When do you turn on your heating, if at all?

EssexHebridean

We are new to GCH and the world of thermostats, however, I already knew that once in our new house we would work precisely the same way with heating that we have done before. Our personal comfort level is that if it drops below 18°C we tend to feel chilly - even with a thick hoodie and cosy socks! So the thermostat has been set for 18° from 0600 - 0730 and from early evening through to 2130 during the week with slightly different temperatures during the weekend. 

Our heating activated for the first time a fortnight ago - ironically while we were away overnight - after we had a sudden hard frost overnight, and had been coming on at least once a day most days since. I think this evening we may try lighting the fire to see how we get on with that for the first time since moving in, so that is exciting, and will also be interesting to see if it means the heating isn’t required tomorrow morning! 

One thing for sure - we will not be joining in the annual pi551ng contest on here around “how hard are you” withthermostat levels! Fortunate to be able to afford to heat to a comfortable (for us) level, and very happy to do so! 

subjecttocontract

Hopefully your chimney has been swept ?

GingerTim

Still 24 degrees in the flat and the heating hasn't been on since February - never been more grateful to live somewhere with seriously good insulation.

Swipe

GingerTim said:

Still 24 degrees in the flat and the heating hasn't been on since February - never been more grateful to live somewhere with seriously good insulation.

Sell your boiler on ebay

EssexHebridean

subjecttocontract said:

Hopefully your chimney has been swept ?

It has - and already booked for this year’s sweeping, too! 

dealyboy

EssexHebridean said:

subjecttocontract said:

Hopefully your chimney has been swept ?

It has - and already booked for this year’s sweeping, too! 

Be lucky! 

oldagetraveller1

subjecttocontract said:

Hopefully your chimney has been swept ?

So has mine in readiness for burning some of my stock of best Columbian coal. Also a Jackdaw barrier installed on the chimney pot to stop them nesting in there!

Novice_investor101

Mine has been coming on for the past week of so, ever since there was a frost overnight. It’s never on for long but is keeping the house temp up to 18c consistently. I’d rather avoid the house getting too cold & then having to blast the heating for days to get the solid walls warmed up to maintain a decent internal temperature. 

I’ve set up my spreadsheet for the winter that tells me how much I’m spending on gas from the meter reading. So far it’s not actually that much. My financial situation is a little better this winter but without the £400 fuel energy payment from the Gov this year I’m expecting it to be just as expensive as last winter. 

As a single, early 40’s, homeowner with a National average salary it is beginning to taste sour that the Gov is handing out cash to people who already claim more in benefits or state & private pensions than those who are working & entitled to nothing. 

caeler

I’m trying to hold out until at least 1 November and when it’s cold outside say around 5c. Then it’ll come on once a day for 3 hours of an evening at 18c. 

Spoonie_Turtle

Novice_investor101 said:

As a single, early 40’s, homeowner with a National average salary it is beginning to taste sour that the Gov is handing out cash to people who already claim more in benefits or state & private pensions than those who are working & entitled to nothing. 

As a single early-40s homeowner (presumably without disabilities?  As you don't mention anything) your maximum UC entitlement would be £368.74/month.
You could earn up to £670.42/month to still be entitled to UC - all 1p of it.  (Which would have entitled you to the Cost of Living Payments … £600 of them in a year.  On top of your hypothetical salary of £8045.  Now do you still feel aggrieved that people need other help on top of benefits??  I mean, you should, but you should feel aggrieved benefit thresholds are so low and that wages are low enough for people to still have to claim for that extra help - wages should allow people to live, not have to be topped up by benefits.)

And, by the way, c.⅓ of people claiming UC are working already.  Tax Credits you pretty much had to be working or disabled too.
The rest of the benefits are for people searching for work, too ill to work, or caring for a severely disabled person (which insultingly works out at a paltry £2.19/hr if they only care for the minimum required 35hrs/week - most carers give more care than that but the benefit stays the same - or £1.22/hr for the carer element of UC).


Incidentally pension age benefits are more than double working age benefits - it's curious that someone is deemed to be able to live on one amount per week (~£85) when they're 66 but suddenly requires £201/week the day they turn 67.  So, have at it, but realise working age benefits are not the gravy train a certain section of society wants you to think they are.

*Weekly amounts are for a single person, it's less per person if in a couple, naturally.