Heating advice

tommyt41

Apologies if in the wrong section: mod could you move to correct section if so.

Any advice on a cheaper way to heat my home? I've moved recently and this is the first time living somewhere with all electric, and certaintly the worst insulated home I've lived in. It was built in 80s/90s but epc is rated E.

The property has haverland electric heating in the living room and bedrooms, and it's currently costing me £6-7 a day in total for electric including having the heating on for an hour in the morning and a few hours in the evening. I'd love to not need to use them but by the time I get home or up in the morning, it is 10-12 degrees inside, depending which room.

Moving is not an option due to the housing shortage where I am, so I am wondering if there is any cheaper way I can heat my home?

Thanks in advance

Martin_the_Unjust

https://www.diy.com/departments/greengear-coal-black-4-2kw-mobile-gas-heater/3451571020817_BQ.prd

tommyt41

Martin_the_Unjust said:

https://www.diy.com/departments/greengear-coal-black-4-2kw-mobile-gas-heater/3451571020817_BQ.prd

Thankyou! I'll have a look into these.

matelodave

Do not be tempted to use the heaters suggested above .

The cost of gas is around the same if not more than electricity. 
You've got to manhandle cylinders weighing 20+ kg (the weight of the gas plus the weight of the cylinders).
They need plenty of ventilation to avoid both CO poisoning and condensation.
As they produce vast quantities of condensation they will encourage mould and damp.

Unfortunately leccy is the most expensive way to heat places so there is no real solution to your problem as all electric heaters whatever their shape or form are 100% efficient and will therefore use the same amount of energy to make the place warm.

QrizB

matelodave said:

Do not be tempted to use the heaters suggested above .

I agree entirely with matelodave, those heaters are not going to reduce your bills. It takes a 15kg butane bottle which is currently £46.50 from Calor and contains about 190kWh. That's 24.5p/kWh, more than you should be paying for your electricity (plus you'll be £95 out of pocket for the heater).

I have a similar heater that I bought when my kids were small, but it's strictly as a backup in case of power cuts.

Rodders53

Is there natural gas available in the locality?

Owner or renter?

Normally improving insulation and draught-proofing are the first steps to saving energy when heating a home.  Heavy thermal curtains can help, too and/or thermal blinds.

Natural gas, Kerosene/oil, bulk LPG tanks, off-peak electric storage heating are the rough order of cost vs energy that might work out cheaper than what you have now.

Heat pumps (properly designed and used) can be quite a lot cheaper than full price electricity (but poor designs and usage can negate that).

All the above cost money to install. 
OK if you're the owner and can afford to do so, but if renting you'd expect the Landlord to do that work...

tommyt41

Rodders53 said:

Is there natural gas available in the locality?

Owner or renter?

Normally improving insulation and draught-proofing are the first steps to saving energy when heating a home.  Heavy thermal curtains can help, too and/or thermal blinds.

Natural gas, Kerosene/oil, bulk LPG tanks, off-peak electric storage heating are the rough order of cost vs energy that might work out cheaper than what you have now.

Heat pumps (properly designed and used) can be quite a lot cheaper than full price electricity (but poor designs and usage can negate that).

All the above cost money to install. 
OK if you're the owner and can afford to do so, but if renting you'd expect the Landlord to do that work...

I'm renting it, it's a shame as it's decorated nicely and in a nice area. There's a serious shortage of housing in this area so I wouldn't be able to find somewhere else. They basically go within a few hours of being listed. I'm unsure if the landlord would want to spend money on it, and no gas here unfortunately.

I've ordered some film which covers the window so hoping that works a bit.

QrizB said:

matelodave said:

Do not be tempted to use the heaters suggested above .

I agree entirely with matelodave, those heaters are not going to reduce your bills. It takes a 15kg butane bottle which is currently £46.50 from Calor and contains about 190kWh. That's 24.5p/kWh, more than you should be paying for your electricity (plus you'll be £95 out of pocket for the heater).

I have a similar heater that I bought when my kids were small, but it's strictly as a backup in case of power cuts.

Yeah that does work out more. I'm currently paying 20p per unit, 18 during midnight and 4 am or something.

sevenhills

I don't like the pollution aspect of log burners myself, but do you have chimneys for an easy log burner install?

EssexHebridean

There’s a few threads here with energy saving tips which would be worth you searching the forum for. I’d certainly suggest identifying any droughts from door or window frames and getting some of the stick on foam strips you can use to help block those, for a start. You might also try adding linings to curtains - even cheap fleece blankets make a difference, you don’t need to be paying for specific linings. Closing doors to unused rooms some of the time can be useful - particularly in a rented place it may well be worth you focusing your money on heating the rooms you need to live in over any that you don’t. I’d also suggest that you may be able to turn off or at least right down the heaters in bedrooms - a good thick duvet and hot water bottles or those wheat filled bags you heat in the microwave might be your new best friends. 

While the physics of electric heating being 100% efficient is true, what isn’t true is that all forms of electric heating give you the same bang for your buck in terms of how comfortable they make a home feel. It may be worth a look on the Haverland website to see if you can get any more detail on your specific heaters to ensure they’re being used to the best effect. It may also be that you will find oil filled radiators might be worth a small investment to help make specific areas feel more comfortable. 

matelodave

sevenhills said:

I don't like the pollution aspect of log burners myself, but do you have chimneys for an easy log burner install?

TBH log burners aren't all that cheap , even with bulk buying unless you can get free wood

You need somewhere to keep the logs that's reasonably dry, and under shelter Buying it from garages or supermarkets in nets or bags is very expensive as are compressed logs.

Compressed logs give out about 5kwh/kg and a 960kg pallet costs around £300-£350 which equates to around 6-10p/kwh. Smaller quantities cost significantly more - 20kg = £22 which equates to 22p/kwh

Compressed logs need to be kept bone dry as they absorb moisture and fall to bits.

tommyt41

sevenhills said:

I don't like the pollution aspect of log burners myself, but do you have chimneys for an easy log burner install?

No chimney.

EssexHebridean said:

There’s a few threads here with energy saving tips which would be worth you searching the forum for. I’d certainly suggest identifying any droughts from door or window frames and getting some of the stick on foam strips you can use to help block those, for a start. You might also try adding linings to curtains - even cheap fleece blankets make a difference, you don’t need to be paying for specific linings. Closing doors to unused rooms some of the time can be useful - particularly in a rented place it may well be worth you focusing your money on heating the rooms you need to live in over any that you don’t. I’d also suggest that you may be able to turn off or at least right down the heaters in bedrooms - a good thick duvet and hot water bottles or those wheat filled bags you heat in the microwave might be your new best friends. 

While the physics of electric heating being 100% efficient is true, what isn’t true is that all forms of electric heating give you the same bang for your buck in terms of how comfortable they make a home feel. It may be worth a look on the Haverland website to see if you can get any more detail on your specific heaters to ensure they’re being used to the best effect. It may also be that you will find oil filled radiators might be worth a small investment to help make specific areas feel more comfortable. 

I'll take a look, thankyou.