How to live without heating - save £000s 10 February 2022 at 11:59AM edited 24 February 2022 at 4:10PM in Energy 777 replies 76.8K views

Coffeekup

wittynamegoeshere said:

We're probably spending £150/month heating the house at the moment, I'd say my life would be much more than £5 per day more miserable if I had to spend my days in some kind of mobile survival bag.

I've cut back on my usage this winter compared to previous years. I would normally start tweaking with hearing on and off around October time.
This season with prices going up I wanted to see if I could cut back and by how far and learn what it would save me in fuel and emissions.

In a nutshell by the time my fix rate finishes I'll have reduced my gas usage by around 45% and electric by around 25% on my previous years average usages. I was looking at a total bill for the year of £825, it'll actually come in at around £580 saving me £245.
I've been no less miserable and I feel better that I saved some money and saved 850kg of CO2 from being released in to our atmosphere.

How does this look if I took on tarriff around the cost of April's price cap? 
On previous year's usages I'll be looking at around £120 a month or £1450 a year, now if i use the same energy next period as this period I'll be paying £80 a month or £970 a year, a £580 saving.

But what about if rewind and I cut back my usage years ago on cheaper tarrifs when I was paying £55 a month for 4-5 years? I would have saved £18 a month or £210 a year.

Starting to look more appealing to pay attention to what your usage is.

HertsLad

wittynamegoeshere said:

Honestly I thought this thread was a wind-up, now I'm thinking it's genuine.  There's nothing wrong with doing your own thing, and I really don't think this thread poses any risks to anyone, no need for the dramatics from some.

Do you do anything while all lagged up like this?  E.g. any physical activities, housework, cooking?

I'd be seriously worried about getting close to a cooker while wrapped in an inch thick coating of man-made oil-derived fabrics.

Can you even roll your sleeves up, say for hand-washing or cleaning things?

Also your laundry energy demands must be pretty high, presumably you need to wash and dry your lagging now and then?

But ultimately, what is the point you're making?  We're probably spending £150/month heating the house at the moment, I'd say my life would be much more than £5 per day more miserable if I had to spend my days in some kind of mobile survival bag.

Thanks for raising some interesting questions. I carry on with life at home exactly as I would if the house was heated or in the summer. There's no restriction apart from it taking longer to dress and undress, with multiple layers to remove. Neither do I look like Michelin man. The house has stairs so I assume walking up and down uses a bit of energy and probably helps keep me warm. If I walk or cycle to local shops I remove some of the clothes, not least because that much exercise would cause me to overheat. The first thinsulate jacket I bought about 10 years ago came from Lidl. I was interested because the claim was that it would keep you warm down to minus 20C provided you did a bit of exercise. I'm not sure about the -20C claim but their point is valid. The Lidl jacket was intended as outdoor wear but I thought it looked awful so I wore it under a top (outer) layer of simple fleece. The outer fleece also helps protect the more precious thinsulate layer underneath. This winter I am wearing a Deerhunter brand thinsulate coat/jacket which I bought on eBay for a very low price. The appearance of that is unappealing too but, again, I wear it under a top fleece.

I have never considered there's any risk of the clothing catching fire while using the gas cooker, as I do all the time. I agree washing hands is a bit more difficult as I need to tug up various layers. And yes, there is more laundry but no more energy cost because I use (free) rainwater, heated by solar thermal tubes. Even over winter, the water easily reaches 90C on a sunny day. I pour the hot water into buckets and wash everything by hand - more exercise I guess.

The main points I am making are (1) how it's possible to save £1800 per year (at your level of expenditure) for what i regard as negligible inconvenience. That said, I've never met a woman who would go along with this, so it's a good job I am single and live alone. And (2) how SOME people who may be at risk of dying or being miserable through being too cold, if they simply can't afford heating, MIGHT be able to keep a lot warmer if they wear clothes like I do. My guess is that I can't possibly be alone in using this approach. There must be thousands of others but, given the generally hostile reception to my post here, it would not be surprising if people keep it quiet, to avoid ridicule.

