Different attitudes towards reasonable room temperature at home

poppysarah

BitterAndTwisted wrote: »

I can't believe that someone has the heating set to 15 degrees overnight or during the working day. In my house it would be off.

I think that's the point.

It is in effect off.

If your house gets below 15'C at night you probably need more insulation, draft proofing or to shut the windows and doors maybe

poppysarah

john_white wrote: »

So where exactly is the compromise from your part?

They haven't throw him out yet.

DRP

just to get the full picture, is his room colder than the rest of the house?

ie. radiator needs bleeding, rubbish window, no loft insulation, north facing outside wall etc etc etc

Mojisola

We do have a max/min thermometer and use it to check the temperature around the house. Just because a thermostat or a radiator valve is set at a particular temperature, it doesn't mean that the space we're living in will be at that temperature.

However, the OP was happy with the temperature of the house. When I was a lodger, I lived in the environment that the LL had set.

Idiophreak

SRT81 wrote: »

2. The house isn't cold (see above). And it's not the lodger's home, it's the LL's home first, and a rental property second.

If it wasn't too cold for the lodger, they wouldn't turn the heat up.

And it *is* the lodger's home. It's where they live. It's where they go home to at the end of the day...and when they go home, they probably want to be comfortable there - I don't see that this is such an unreasonable expectation.

SRT81 wrote: »

3. So you'd put what a lodger in your home wanted before your own needs?

What? If someone was *paying me* to live in my home, would I try and make them comfortable? Yes, I would.

Everyone's different. Some people like it hot, some people like it cold. I'd be benefiting by having a bunch more money...so if that meant I had to let them turn their radiator up in the room, or even "suffer" taking my jumper off in the evenings, I'd do that, yeah.

As I said before...I'd look to charge enough that the extra heating, if required, wouldn't leave me out of pocket - and if they liked the house cool, too, I'd be quids in, wouldn't I....But then I'm not as concerned about "the environment" as the OP...

Mojisola

Idiophreak wrote: »

What? If someone was *paying me* to live in my home, would I try and make them comfortable? Yes, I would.

The lodger is paying a rate that includes the heating bills. The room rate would be based on what the heating bills were before.

If the lodger wants the heating increased, he should be prepared to pay extra.

If the temperature he wants the house kept at is uncomfortable for the LL, the LL's choice has priority.

benjus

BitterAndTwisted wrote: »

I can't believe that someone has the heating set to 15 degrees overnight or during the working day. In my house it would be off. No-one needs the heating on when they're in bed unless they live up in the Arctic Circle!

Modern programmable thermostats often don't have an Off setting, so you just set a low temperature to prevent it from triggering. As for the suggestion that nobody should ever use the heating at night, my wife (who is from warmer climes) feels the cold here a lot, and sometimes even a good duvet and thick pyjamas aren't enough.

Better_Days

SRT81 wrote: »

18–20º (which the OP said they keep the temperature at) is not chilly, by any stretch of the imagination and will not affect anyone's health. You're making out like the house is at 0º all day and night.

Although almost certainly not the case that the OP has described, a temperature of 18 to 20 degrees will adversely affect my health due to chronic illness. Even today, at 23 degrees I am wearing thermal underwear. Unfortunately my body does not regulate temperature very well and when I get cold my symptoms are exacerbated and it is impossible to warm up without an external heat source such as an electric blanket. So for some 'put on a jumper' just doesn't work.

However, in this case OP, I would say 'your house, your rules', especially if you are providing a temperature of around 20 degrees, which for the fit and well is not unreasonable.

If your lodger is not happy then I think he needs to move on, especially taking into account the cost of fuel nowadays. I hope you get it sorted out, it sounds a bit like the lodger is trying to bully you.

cattie

I wouldn't put up with it either. I used to host students from overseas who came here to attend college, many from very warm countries in South America such as Brazil.

On their beds were electric blankets & high tog duvets for use in the colder months. Additional blankets were available if wanted.

When they first arrived I would give them a print out of house rules etc. & amongst the rules was the warning that England could be very cold, but electricity & gas were very expensive so it wasn't possible to provide constant heating & that it would only be on at set periods during the morning & evenings during weekdays, but on for longer periods at the weekends.

They were advised that by just sitting in front of a laptop or in front of a tv they would tend to feel cold, so to get up move about to bring their body temperature up. Also they were advised to put on a jumper or cardigan if cold & to use thermal underwear in the colder weather & that plenty of hot drinks would help them feel warmer.

I also provided thick warm dressing gowns & slippers for each student as I knew most would come without such things.

Some students would snuggle up in bed to watch tv in their room as they just loved the idea of a warm bed & never heard of something like an electric blanket before.

I never had one student complain that they were having trouble keeping warm in my house & I had quite a lot stay with me over the years.

You're the one having to pay the bills & if your lodger is being unreasonable about how much the house should be heated, then I'd get rid of him asap & look for a new lodger.

With a new lodger, inform them of the heating arrangements in the house & tell them if they want the heating on for longer or a higher temp, then there will be a supplement to pay on top of their rent.

I'm sure if this guy was responsible for the bills, he'd soon be looking for ways to cut back & ensure he was well wrapped up indoors to avoid excessive heating bills.

SRT81

Idiophreak wrote: »

If it wasn't too cold for the lodger, they wouldn't turn the heat up.

And it *is* the lodger's home. It's where they live. It's where they go home to at the end of the day...and when they go home, they probably want to be comfortable there - I don't see that this is such an unreasonable expectation.

Precisely. Too cold for the lodger. I.e. their personal preference.

Everyone's preferences are different, and if you're renting a room in someone else's home you need to respect their preference.

Home/house/lodging, whatever... The point is that it's a ROOM being rented out. That doesn't give the lodger's personal preferences in terms of heat and comfort priority over the owner's, who also has to live there.

What if the lodger preferred the living room was arranged differently? Do you start re-arranging the furniture to accommodate what they want?

No, of course you don't.

Similar principle applies... The owner of the house gets final say on EVERY decision, over and above what the lodger wants.

The lodger doesn't have to live there if they don't like it. They can move to more suitable accommodation.

Idiophreak wrote: »

What? If someone was *paying me* to live in my home, would I try and make them comfortable? Yes, I would.

Everyone's different. Some people like it hot, some people like it cold. I'd be benefiting by having a bunch more money...so if that meant I had to let them turn their radiator up in the room, or even "suffer" taking my jumper off in the evenings, I'd do that, yeah.

As I said before...I'd look to charge enough that the extra heating, if required, wouldn't leave me out of pocket - and if they liked the house cool, too, I'd be quids in, wouldn't I....But then I'm not as concerned about "the environment" as the OP...

Make them comfortable, yes. Make yourself uncomfortable in the process, no.

The OP's already mentioned –!in their first post, no less –!that the lodger isn't prepared to pay more towards the heating, so in that position you wouldn't have a bunch more money.