Rointe K Series Electric Radiators

CashStrapped

Scatty wrote: »

I shall take stock of where we are with regards to tariffs etc. The "free" day (and you did obviously note my speech marks above) works for me in a way as Sunday is the only day I have free to do anything laundry, tumble drying, mowing related so I will work out my usage once we're all up and running and the bloomin' heaters are working.

Good luck. You have had lots of good advice.

Bear in mind that you have leaving penalties with this tariff. With all the trouble, you may get them to waive them if you wish to switch. you could also switch to a British Gas standard tariff (no penalty for doing this, I think) and then switch (again, no penalty).

I did do a calculation a while back. Even with a lot of high energy use on that one free day, it did not come close to beating the cheapest available tariff.

With us coming into winter. It could be (based on what others have said about the under-sizing of these heaters). They they may need to be on permanently just to keep the house warm. If that is the case, then you may find that costs will very quickly escalate.

Hence, start making a daily/weekly note of your use and cost.

Ironically, this should be much easier with a smart meter. But, don't be afraid to switch if you find your bills are going to be very high.

Scatty

Thank you all for your help. I am slightly obsessed with the meter readings app on my phone and once BG get around to installing the monitor in my house, I shall be glued to it once an appliance is turned on! For a while anyway......


Indeed it is my first winter in the house, and coming from a centrally heated top floor flat, I fear the worst. But I am more energy efficient in general now I've moved as I'm aware that electric radiators are more expensive than CH ones, so I can save elsewhere.


However, at the end of the day I'm not going to scrimp and save on being warm and then damage my health, my pets' health and the health of my home. As long as I'm comfortable, the heating doesn't need to be too high and therefore hopefully I won't be haemorrhaging money.....she says....hopefully....

Cardew

Scatty wrote: »

I've read such horror stories about Rointe but obviously my landlord doesn't care. There was no heating in the house bar a plug in heater before last winter apparently, how the previous tenant lived there is beyond me!

I have seen nothing to suggest the Rointe heaters are other than well built and reliable.

The adverse comments have largely referred to their high prices and claims in their advertising.

As you haven't bought them, the only concern is if the output of the fitted heaters will be adequate to heat your house.

DREKLY

Hi Scatty - here's an idea....
kitchen is open plan to the lounge ?
kitchen has a gas cooker ...... gas is by FAR cheaper than electric, just turn on
the oven, or rings, to provide cheaper heat into that area
you can always cook cakes, bread, whatever and double up on the use at the
same time, so long as you enjoy the constant smell of fresh bread !
in the bedroom, + electric blanket. nice big duvet.
I know what it's like, I am in an all electric bungalow, on Economy 7 (ish)
as for the rats, don't ask !!!

CashStrapped

DREKLY wrote: »

kitchen has a gas cooker ...... gas is by FAR cheaper than electric, just turn on
the oven, or rings, to provide cheaper heat into that area

Not a good idea at all. It is not designed to be used for heating.

Getting some heat while cooking as a side effect....yes

Using a cooker to heat a part of a property....no!

For a start , an open gas flame produces a lot more water vapour. So in a well insulated house, without the extractor fan on, you may end up getting condensation on cold spots, which leads to damp and mould.

This is apart from the risk of having an open flame constantly burning for something it was not designed to do.

Any open naked flame, gas fire, cooker etc. needs a room that is well ventilated. Failure to do this (especially if using it for heating over along period) could be dangerous.

I have a very large Gas oven and hob in my property. I always open a window (along with the extractor) when using it.

I appreciate the idea, but cost saving to that extent is not a good idea.

DREKLY

Point taken, CashStrapped !!
but ovens are designed to be run for hours at a time, surely ?
and give out tons of heat when doing so. I know one lady who loves to stand in front of the oven door after she has cooked us supper....
the extra moisture created by burning gas would still occur when
using either rings, or oven - does everyone open their windows
when cooking, I don't!
In my all electric property, I am grateful for the extra heat created
when cooking on my calor gas stove .

CashStrapped

You can do it, it is just not healthy and potentially dangerous.

This website, pretty much sums up what I could spend ages typing.

http://www.abe.iastate.edu/extension-and-outreach/carbon-monoxide-poisoning-gas-fired-kitchen-ranges-aen-205/

http://www.which.co.uk/news/2010/03/carbon-monoxide-deaths-linked-to-cookers-205672/

Calor Gas and LPG equivalent also produce a lot more water vapour than mains gas. I think it is a 1 - 1 ratio. For every litre burnt, 1 litre of water vapour is expelled.

Old houses, were designed to be draughty for this reason. They were designed with open fires (gas or coal) in mind. So in an old draughty house, you may get away with it via natural ventilation.

However, there has been a massive drive to insulate houses, block up draughts. Quite often this is done without considering much needed controlled ventilation i.e kitchen extractor, room extractors etc.

So if you do what you suggest in a modern, well insulated house, you are asking for trouble.

Scatty

Nice idea re the oven but I simply don't cook much at all. I probably use the frying pan perhaps once or twice a week and the same with the oven. So I think I'll pass - I'm determined to minimise condensation/damp/mould due to asthma so thank you for the tip but I shall pass

Scatty

DREKLY wrote: »

in the bedroom, + electric blanket. nice big duvet.
I know what it's like, I am in an all electric bungalow, on Economy 7 (ish)
as for the rats, don't ask !!!

I have my electric blanket on and ready to go although it is unseasonably warm at the moment (or is that my germs?!)


The rats have their own fur coats but they still like to be snug.

lstar337

Winter is just around the corner and suddenly we have an influx of posts about Rointe and Fischer heaters. (no accusations Scatty)