This years heating plan (opinions please)

NowRetired

I take it you have a thermostat?

Obviously, or the house would just get hotter and hotter.


I can't imagine that someone has gas central heating and the only way to control the temperature is by manually switching it on and off

st999

Simplistically

Say your house requires 5 kWh of heat per hour to maintain its temperature.

so 8 hours during the night it loses 40 kWh.

So turn heating off for 8 hours.

Does it need 40 kWh to raise the temperature from what it has went down to to bring it up to what you need?

iammumtoone

NowRetired wrote: »

I can't imagine that someone has gas central heating and the only way to control the temperature is by manually switching it on and off

I do and yes that is the only way on mine. I do have a timer that I can use so don't have to physically switch it on and off, but the boiler does have to be turned on and off to maintain temperature. I am not sure if the boiler itself houses some kind of thermostat but as it is placed in an old part of the house (what would have been the outside toilet when house was built) it is always cold in there (no rad) so any internal stat (if there is one) would never kick in.

I did inquire years ago about having a room stat but was told it would need to be wired, I take it the wireless ones are a new(ish) thing?

Nada666

st999 wrote: »

Why do you have economy 7 if you have gas?

Provided you have gas for cooking it can be sensible to have E7 with gas heating.

Cardew

Nada666 wrote: »

Provided you have gas for cooking it can be sensible to have E7 with gas heating.

I have gas CH, cook with gas, and am on E7.

The 'break even' point on my tariff is approx 20% on off-peak and I use about 25%.

In summer, on BST, E7 should change over at 08:30am(actually it is closer to 09:00am). That enables us to shower(electric) and use appliances on off-peak - if they haven't been put on a timer overnight.

iammumtoone

Cardew wrote: »

I have gas CH, cook with gas, and am on E7.

The 'break even' point on my tariff is approx 20% on off-peak and I use about 25%.

In summer, on BST, E7 should change over at 08:30am(actually it is closer to 09:00am). That enables us to shower(electric) and use appliances on off-peak - if they haven't been put on a timer overnight.

Yes I do have a gas cooker.

Cardew how did you work out that E7 was more beneficial for you? I think it will be for me as like I said I do make use of it, but I would still like to check.

Cardew

iammumtoone wrote: »

Cardew how did you work out that E7 was more beneficial for you? I think it will be for me as like I said I do make use of it, but I would still like to check.

I know my annual consumption in kWh. I also know how much I use on off-peak(25%)

So on my tariff if my total electrical consumption is, say, 6,000kWh, I go on a comparison website(I use energyhelpline.com) and enter firstly 6,000kWh on a 'normal' (24/7) tariff and get a price. Then enter 25% on off-peak(E7) and find that price.

If you want to find the best tariff from all tariffs available, just enter your total gas and electricity consumption. Then try various percentages of E7 off peak.

HappyMJ

iammumtoone wrote: »

Hi All

I really need to make some savings this year on heating costs so was considering doing the following

Oil rad in living room to come on 6.30-7.30am cost 16p (using ec 7)
(I think this will be cheaper than turning on the gas ch but would welcome advise on that)
Gas central heating on max 3 hours at night 5pm-8pm (if inside temp drops below 18 deg)
Can top up with oil rad in just the room we are in cost 36p hour (std rate)

I am not worried about myself I will brave the cold but I have a 6 year old so house does need to be comfortable for him. I am also aware that I need to heat the house otherwise I will have bigger problems with bust pipes etc. What is the minimum amount of heating I can get away with to avoid this?

My situation is I live in a pre 1900s mid terrace, insulation is not very efficient aluminum double glazing (some of the panes need replacing).

I have gas central heating. Combination boiler about 13 years old, the radiators are alot older than this all single width style. I have no room thermostat so ch is either on or off (it does have a timer on the boiler which I can control).

Any advise on the cheapest and most efficient way to heat my home would be appreciated. I currently pay £48 per month on gas.

Thanks

I think it depends on what you do in the morning. I get up and want my bedroom to be a little warmer than freezing so I have an oil filled radiator going all night on a very low setting on E7. It's usually about 14 degrees in my bedroom at any time. The gas central heating is off. All the radiators in the bedroom are off anyway. The heat from downstairs heats upstairs slowly anyway.

I then go and take a shower so have a fan heater mounted on the wall and use that whilst I'm in the shower..as long as it is before E7 finishes it's quite cheap and the heat keeps the bathroom less humid too.

Then I go and have some toast and a cup of tea. I'm only in the kitchen for a short time before leaving the house so I just have that and go without any additional heat. Yes it's cold but the tea keeps me warm enough....and I'm dressed by this time so much warmer anyway.

To avoid burst pipes you only need the heating on for 2 periods each day for about 1 hour each...if it is below freezing during the day outside.

Aluminium double glazing is fine. What is broken exactly? Insulation is more effective in the roof space.

If you don't have a thermostat could you install one? Or instead of on for 3 hours if the timer has those push buttons can you set it to be on for 15 minutes and off for 15 minutes and cycle like that instead? Not sure if it'll save much but the temperature shouldn't get quite so warm.