Money Moral Dilemma: Should my housemates pay more for heating?

D_M_E

Presumably you all share the gas/electric bills.

So, read the meters then turn the heating on for a set period, say 10 hours, then read the meters again when the heating cuts off.

You now have 2 readings and can work out - using your tariff rates, which nobody here but you knows - how much extra it has cost for that day to have the heating on.

Add on 30% as the weather is not yet particularly cool and divide the total by the number of occupants.

Now you can inform everyone else what the likely daily cost will be for the next 5 months and ask can they afford it going forward and are they willing to contribute their share of the costs.

Mr.Generous

thought provoking stuff, I think its jumper and slippers on first, then the heating. While I don't believe in throwing money away I do believe you should be comfortable in your own home. The only millionaire I know well does not use the heating and they sit on sofas with those blankets with arm holes in them to watch tv (with 1 low energy bulb removed from each fitting to save money). Yes its very frugal, but would you believe they suffer from numerous health issues??
Sharing a house is going to require compromise.

Prothet_of_Doom

I was in a house share some time back with a Lad from India.
Obviously he was used to 40 degrees in the shade, and in May said "When will winter end? "
One of the other lads had the heating controls in his room, and he was "Hardy" and wouldn't put the heating on unless it was less than 16 in the house.
So you'd find the Indian Lad, in front of the gas fire.
I was only staying 4 nights a week but paid 1/3 of the bills for 7 days.
I always wondered why the electric bills were so high, until the day he moved out (to move to Singapore for 6 months - he had the offer of 6 months in Canada in starting in November but we persuaded him that it might be too cold ). I helped him carry his stuff out to a van, and it included the biggest fan heater I've ever seen.
Oh how we laughed.

What I'm saying is house shares require you to have a sense of humour and compromise. If you are too hot, turn the radiators off in your room and open the windows.

gloriouslyhappy

It's false economy keeping the heating off or too low, it has to work extra hard when it is turned on, a bit like running an empty freezer where it's less efficient to maintain freezing of empty space rather than keeping items frozen (solution: freeze 2litre bottles of water until the freezer's full). Modern boilers have a background mode so even when the timer is off, a minimum temperature is maintained to prevent burst pipes. As already suggested, try to agree a set temperature and timings, eg 7am to 9am and 5pm to 11pm at 21*, and 15* outside those times, then let the boiler system do its thing and anyone feeling too hot or cold can simply adjust their apparel. You can always suggest you try that system for a set period eg one week, and see how everyone gets on with it.

gloriouslyhappy

Some useful tips here:

http://www.saga.co.uk/magazine/money/spending/deals-and-saving-money/eight-tips-for-keeping-warm-in-winter

Cardew

gloriouslyhappy wrote: »

It's false economy keeping the heating off or too low, it has to work extra hard when it is turned on,

The urban myth lives on!

There are countless threads on this subject - including one running at the moment.

The longer the heating is turned down, or off, the lower your fuel bills.

That said I am not suggesting that people in a house share should have the temperature below that which they find acceptable.

missbiggles1

pollypenny wrote: »

It's November. Quite normal to have to heating on. I never turn mine off. It's set at 20, so doesn't come on in the summer and not until late in spring or Autumn, as the lower sun hits the hall where the thermostat is.

If your sharer was wandering around in a t-shirt in December you'd have a case, but not for normal dressing.

Doesn't that mean that it's on all night?

gloriouslyhappy

[QUOTE=It's_false_economy_keeping_the_heating_off_or_too_low,_it_has_to_work_extra_hard_when_it_is_turned_on,_[/QUOTE] Originally posted by gloriouslyhappy

Cardew wrote: »

The urban myth lives on!

There are countless threads on this subject - including one running at the moment.

The longer the heating is turned down, or off, the lower your fuel bills.

That said I am not suggesting that people in a house share should have the temperature below that which they find acceptable.

I stand by what I said about it being more efficient to leave your heating on low, I had a look at http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/utilities/energy-saving-myths and the answer to the question "Should you leave your heating on if you're going away?" is given as "To prevent frozen pipes, which can cause hundreds of pounds of damage, the Energy Saving Trust recommends you leave the heating on to some degree during winter even if you're not there. Check your home insurance policy before you go away. The rule of thumb is to keep your heating at a minimum 14 degrees, rather than switching it off."

So I suppose it depends on your circumstances - if you're mid-terrace or in a block of flats, you'll get some heat from your neighbours and can probably safely switch off your heating, whereas if you're in a detached house, it's better to leave the heating on low.

Coveredinbees!!!!

Get your own place then you can do what you want with the heating.

Kim_kim

inkykat20 wrote: »

This happens to me every year. I am quite money conscious and my flat mates will always reach for the heating instead of a jumper - my mum brought me up to be a bit more hardy. I pay for the Gas and Electricity so I just charge them a little more. We reached a decision recently about when (morning and evening) and how long the heating comes on for (1h each time) so now we all pay the same.

You have the heating on for only 2 hours a day?
Surely not when it's really cold?