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

BUFF

HertsLad said:

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.

Tbh, you are just doing a more extreme version of what I (& no doubt some others) do.
I do use my heating but only to 16c & I wear a baselayer+fleece which keeps me perfectly comfortable at that temp. (& yes, when I have mentioned this before on here I have received some minor flack). Interestingly, I do notice that come the end of heating season I feel cold at temperatures that I don't at the start of heating season so one's body obviously adapts to the heated environment.

BUFF

Astria said:

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 ?

I haven't used a freezer in my house in ~10 years so, no, they aren't necessary for an individual (probably makes more sense for a family, though).

Gerry1

BUFF said:

Astria said:

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 ?

I haven't used a freezer in my house in ~10 years so, no, they aren't necessary for an individual (probably makes more sense for a family, though).

You're missing out a fair bit.  Great for keeping sliced bread fresh, as well as avoiding the need for daily shopping trips.

EssexHebridean

And, in the last couple of years, making sure you have enough food to get you through 14/10/7/5 or whatever the latest number of days isolation is! 

PennineAcute

Around March last year, my 12 year old fridge freezer gave up the ghost.  I could not afford a new one, so bought a second hand fridge to keep me going.  Elec consumption fell around 1 kWh a day.  Over the summer, I then bought a new fridge freezer and noticed very little difference in energy consumption.  If a fridge freezer is not an essential for an individual, but has around the same runnning costs as a fridge, I'll take the luxury anytime.

BUFF

Gerry1 said:

You're missing out a fair bit.  Great for keeping sliced bread fresh, as well as avoiding the need for daily shopping trips.

I neither have a problem with bread going stale nor do I do daily shopping trips.
In short, it works for me but ymmv.

FreeBear

Gerry1 said:

BUFF said:

Astria said:

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 ?

I haven't used a freezer in my house in ~10 years so, no, they aren't necessary for an individual (probably makes more sense for a family, though).

You're missing out a fair bit.  Great for keeping sliced bread fresh, as well as avoiding the need for daily shopping trips.

Never bothered to keep bread in the freezer. A small loaf lasts me 4-5 days, and then I make a fresh one. Don't have much space in the freezer anyway as it is full of paper.

HertsLad

pallyman said:

You should change your name to Ebenezer Scrooge.

Thank you for your opinion. Taken with many or most of the other comments, I assume the majority of people are so affluent, they really don't need to bother about heating costs and simply can't understand why anyone would go to such extremes. And that's within a community of money-savers so you would think the average member here is more frugal than the average person in the UK.

If everyone reduced their heating to 16C, then it would probably have a significant impact on reducing carbon. But it's like almost everyone relishes their warm homes and are not about to turn down the heating. Fuel poverty with a risk of more people dying? It's not our problem! So what if heating costs have just gone up by around 50%. We should simply accept it and get on with life. 

elsien

I’m curious as to how the OP dries their laundry in winter? A normal winter, I mean, with rain, snow, frost etc? 

 I used to dry outside as much as possible but there was still a fair amount that needed finishing off inside because it was still damp. And in the “good old days” people still used to put their washing in front of the fire to dry. 

Also a note that I can (and do) get chilblains on my feet before the temperature is anywhere near zero. I have mild Reynauds although I wouldn’t call it a medical condition in the same way that it affects other people on here. 

And my dog would leave home. Yes he has fur, but he’s not a husky and not designed for low temperatures. Even with a jumper on. 
OPs life may suit them but definitely not for me.

GingerTim

HertsLad said:

Tsaid:

You should change your name to Ebenezer Scrooge.

Thank you for your opinion. Taken with many or most of the other comments, I assume the majority of people are so affluent, they really don't need to bother about heating costs and simply can't understand why anyone would go to such extremes. And that's within a community of money-savers so you would think the average member here is more frugal than the average person in the UK.

If everyone reduced their heating to 16C, then it would probably have a significant impact on reducing carbon. But it's like almost everyone relishes their warm homes and are not about to turn down the heating. Fuel poverty with a risk of more people dying? It's not our problem! So what if heating costs have just gone up by around 50%. We should simply accept it and get on with life. 

There is a world of difference between being so affluent as not to care about the cost of heating, taking reasonable measures to stay warm (which I would suggest the majority on here take), and going to your sort of extreme measures which sound thoroughly miserable, and will be actively dangerous for many.

They work for you - great! But I'm surprised that you are surprised the responses here have been as they are. I doubt what you put up with is endurable by but a tiny number of people in the UK, let alone on this board. There's money saving, and there's cutting off your nose to spite your face.