Fliss_M

HertsLad said:

wittynamegoeshere said:

Honestly I thought this thread was a wind-up, now I'm thinking it's genuine.  There's nothing wrong with doing your own thing, and I really don't think this thread poses any risks to anyone, no need for the dramatics from some.

Do you do anything while all lagged up like this?  E.g. any physical activities, housework, cooking?

I'd be seriously worried about getting close to a cooker while wrapped in an inch thick coating of man-made oil-derived fabrics.

Can you even roll your sleeves up, say for hand-washing or cleaning things?

Also your laundry energy demands must be pretty high, presumably you need to wash and dry your lagging now and then?

But ultimately, what is the point you're making?  We're probably spending £150/month heating the house at the moment, I'd say my life would be much more than £5 per day more miserable if I had to spend my days in some kind of mobile survival bag.

Thanks for raising some interesting questions. I carry on with life at home exactly as I would if the house was heated or in the summer. There's no restriction apart from it taking longer to dress and undress, with multiple layers to remove. Neither do I look like Michelin man. The house has stairs so I assume walking up and down uses a bit of energy and probably helps keep me warm. If I walk or cycle to local shops I remove some of the clothes, not least because that much exercise would cause me to overheat. The first thinsulate jacket I bought about 10 years ago came from Lidl. I was interested because the claim was that it would keep you warm down to minus 20C provided you did a bit of exercise. I'm not sure about the -20C claim but their point is valid. The Lidl jacket was intended as outdoor wear but I thought it looked awful so I wore it under a top (outer) layer of simple fleece. The outer fleece also helps protect the more precious thinsulate layer underneath. This winter I am wearing a Deerhunter brand thinsulate coat/jacket which I bought on eBay for a very low price. The appearance of that is unappealing too but, again, I wear it under a top fleece.

I have never considered there's any risk of the clothing catching fire while using the gas cooker, as I do all the time. I agree washing hands is a bit more difficult as I need to tug up various layers. And yes, there is more laundry but no more energy cost because I use (free) rainwater, heated by solar thermal tubes. Even over winter, the water easily reaches 90C on a sunny day. I pour the hot water into buckets and wash everything by hand - more exercise I guess.

The main points I am making are (1) how it's possible to save £1800 per year (at your level of expenditure) for what i regard as negligible inconvenience. That said, I've never met a woman who would go along with this, so it's a good job I am single and live alone. And (2) how SOME people who may be at risk of dying or being miserable through being too cold, if they simply can't afford heating, MIGHT be able to keep a lot warmer if they wear clothes like I do. My guess is that I can't possibly be alone in using this approach. There must be thousands of others but, given the generally hostile reception to my post here, it would not be surprising if people keep it quiet, to avoid ridicule.

I think you'll find you are being met with hostility because you initial message implies that rather then helping people heat their homes, the government/charities etc should be advising people how to stay warm without heating. Which isn't the point. No one should have to choose. And many can't. I've 4 children, one being 11 months. I can't have an unheated home. Those with disabilities, illness as has been demonstrated, can not look at your option. 

I'd also add, who's paying for all these clothes? One person, ok not too bad. A family of 6? When 4 members are permanently outgrowing those clothes? That's not cost effective. 

I live in a modern home (1997) and we get mould in 1 room still because 3 sides are cold walls and it's the bathroom so lots of steam from cleaning 6 people. I'd hate to think without heating. 

If you'd started out offering it as something you've tried that works for you then maybe people would have been more receptive. But you've started out with the implication that those paying for heating are mugs and all you need are layers. As a species, we've spread over the globe BECAUSE we've perfected heat to cope in low temperatures. Otherwise we'd still all live in a warm strip round the middle. Not a cold, damp, wet island

HertsLad

Fliss_M said:

I think you'll find you are being met with hostility because you initial message implies that rather then helping people heat their homes, the government/charities etc should be advising people how to stay warm without heating. Which isn't the point. No one should have to choose. And many can't. I've 4 children, one being 11 months. I can't have an unheated home. Those with disabilities, illness as has been demonstrated, can not look at your option. 

