It's time to start digging up those Squirrelled Nuts!!!!

Ibrahim5

We live in a larger house and although careful with energy use still use 30000kwh gas and 4000kwh electric. High energy prices make downsizing look more attractive. Just need to get rid of the younger generation who are happily resident here.

Fuzzie

I find the amount of gas and electricity used in other peoples homes fascinating, the amounts used seem to vary quite a bit. So for useless information, my figures are:-

Gas - 14750kwh
Elec - 2375 kwh

2 adults, 1980’s 5 bed detached, central England


System Boiler (2008)
Dual fuel oven/hob
No Dishwasher
Tumble Dryer
No electric shower

Albermarle

Ibrahim5 said:

We live in a larger house and although careful with energy use still use 30000kwh gas and 4000kwh electric. High energy prices make downsizing look more attractive. Just need to get rid of the younger generation who are happily resident here.

It is not just the size of the house, but its design/age. Your usage is pretty much double the poster above, who lives in a 5 bed detached.
So either you have a pretty large house, or it is an older one maybe, with high ceilings, solid walls, not fully double glazed, open fireplace etc ?

Ibrahim5

Newish really. More people, 6 large bedrooms, 4 bathrooms, 3 gas fireplaces, high ceilings. It's our gas usage that is high. Do a lot of cooking too. Wasn't really a problem when gas was 3p/kWh. Just a question of buying a newer boiler and replacing showers. Maybe worth doing now.

michaels

Ibrahim5 said:

Newish really. More people, 6 large bedrooms, 4 bathrooms, 3 gas fireplaces, high ceilings. It's our gas usage that is high. Do a lot of cooking too. Wasn't really a problem when gas was 3p/kWh. Just a question of buying a newer boiler and replacing showers. Maybe worth doing now.

I think also people have very different ideas of what is a comfortable temperature.  We like 21 degrees plus in the day and 15+ at night, there are people at home all day and every room is used regularly.  There are 5 of us who like decent length showers twice a day.

(We are running the house cooler this year, it is saving lots of gas but imho it no longer feels warm and welcoming as you come through the front door)

Others I am sure would find that too hot and excessive bathing.  We are all different and all have to pay for our choices.

westv

Two showers a day would be excessive to me but if someone else wants to then up to them.

trevjl

When I was a kid we had a bath every Sunday night whether we needed it or not !!!!!!

Sea_Shell

westv said:

Two showers a day would be excessive to me but if someone else wants to then up to them.

Won't anyone think of the polar bears!!

😉

Roger175

Albermarle said:It is not just the size of the house, but its design/age. Your usage is pretty much double the poster above, who lives in a 5 bed detached.

So either you have a pretty large house, or it is an older one maybe, with high ceilings, solid walls, not fully double glazed, open fireplace etc ?

There's a lot more to it than that. I work in the construction industry where there has been much talk in recent years about something known as the 'performance gap'. What has become very obvious is that the workmanship involved in the build process, and particularly the installation of the insulation and the air-tightness measures, have a huge influence on how a building performs. It has been proven that many new houses fall very far short of their intended targets, simply due to poorly fitted insulation etc. I see this all the time and it drives me mad, the difference between getting it right and leaving it poorly fitted is sometimes only a few minutes of time. Having spent the money buying the insulation, you'd expect the contractor to spend a bit more time supervising the fitting. The trouble is, the poor sod buying the house doesn't know what's going on behind the plasterboard.
The new revision of the Building Regs (Part L) which came in earlier this year, at least seeks to address this with it now being a requirement to provide photos of the insulation before it is covered up.
I would urge anyone to at least check their loft. I have seen new houses, signed off by Building Control and the NHBC etc, where you can see the back of the plasterboard due to huge gaps in the insulation.

michaels

Roger175 said:

Albermarle said:It is not just the size of the house, but its design/age. Your usage is pretty much double the poster above, who lives in a 5 bed detached.

So either you have a pretty large house, or it is an older one maybe, with high ceilings, solid walls, not fully double glazed, open fireplace etc ?

There's a lot more to it that that. I work in the construction industry where there has been much talk in recent years about something known as the 'performance gap'. What has become very obvious is that the workmanship involved in the build process, and particularly the installation of the insulation and the air-tightness measures, have a huge influence on how a building performs. It has been proven that many new houses fall very far short of their intended targets, simply due to poorly fitted insulation etc. I see this all the time and it drives me mad, the difference between getting it right and leaving it poorly fitted is sometimes only a few minutes of time. Having spent the money buying the insulation, you'd expect the contractor to spend a bit more time supervising the fitting. The trouble is, the poor sod buying the house doesn't know what's going on behind the plasterboard.
The new revision of the Building Regs (Part L) which came in earlier this year, at least seeks to address this with it now being a requirement to provide photos of the insulation before it is covered up.
I would urge anyone to at least check their loft. I have seen new houses, signed off by Building Control and the NHBC etc, where you can see the back of the plasterboard due to huge gaps in the insulation.

Useful.  I am kind of suspicious of how well the insulation in our 10 year old extension was done.  Do you have any tips on how to check (as you say it is all hidden when finished)?