Energy myth-busting: Is it cheaper to have heating on all day?

John_Pierpoint

As the property now has a "combi", does it follow that it no longer has an expansion tank in the roof ?
Are you in a hard water area.
I don't know much about "combi" boilers, I have never had one, but you cannot get away from the fact that when water is heated it expands. If you put in bigger radiators there will be more water in the system to get hot and expand. Ask the plumber to explain.

Back in the swinging sixties, I used to earn a few bob by baby sitting. My "clients" tended to have nice new houses with the new luxury gas central heating. My first task was always to work out how to over ride the time clock. The heating was often set to turn off at 10:30 and by midnight it would feel freezing.
[If the parents arrived back after midnight I would most likely get a whole pound rather than 10/- . Perhaps even more if they were drunk.;)]

Leodogger

John_Pierpoint wrote: »

As the property now has a "combi", does it follow that it no longer has an expansion tank in the roof ?
Are you in a hard water area.
I don't know much about "combi" boilers, I have never had one, but you cannot get away from the fact that when water is heated it expands. If you put in bigger radiators there will be more water in the system to get hot and expand. Ask the plumber to explain.

Back in the swinging sixties, I used to earn a few bob by baby sitting. My "clients" tended to have nice new houses with the new luxury gas central heating. My first task was always to work out how to over ride the time clock. The heating was often set to turn off at 10:30 and by midnight it would feel freezing.
[If the parents arrived back after midnight I would most likely get a whole pound rather than 10/- . Perhaps even more if they were drunk.;)]

No we don't have an expansion tank in the loft. I don't know if we have hard water or not, why does this matter ?

I did discuss with my sister about having bigger radiators. She seemed to think that bigger radiators would get the rooms warmer quicker but still allow me to use the stat to turn it down to a comfortable temperature, whereas at the moment I am having to leave the heating on longer to even get it to a comfortable temperature. My comfortable temp is being able to sit in a room without feeling a chill in the air and I am wearing a sweater and at the moment that is what it is like in the bedroom, you can't wait to get out even with the radiator on in there !

John_Pierpoint

First time "combi" user learns how the expansion works
http://www.urban75.net/forums/threads/how-dangerous-is-it-if-your-boiler-pressure-is-well-high.242160/.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PrRjFni9Wdg
The more modern the system is the more like corrugated cardboard the heat exchanger is likely to be and so the more important it becomes to make sure the mains water is not continuously being added to the radiators. As the guy explaining how to hit a radiator valve with a hammer explains, the system can become jammed up with scale and other carp. (carp probably = rust) If the heat exchanger gets partially blocked it will burn out, so it becomes vital to keep the fluid in the system clean, inhibited and protected with a magnetic filter.
This means you might be well advised to fully flush the system and recharge it with appropriate additives, when you disturb it by removing radiators.
Just check on the net for the price of a "simple" system flush and refill and you might decide that replacing a radiator is not a cheap option. It could depend on what you discover inside the removed radiator, perhaps the previous occupant has flushed the system recently.

Leodogger

John_Pierpoint wrote: »

First time "combi" user learns how the expansion works
http://www.urban75.net/forums/threads/how-dangerous-is-it-if-your-boiler-pressure-is-well-high.242160/.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PrRjFni9Wdg
The more modern the system is the more like corrugated cardboard the heat exchanger is likely to be and so the more important it becomes to make sure the mains water is not continuously being added to the radiators. As the guy explaining how to hit a radiator valve with a hammer explains, the system can become jammed up with scale and other carp. (carp probably = rust) If the heat exchanger gets partially blocked it will burn out, so it becomes vital to keep the fluid in the system clean, inhibited and protected with a magnetic filter.
This means you might be well advised to fully flush the system and recharge it with appropriate additives, when you disturb it by removing radiators.
Just check on the net for the price of a "simple" system flush and refill and you might decide that replacing a radiator is not a cheap option. It could depend on what you discover inside the removed radiator, perhaps the previous occupant has flushed the system recently.

I presume that if I bring in a heating engineer he will advise on these things before making any changes (if he knows his stuff!).

John_Pierpoint

It rather depends who he is and how you found him.
The more you know about about what is possible the more likely you are to make the right decision and recognise if you are being "ripped off".

Leodogger

John_Pierpoint wrote: »

It rather depends who he is and how you found him.
The more you know about about what is possible the more likely you are to make the right decision and recognise if you are being "ripped off".

Point taken ! However, I do have a brother who is a plumber who I can check things with, although he can't do any plumbing work these days as he is partly disabled due to various operations he has had and can't do the bending and twisting now that is inevitable with plumbing work. He can put me right though if I am told a load of waffle.

Time_to_save

Hi. I've just got a new combi/condensation boiler and was wondering if anyone here has any money saving tips about best use. I notice that when I use my kitchen tap, by the time the water runs hot, I've done the job I wanted. I understand that it takes time to hear and run through the pipes, but I can still hear the boiler firing up (I understand it doesn't just stop, it dissipates the heat that it builds up) But when I next use my kitchen tap, after a short, hot burst of water, it's cold again. So my questions are: are there any ways to use the frequent cold water run offs and could I organise my kitchen work better?

Gratis

Time_to_save wrote: »

Hi. I've just got a new combi/condensation boiler and was wondering if anyone here has any money saving tips about best use. I notice that when I use my kitchen tap, by the time the water runs hot, I've done the job I wanted. I understand that it takes time to hear and run through the pipes, but I can still hear the boiler firing up (I understand it doesn't just stop, it dissipates the heat that it builds up) But when I next use my kitchen tap, after a short, hot burst of water, it's cold again. So my questions are: are there any ways to use the frequent cold water run offs and could I organise my kitchen work better?

We don’t have a combi/condensing boiler; we have a 22 year old traditional one that’s running fine and a hot water tank in the airing cupboard.

But what plumbers call the “dead leg” – the cold water in the pipes that has to run through until the hot water arrives – to our kitchen sink is quite long. We keep two-litre plastic bottles near the tap and fill them up with the cool water. We then use that for non-potable purposes (such as watering plants and washing the car).

orrery

Time_to_save wrote: »

Hi. I've just got a new combi/condensation boiler and ... (I understand it doesn't just stop, it dissipates the heat that it builds up)

I'm not sure what you mean by that. Obviously, the unused heat will just dissipate into the environment but that is just wasted heat.

malc_b

I see that in 50+ Overseas Travel Tips Martin has fallen for the old chestnut of TVs take loads of power in standby. New TVs do NOT. The EU brought in a rule years ago that TVs had to draw less than 1W in standby. If you still have an old CRT TV then this might be true but any flat screen TV no.

And to put that into context 1W would be 1 unit, say 15p, in 1000 hrs, which roughly 1 month. Not really a significant saving is it.