I'd also add, who's paying for all these clothes? One person, ok not too bad. A family of 6? When 4 members are permanently outgrowing those clothes? That's not cost effective. 

I live in a modern home (1997) and we get mould in 1 room still because 3 sides are cold walls and it's the bathroom so lots of steam from cleaning 6 people. I'd hate to think without heating. 

If you'd started out offering it as something you've tried that works for you then maybe people would have been more receptive. But you've started out with the implication that those paying for heating are mugs and all you need are layers. As a species, we've spread over the globe BECAUSE we've perfected heat to cope in low temperatures. Otherwise we'd still all live in a warm strip round the middle. Not a cold, damp, wet island

I know I wouldn't last long as a politician because if I used slightly the wrong words or emphasis, the criticism would be even worse than on this thread. I wouldn't suggest for a moment that you or anyone with children could try living without heating, even though there was a Daily Mail article c2013 where a family tried and gave up after a few days.

As I said before the cost of the clothes is relatively low, especially when compared to heating costs of anything like £1800 per year. So it is highly cost effective. 

Maybe early settlers in the UK needed fire and heating to keep warm but with modern clothing and perhaps some global warming, I have found heating is not justified.

GingerTim

What are you spending this massive saving on your heating on? I'd want quite the return on that sort of existence.

warby68

I think its a shame that the very useful advice on how to layer up comfortably at reasonable cost in a way that doesn't mean being under blankets on a sofa is being lost because of 'wording'.

There are many examples of extreme frugality that don't get negative pile ons but OP's initial wording triggered a nerve because of the one size fits all suggestion. OP has acknowledged that tactlessness.

The less extreme version of much lower temperature settings and less time with heating on being possible without being cold has to be worth considering. 

HertsLad

GingerTim said:

What are you spending this massive saving on your heating on? I'd want quite the return on that sort of existence.

It's not really like that is it? I mean nobody has been handing me £1000 or more per year. I have, however, realised that the cost of a ski holiday is about the same and I know which I'd sooner be doing. Either staying warm by heating all the air in my house but with £1500 less (from now on) to go skiing, or by staying equally warm by wearing a few extra clothes and being more easily able to afford a holiday. Plus, the lessons I have learned in my house mean I no longer get as cold as used to happen, while on the slopes. I look back and think I was ignorant or stupid more than 11 years ago, not to realise I should have been wearing more, especially on my legs, while skiing. My legs were never cold. My hands were sometimes cold, and insufficient leg insulation was the reason.

MWT

warby68 said:

I think its a shame that the very useful advice on how to layer up comfortably at reasonable cost in a way that doesn't mean being under blankets on a sofa is being lost because of 'wording'.

There are many examples of extreme frugality that don't get negative pile ons but OP's initial wording triggered a nerve because of the one size fits all suggestion. OP has acknowledged that tactlessness.

Agreed, there is no 'one size fits all' solution, everyone has different tolerances and assets available to exploit, just have to figure out what works for each of us and those occupying the same space.

My winter experiment has been solar powered crypto mining, which delivers both heat and income, again, very much not a solution for everyone.

wrf12345

I start the day with a fierce, freezing cold water shower (I am 65 BTW) but I would not do it if the bathroom was not heated by a 300 watt electric radiant halogen heater (switched on from outside and wall mounted) and then run the CH for half an hour at full tilt to warm the house up (new boiler, about £15  a month!) December thru to Feb. A side advantage of a cold shower is no mould or condensation. I do wear thermals and a quilted jacket in the house during this period. I do live in the far south and close down part of my bungalow so that only three rooms are heated. The big downside to the property is that it has two large bays facing north with older double glazing, about £4000 to replace with latest triple glazing though I would favour bricking up half of the area but as I am trying to sell the house I will leave that for the next owner. Younger visitors have been know to make quips about older people not turning the heating on but if they insist on dressing up in next to nowt in winter it is hardly my problem...

Astria

I guess in these kinds of temperatures mentioned above that a fridge is not really required, but in some cases you would still need a freezer, and will a freezer actually work properly when the ambient air is 2c ?

Also, surely to shower or bathe you need to remove those 15 layers of clothing?