No normal heating in the flat

Bantex_2

Why not just buy a couple of electric radiators for around £50 quid each?
If you can afford £2500 per month rent that should not be a problem.

leeruddecology

Pumen this does sound like an awful situation for you. I am sorry for that.When I moved into my flat and it had a rating of about 76, so not much higherthan yours i was concerned about energy bills. It was to be honest, one of the first things I asked aboutt. However, they didn't really tell me what the average bills were for the flats was, so it was hard to gauge and I am a little concerned about the winter, but only because I don't want to spend all my money on heat, but on more interesting things :-). I have electricity and a Nibe exhaust heat recovery system and was concerned about only having electricity as I understood gas was much cheaper.It is currently costing me about 50p a day for hot water and heating (temps setto 18 degrees).

I have a south facing flat, with massive window/doors but these are doubleglazed. Lowest my flat gets to at the moment if I don't have the heating on is16 degrees during the day and about 15 degrees at night in the living room(massive windows etc with vertical blinds), 17-18 elsewhere. I am going toinvest in thermal curtains soon. Have you got curtains, and are they thermal?

It appears your paying a lot for rent, where abouts are you living. London?Are you really paying £600 per a week? Although, this is not of course yourmain point of this post.

I suggest you buy some mobile heaters which are cheap. These may prove to bemore energy effecient than your current set up. My mother has panel heaters,and she hates them and they cost alot. Not however, as much as what you aresaying! But, all flats/houses are different.

If you’re concerned about the weather, and of course it will get muchcolder. If your rent is the lower end, 600£ per month and you think your energybills will be higher than £400 then perhaps its time to cut your losses, if it’sseriously going to be that bad. However, if the higher costs, buy some mobileheaters?

I really don’t think the council can do anything at all to be honest. It hasheating and I imagine even if it didn’t, it wouldn’t matter, as you chose tosign a contract. Defiantly a learning experience for you. I wonder, what if youtried and arranged a buy out of your contract at a cheaper rate? If you’regiving the landlord a lot of hassle and I wouldn't blame you based on what youhave said. They might just cut their losses for an easier life? No disrespectintended.

Richie-from-the-Boro

Pity only available. Only what's inside the 4 corners of a contract [the face of a written instrument] you signed is applicable, any extraneous information concerning the document that does not appear in it — within its four corners — cannot be evaluated. You have heating within the 4 corners nothing else counts. Caveat emptor next time my friend.

pumen

This is what I have in terms of the thermostat
https://www.plumbnation.co.uk/site/honeywell-dial-setting-room-thermostat-t6360b1028/

Not a lot you can do with this, unfortunately

The heater itself is a skirting panel heating

Something like this:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Skirting-Heater-GLN2150/dp/B004001BTU/ref=pd_sxp_f_pt

This is the first time I see such technology.

pumen

leeruddecology wrote: »

Pumen this does sound like an awful situation for you. I am sorry for that.When I moved into my flat and it had a rating of about 76, so not much higherthan yours i was concerned about energy bills. It was to be honest, one of the first things I asked aboutt. However, they didn't really tell me what the average bills were for the flats was, so it was hard to gauge and I am a little concerned about the winter, but only because I don't want to spend all my money on heat, but on more interesting things :-). I have electricity and a Nibe exhaust heat recovery system and was concerned about only having electricity as I understood gas was much cheaper.It is currently costing me about 50p a day for hot water and heating (temps setto 18 degrees).

I have a south facing flat, with massive window/doors but these are doubleglazed. Lowest my flat gets to at the moment if I don't have the heating on is16 degrees during the day and about 15 degrees at night in the living room(massive windows etc with vertical blinds), 17-18 elsewhere. I am going toinvest in thermal curtains soon. Have you got curtains, and are they thermal?

It appears your paying a lot for rent, where abouts are you living. London?Are you really paying £600 per a week? Although, this is not of course yourmain point of this post.

I suggest you buy some mobile heaters which are cheap. These may prove to bemore energy effecient than your current set up. My mother has panel heaters,and she hates them and they cost alot. Not however, as much as what you aresaying! But, all flats/houses are different.

If you’re concerned about the weather, and of course it will get muchcolder. If your rent is the lower end, 600£ per month and you think your energybills will be higher than £400 then perhaps its time to cut your losses, if it’sseriously going to be that bad. However, if the higher costs, buy some mobileheaters?

