Cold house

globalds

Can you block the chimney ?
http://www.chimneyballoon.co.uk/

I can't see a mirror in front of anything has much of an effect

globalds

I suppose the alternative would be to light the fire ?

SEE

samandmillie wrote: »

Trousers, socks, slippers, long sleeved top and fleece top or dressing gown

Not wishing to be personal, but do you consume enough calories? Rapid weight loss, or the wrong diet can cause body chill.

This may sound strange, but can I suggest porridge, or oatbran for breakfast. At least 50g dry weight mixed with milk and heated.

Also, get a house thermostat. You can get them from pound shops and test the temperature in each of your rooms.

YORKSHIRELASS

Hi

What sort of windows do you have? Earlier this year we replaced most of our old wooden windows with UPVC. At the same time we put more insulation in the loft, had the cavity walls insulated and replaced the draughty back door.

The difference has been amazing. We now can use our multifuel stove to heat the house and so far this winter we have only been putting the heating on for an hour a day. I am at home most of the time and I feel the cold so this has made a real difference.

Of course upgrading the windows was a big outlay in terms of cost but I would have never believed the difference it has made.

smallblueplanet

How hot or cold it feels is personal but 22C, if that is the temperature of your house, is quite warm. Ours is set at about 18/19C on thermostat from about 0715 to 2230, and we use our open fire in the evenings, so the living room is warmer. But we also burn a lot (well it seems like it when the bills come in!) of oil. How much oil are you using?

samandmillie

Not too sure on the oil usage tbh, we've only lived here since end July, the tank hold 1200l and we've used around a quarter.

The windows are old upvc. The gaskets had shrunk and were very happy but we have filled the gaps with silicon. We rent so can't afford to replace the windows.

When we light the fire the draught it causes is unbelievable so we stopped having the heating on whilst the fires on, the trouble is that then makes the rest of the house seem cold. The mirror blocks off the fire so stops it being so draughty as there's no dampener.

The house is a 4 bed detached in open countryside. There's no radiator on the upstairs landing which I think makes the upstairs seem cold, the radiator in the downstairs hall is quite small and I don't think it's large enough to heat the whole area.

I think we consume enough calories but thanks for the suggestion.

I think the radiators may be slightly blocked with sludge as the bottom does not get as hot as the top so will talk to the landlord this weekend about getting them looked at.

I was told that the thermostat on the boiler controlled the heat of the hot water not the radiators??

Thanks

G_M

samandmillie wrote: »

We have oil heating. The house was built in 95. There's a fireplace with no dampener so I have place an old mirror in front of it when not in use.
Because it looks nice or to conserve heat? It won't work. Are you losing heat up the chimney? Or getting cold draughts down the chimney?
* fit an anti down-draft cowl
* block of the firwplace opening - properly

I've got thermal lining and curtains on all windows. I've put draught strips on all windows. The house is still cold unless we have the heating on for hours at a time.

But you say: "It's on from 5am-7am then 4.30 until approx 9pm." A cold house will take an hour or 2 to heat up!

It also has cavity wall and loft insulation. I have covered all extractors with plastic sheeting Bad move - they are there for a reason!as well as the loft hatch. I have draught excluder pillows on doors. When the heating has been on the radiators seem to get cold extremely quickly(probably within 20mins).If the heating comes on but the rads cool down after 20 minutes then
* either the thermostat thinks the desired temp (22?) has been reached or
* the thermostat is faulty
In the 1st 20 mins do they get hot?
Does this sound normal? Are there any other things I can do to try and make the house warmer? The boiler has been serviced in the past month. Many thanks

When we light the fire the draught it causes is unbelievable so we stopped having the heating on whilst the fires on, the trouble is that then makes the rest of the house seem cold.

Chimney is your problem! Does the mirror create an air-tight seal....:rotfl:

I think the radiators may be slightly blocked with sludge as the bottom does not get as hot as the top so will talk to the landlord this weekend about getting them looked at.

Then it needs power-flushing.

I was told that the thermostat on the boiler controlled the heat of the hot water not the radiators??

What do you think makes the rads hot? Water! From the boiler! If the water coming out of the boiler is luke-warm (exaggerated example) then the rads will only get luke-warm!

The beatings set to 22deg.

Have you tested the thermostat?
* Turn on heating
* Listen for boiler switching on
* wait for rads to heat up
* Slowly turn the thermostat down till you hear a little click (this is the ACTUAL temperature next to the stat)
* the boiler should go off (as the stat is telling the boiler "OK, We're hot enough now".
*After a minute or two, slowly turn up the stat again till it clicks again
* boiler should come back on (stat is now saying "Ooh! My humans want the temperature higher - come on boiler! Start work!"

Make sure while doing the above that the HOT WATER is switched off - you are testing the central heating thermostat here, so do not want to be confused by the hot water cylinder saying "Bloody humans want a hot bath - get your !!! in gear boiler!"