Storage heating

jee

Just a thought- are you sure you can get gas in the flat? A lot that have storage heaters do so because gas is not connected to the building.

BigAunty

I detest storage heating - more than 15 years ago, it would cost me £50 a month in leccy alone for a heating system that leached out the heat during the day and when the vents were opened, would make the room boil for about an hour then peter out. Would never consider it.

BitterAndTwisted

My sister rented a new, purpose-built flat with storage heaters quite recently. Because the place was small and very well-insulated her electricity bills were lower than she expected. But buying is a completely different kettle of fish. As mentioned earlier buying a flat with electric storage heaters is not always an attractive prospect to buyers as they are perceived, and often are, much more expensive than gas central-heating to run. No gas boiler also means running an electric immersion-heater for hot-water and that will be expensive, too.

DominicJ_2

If you're planning on doing the work yourself, you can install the rads and water pipework, leaving the gas safe bloke to do only the boiler and the final connections.

Night Storage Heaters are basicaly crap.
Electricity costs 4x what gas does, even economy 7 is 3x gas.

I'm yet to see anything that suggests "smart" electric heaters are anything of the sort.
After years of wheedling, I got my GFs dad to go for GCH, paid for itself in three years.

Electric *might* be better if you have a very well built house, thats very well insulated, in which case, the costs of installing and maintaining a central heating system could be more than the higher price of electric.

shazmg

Don't get storage heaters, they are useless and cost a fortune to run. Stick to gas, you'll save in the long term.

Ice_baby

I'm another who won't buy a house with storage heaters (unfortunately only discovered this after I bought my current flat). Storage heaters are hopeless, particularly if you go out to work. You end up paying a small fortune (on Eco 7) and by the evening when you're actually home - the heat's all gone. If you have any choice at all, don't do it.

steve1980

shazmg wrote: »

Don't get storage heaters, they are useless and cost a fortune to run. Stick to gas, you'll save in the long term.

A lot of older flats don't have gas. I have storage heaters which are on a separate fuse box and only come on at off peak times.

No issues with them at all.

purplerose

I'm renting a 1 bed flat with storage heaters and my electricity bill is the same as my friends 3 bed's utility bills with gas central heating! It's costing a fortune and I'm not even in most of the day to use much electricity and only had 1 heater on at lowest setting most of the winter. I'd never go with electric heating again, I'm looking for a new flat now and the minute I read that it isn't GCH I just stop reading any further. I'd defo invest a wee bit more and go with GCH if you can.

pinkteapot

jee wrote: »

Just a thought- are you sure you can get gas in the flat? A lot that have storage heaters do so because gas is not connected to the building.

What he/she said.

If it's a building with no gas then buyers/tenants won't be put off by the storage heaters as it will be normal for the development. If the other flats have GCH then buyers/tenants would probably opt for those.

I used to live in a 1980s-built purpose-built flat in a block of 6. It had storage heating and I didn't mind it. It certainly is simpler not having a boiler in the flat. You need to be on an Economy 7 electricity tariff and the storage heaters need to be wired into the night circuit, otherwise they will cost an absolute fortune to run.

Electric heating is expensive anyway. In my flat, living alone, I paid about £100 a month for electricity (around 5 years ago when prices were lower). I only had two storage heaters.

Hubby and I are now in a 4-bed detached house with GCH and we pay £85 a month for gas and electricity combined, and we heat the whole house.

Wantahouse_2

I have my eye on a house which is perfect - its been on the market since September 2011 and I couldn't understand why it wasn't selling until I saw this thread - its got storage heating throughout. I'm wondering if I should just forget this house now.
I thought maybe trying to get enough knocked off the cost to cover installing GCH. Its a 3bed with 2 reception rooms and conservatory.... and would need to actually get national grid to hook the house up to the grid.... going to set us back a good few thousand pounds by the sound of it....? trying to decide if its worth the hassle. its just so perfect in every other way.
Would we be able to live in the house while the GCH was being installed?