How to live without heating - save £000s

elsien

RavingMad said:

Am I wrong to assume it's single person households that are the main contributors here? No way would my family agree to such measures 

Nor would my dog - he would make my life unbearable. Might have to trade him in for a husky.

Sea_Shell

As @HertsLad is someone who will know LOTS about temperature and humidity and their relationship to each other.

Should I be worried about soft furnishings in an environment of low temps (9°c) with humidity at 80%

For example in an unheated, unoccupied, Caravan?

Or is high humidity only a problem at warmer temps? 

bob2302

Sea_Shell said:

As @HertsLad is someone who will know LOTS about temperature and humidity and their relationship to each other.

Should I be worried about soft furnishings in an environment of low temps (9°c) with humidity at 80%

For example in an unheated, unoccupied, Caravan?

Or is high humidity only a problem at warmer temps? 

You need either ventilation or dehumidifiers.  HertsLad, by the sound of it, lives in a draughty house.

QrizB

I'm a (temporary and involuntary) convert to this lifestyle as my gas boiler has stopped, er, boiling

Fortunately it's only October and still mild, plus I've got an immersion heater for hot water.

dealyboy

@Sea_Shell said:

As @HertsLad is someone who will know LOTS about temperature and humidity and their relationship to each other.

Should I be worried about soft furnishings in an environment of low temps (9°c) with humidity at 80%

For example in an unheated, unoccupied, Caravan?

Or is high humidity only a problem at warmer temps? 

Hiya,
I would be worried, damp and black mould are potential hazards in that environment. If the caravan is unoccupied I would try to eliminate any ventilation and reduce the humidity to 40-50% by a judicious one-off use of a condenser dehumidifier, noting that they are less effective at under 15C.

I would probably check the situation once a week.

Sea_Shell

bob2302 said:

Sea_Shell said:

As @HertsLad is someone who will know LOTS about temperature and humidity and their relationship to each other.

Should I be worried about soft furnishings in an environment of low temps (9°c) with humidity at 80%

For example in an unheated, unoccupied, Caravan?

Or is high humidity only a problem at warmer temps? 

You need either ventilation or dehumidifiers.  HertsLad, by the sound of it, lives in a draughty house.

It has built in ventilation points.

Have now deployed moisture traps.  So will see what difference they make.

Will monitor over winter.

Ildhund

This may well deserve its own topic, but @Sea_Shell 's mention of the temperature/humidity interaction has encouraged me to bring it up. 

There are many websites explaining why it feels hotter in the tropics if the humidity is high. There are probably almost as many trying to explain why it feels colder in houses in Britain if the humidity is high. Can anyone explain this apparent contradiction, or point me to a reliable source of information covering it?

Sea_Shell

I think it's something to do with "Dew Points"

So humidity and temperature are relative to each other.

Think ice cold glass of 🍺 on a hot day.  Compared to that same glass on a freezing day, even with high humidity.   Or something.

bob2302

Sea_Shell said:

I think it's something to do with "Dew Points"

So humidity and temperature are relative to each other.

Think ice cold glass of 🍺 on a hot day.  Compared to that same glass on a freezing day, even with high humidity.   Or something.

or not.

High humidity reduces the amount of cooling from sweat. It also increase the amount of heat it takes to heat the air. The former dominates in hot weather, and the latter in cold weather. The latter is relatively small IMO.

wrf12345

where I live humidity is usually high eighties, empty and unheated houses can end up with a lot of mould that make them look like they have damp problems and make them hard to sell - so great if bargain house hunting. Bleach works wonders on mould in my experience, even on fabrics.