Central Heating Question

abitrubbish

Thank you all for your very quick and useful replies !!

At the moment at least, it doesn't seem to be practical to turn it off completely during the day as it just takes so long to get back up to temperature it hardly seems worth it. The house is owned by DH's employer, and we've only been there since the summer, so we don't have any information (or responsibility) for the boiler. I think it's probably just an issue of poor insulation though. The radiators do get hot, it just takes ages for the rooms to warm through.

I am quite happy to wear a jumper etc and don't expect to sit around in a t-shirt, but with small kids who won't keep their covers on I am wary of letting it get too cold, especially at night.

I think the best solution may be, as a couple of people suggested, to turn the thermostat down manually as we leave the house or go upstairs to bed. I will try that over the next couple of days and see how we go...

Hopefully the weather will get a bit warmer soon anyway so it won't be such an issue!

Thanks again

Cardew

csarina wrote:

I do not agree that leaving the heating turned off and turning it on when needed is the best way to use it, ours is on all the time, but with the thermostat set at 19, that way the house never gets cold and the heating kicks in if the temperture falls, we turn it down at night when we go to bed to 17........if you turn the heating off it takes a lot of energy to heat up the house again. Once a house is warm it will stay warm. Our gas bill for last year was just under £300. We do have an efficient boiler, its a condensing boiler that was put in 2 years ago and we also have high levels of insulation, the attic had 12" and the walls have also been done with wool blown in.

The OP asked:

" have recently been wondering about the most efficient way to run my central heating "

How you run your CH is obviously up to you - and like most things it is a compromise between comfort/convienience and cost.

However your implication that it is cheaper to maintain the house warm "as it takes a lot of energy to warm it up - once a house is warm it will stay warm" is quite simply wrong!!

If you want confirmation you are wrong, check the Energy Saving Trust and you will see they specifically address that point.

This has also been discussed endlessly on this forum.

abitrubbish

Sorry, I hadn't seen the other discussions. I didn't want to cause an argument...

I have looked at the EST, thanks Cardew, and it does indeed say that. The link is here if anyone is interested:

http://est.custhelp.com/cgi-bin/est.cfg/php/enduser/std_adp.php?p_faqid=461&p_created=1149150777&p_sid=5P3Pi3ui&p_accessibility=0&p_lva=&p_sp=cF9zcmNoPSZwX3NvcnRfYnk9JnBfZ3JpZHNvcnQ9JnBfcm93X2NudD0zMDkmcF9wcm9kcz0wJnBfY2F0cz0zMSwzOSZwX3B2PSZwX2N2PTIuMzkmcF9zZWFyY2hfdHlwZT1hbnN3ZXJzLnNlYXJjaF9ubCZwX3BhZ2U9MQ**&p_li=&p_topview=1

However, it also says to set the timer for 15-30 mins before you get in, but if the house is taking 3-4 hours to warm up, I will need to set the programmer to go on at about lunchtime to get it warm by the time we get home, so I guess the saving wouldn't be that much if it is only off for a few hours a day?

Anyway, thanks again!

TOBRUK

The house is owned by DH's employer, and we've only been there since the summer, so we don't have any information (or responsibility) for the boiler.

abitrubbish,
Just from a safety aspect, if you have a landlord it is their responsibility for the boiler/central heating to be serviced - which should be done annually, and as a tenant you should have a copy of the certificate.

Hope you didn't mind me saying, but it is important for your safety.

csarina

Cardew wrote:

The OP asked:

" have recently been wondering about the most efficient way to run my central heating "

How you run your CH is obviously up to you - and like most things it is a compromise between comfort/convienience and cost.

However your implication that it is cheaper to maintain the house warm "as it takes a lot of energy to warm it up - once a house is warm it will stay warm" is quite simply wrong!!

If you want confirmation you are wrong, check the Energy Saving Trust and you will see they specifically address that point.

This has also been discussed endlessly on this forum.

I Disagree...........at 63 and 73 our main priority is to stay warm....our boiler has only a small amount of water running through it and it does not take much to bring the temperture in the house up and the boiler then switches off................our gas bill proves that for us it is the most economial way FOR US to run our heating. We do not have a water tenk the water is heated as we use it. The thermostat on the boiler puts the water through at a temperature that does not need cold water added to allow you to put your hands in it.

Cardew

csarina wrote:

I Disagree...........at 63 and 73 our main priority is to stay warm....our boiler has only a small amount of water running through it and it does not take much to bring the temperture in the house up and the boiler then switches off................our gas bill proves that for us it is the most economial way FOR US to run our heating. We do not have a water tenk the water is heated as we use it. The thermostat on the boiler puts the water through at a temperature that does not need cold water added to allow you to put your hands in it.

I quite clearly stated that running CH is a compromise between comfort/convienience and cost.

You, understandably, have your priority to keep the house warm.

However, the way you run your heating is not the most economical for you or anyone else, and your gas bill proves absolutely nothing - nothing at all!!

Did you read the Energy Saving Trust who are quite specific on this issue? the OP even provided a link. I suppose you disagree with them?

Or perhaps read the laws of physics; unless you feel they don't apply to your property!!

You really do everyone a disservice by posting such mis-information - people might actually believe you, and waste their money!

Biggles

I think abitrubbish was more talking about running the heating for the sake of their comfort rather than for energy-efficiency.

It's an old, inefficient system and it may well just be doing the best it can. Certainly, have the boiler serviced, make sure the boiler setting is as high as it will go, and check that no radiators are cold at the top (in which case, bleed them).

Then, your best bet would indeed be to run it at a lower setting during the day and during the night, turning it up when you need it. The best way to achieve that would be to get a more up-to-date timer/programmer that will allow you to put those settings in, and to have it increase the setting an hour or two (depending on the weather/time of year) before to get up/home.