

He was talking about when the water temperature on the boiler is turned up. This makes the radiators hotter and they will warm up the room quicker as the heat output from the radiators is higher.

Turning up the temperature on the wall thermostat, or Thermostatic valve(TRV) on the radiator, will(as the consultant stated) not affect the speed at which the room heats up as regardless of the temperature set the heat output doesn't increase.

There is an optimum water temperature for the boiler where it is at its most efficient; and this is normally at the higher end of its range.

Kayak_2

Yes indeed, Cardew says it even better

My second main point was that the problem with a timer is that it does not cater for a variable schedule, e.g. if you go out with your mates after work one day your house will still be being heated needlessly. Personally I don't mind coming into a cold house and waiting half an hour for it to heat up, although some people might. I would have thought they are wasting a lot of heat though. The boiler temperature is what I meant about it heating up quicker in the morning - that if you are happy to turn the thermostat up as you wake up and have the boiler temperature high, then I think that saves a lot compared to having it on before you wake up to ensure the house is warm when you crawl out of bed. I certainly wasn't suggesting having the heating on full 24/7. I guess a lot depends on the number of hours you spend at home each day.

Cardew

Kayak wrote:

Yes indeed, Cardew says it even better

My second main point was that the problem with a timer is that it does not cater for a variable schedule, e.g. if you go out with your mates after work one day your house will still be being heated needlessly. Personally I don't mind coming into a cold house and waiting half an hour for it to heat up, although some people might. I would have thought they are wasting a lot of heat though. The boiler temperature is what I meant about it heating up quicker in the morning - that if you are happy to turn the thermostat up as you wake up and have the boiler temperature high, then I think that saves a lot compared to having it on before you wake up to ensure the house is warm when you crawl out of bed. I certainly wasn't suggesting having the heating on full 24/7. I guess a lot depends on the number of hours you spend at home each day.

Well it was this quote from your first post that threw me;)

Also consider putting the boiler on constant (on 24/7)

I can appreciate the variable schedule scenario you paint. However why not have the boiler switched off on the timer 24/7 and then switch it on when you come in and select the time you want it to come on in the morning.

tomstickland

I recently heard a talk from an energy consultant who said that turning the temperature up on the heating, doesn't mean your house heats up any faster, all it means is that it carries on heating up more, for longer, therefore probably wasting heat and money

That would refer to the radiator temperature settings.
Turning the boiler temperature up would reduce the heating up time.