I really don’t think the council can do anything at all to be honest. It hasheating and I imagine even if it didn’t, it wouldn’t matter, as you chose tosign a contract. Defiantly a learning experience for you. I wonder, what if youtried and arranged a buy out of your contract at a cheaper rate? If you’regiving the landlord a lot of hassle and I wouldn't blame you based on what youhave said. They might just cut their losses for an easier life? No disrespectintended.

Yes, it is London. We came to UK for a few years In September for work and it took us a lot of effort to find a flat as the stock was extremely low. It was a nightmare... Totally devastated that we missed a heating this... Couldn't imagine it can be this way here.

No, they will not release me. I understand they knew about this crap and would never find anyone, even in London, to take this as you can really feel the cold in the flat now. I can break in April and I will, but I am stuck in this crap for the whole winter. I cannot really afford to rent another flat and pay for both

lstar337

I can't imagine that heater is adequate to heat the space, unless you have them in every inch of skirting.

You best bet is going to be to start looking at some 2kW+ oil filled electric radiators. You should be able to find them everywhere this time of year. Look for units with a thermostat and/or timer built in. You shouldn't have to pay more than about £40 and you will find them cheaper than that.

Do you have a single heater per room?

If so I think you may have cause to go to the landlord and ask for a rent reduction as those heaters are not sufficient to heat the space in winter, not with an EPC that low.

Citizens Advice may be able to offer advice on this too.

But really I think you are just going to have to get some of your own heaters and try to reduce the heat escaping from the flat.

pumen

lstar337 wrote: »

I can't imagine that heater is adequate to heat the space, unless you have them in every inch of skirting.

You best bet is going to be to start looking at some 2kW+ oil filled electric radiators. You should be able to find them everywhere this time of year. Look for units with a thermostat and/or timer built in. You shouldn't have to pay more than about £40 and you will find them cheaper than that.

Do you have a single heater per room?

If so I think you may have cause to go to the landlord and ask for a rent reduction as those heaters are not sufficient to heat the space in winter, not with an EPC that low.

Citizens Advice may be able to offer advice on this too.

But really I think you are just going to have to get some of your own heaters and try to reduce the heat escaping from the flat.

So, this is what I meant about lack of normal heating. This is a total rip off. I have this skirting panels in all rooms, but when they are on, half of them are dead cold. Last night, I tested and put the thermostat for the night in the living room at 27 degrees. I woke up and it is 20 degrees in the room... This ate 23 kw of electricity during the night- for 7 hrs. This is really horrible.

bloss0m

The problem is the building not sufficiently retaining heat due to lack on insulation. Many old buildings have this issue I live in one myself when you can only add insulation to fabric of the building either inside thus loosing space or on outside both have huge costs unless building was built sometime slightly before 1930's or afterwards and have cavity walls.

Thus heating many not be adequate for your flat that's why if wont go over 17c assuming you have it on full

My guess is landlord isnt bothered about doing insulation and is more interested in getting rent. I assume you live in and around London given high rent you pay.

Gas is cheaper to use for heating but not always available. Even when it is often landlords wont use it as there is a larger cost to install and or its another thing that needs checking every year for safety checks

pumen wrote: »

This is not how it works out. If it was 5 pounds per day for a full flat and with good result, I wouldn't even start this subject.

Of course, I do not heat the full flat. I checked the meter. A living room, thermostat set at just 20 degrees (still, temperature doesn't get higher than 17) consumes about 2 units of energy per hour (according to the meter). So, if it is on for 24 hours, it is 48 units in just one single room. This comes at about 6 pounds per day, or 180 pounds per month for just one(!) room. If I turn it off for some period of time, the temperature will fall to 14! It also takes forever for these panels to increase temperature in the room. Simply expensive and horrible.

So, with a living room and a bedroom, this will be almost 400 pounds per month for 17 degrees. And the rooms are not big at all!!!

Obviously these panels are extremely expensive and super inefficient. And the landlord does not want to do anything to improve this.

Pincher

There was an episode in Friends, where they saw that the naked guy had died, so Ross snapped up the apartment. Real people were scanning obituaries to find apartments in New York.


In my area, house hunters used to wait for old widows to die so they can buy the house.


There are "agents" out there who promise to find you a nice flat if you pay them £100 registration fee. Established agents will try to rip you off by making you pay a processing fee, even though they get a fat 10%+VAT from the landlord, plus other expenses.


It's a jungle out there.

adouglasmhor

Some things can help - if it's not double glazed a decent set of heavy lined curtains can make a huge difference, check draughtproofing.