Bills not going down despite using less

Robin9

Other than being in Edinburgh and he's blocked the chimney I think we now very little about the OP's property.  

Semi/flat/3 bed/ 1930's / solid walls,/single glazing / roof insulation.....................

doodling

Hi,

When was the heating installed?  How big is the radiator in the room where you use a fan heater?

As a guide, a radiator with a 2kW output (probably the same output as the fan heater) would be a double radiator around 1.2m long and 0.7m high, with fins between the panels.  Is the radiator in the room that big?  (I'm not saying that it needs to be exactly that big but it should be of comparable size).  If you currently need both the central heating and the fan heater to get the room to a temperature which you are comfortable with then you might need something bigger.

My guess is that it is an old central heating system designed for "background heat" rather than to achieve the kinds of temperatures in the rooms that we expect from a modern system.

A 2kW radiator will cost you around £550 plus fitting which shouldn't take more than a day so a total cost well under £1000 - I suspect you'd save more than that in a year if it means you don't need the fan heater.

I also suspect that the rest of the central heating system is probably a bit poor as well - if you have more money to spare then better controls would also probably save you money.

If you already have big radiators then your problem is lack of insulation (or it is a very big room).

michael079

doodling said:

Hi,

When was the heating installed?  How big is the radiator in the room where you use a fan heater?

As a guide, a radiator with a 2kW output (probably the same output as the fan heater) would be a double radiator around 1.2m long and 0.7m high, with fins between the panels.  Is the radiator in the room that big?  (I'm not saying that it needs to be exactly that big but it should be of comparable size).  If you currently need both the central heating and the fan heater to get the room to a temperature which you are comfortable with then you might need something bigger.

My guess is that it is an old central heating system designed for "background heat" rather than to achieve the kinds of temperatures in the rooms that we expect from a modern system.

A 2kW radiator will cost you around £550 plus fitting which shouldn't take more than a day so a total cost well under £1000 - I suspect you'd save more than that in a year if it means you don't need the fan heater.

I also suspect that the rest of the central heating system is probably a bit poor as well - if you have more money to spare then better controls would also probably save you money.

If you already have big radiators then your problem is lack of insulation (or it is a very big room).

Radiator in the living room is 89cmx60, slightly smaller in the hall and kitchen and bathroom nearly half the size. Insulation in loft is on the floor

michael079

Robin9 said:

Other than being in Edinburgh and he's blocked the chimney I think we now very little about the OP's property.  

Semi/flat/3 bed/ 1930's / solid walls,/single glazing / roof insulation.....................

Semi detached, 1930's sounds about right, solid walls, double glazing apart from one kitchen window and a couple of window upstairs.

Insulation in loft is on the floor

Robin9

With respect @michael079  that radiator is but a token gesture -  mine in a room 5 x 4   is 1500 x 800  and double panel.

doodling

Hi,

michael079 said:

doodling said:

Hi,

When was the heating installed?  How big is the radiator in the room where you use a fan heater?

As a guide, a radiator with a 2kW output (probably the same output as the fan heater) would be a double radiator around 1.2m long and 0.7m high, with fins between the panels.  Is the radiator in the room that big?  (I'm not saying that it needs to be exactly that big but it should be of comparable size).  If you currently need both the central heating and the fan heater to get the room to a temperature which you are comfortable with then you might need something bigger.

My guess is that it is an old central heating system designed for "background heat" rather than to achieve the kinds of temperatures in the rooms that we expect from a modern system.

A 2kW radiator will cost you around £550 plus fitting which shouldn't take more than a day so a total cost well under £1000 - I suspect you'd save more than that in a year if it means you don't need the fan heater.

I also suspect that the rest of the central heating system is probably a bit poor as well - if you have more money to spare then better controls would also probably save you money.

If you already have big radiators then your problem is lack of insulation (or it is a very big room).

Radiator in the living room is 89cmx60, slightly smaller in the hall and kitchen and bathroom nearly half the size. Insulation in loft is on the floor

Is it a single or double?  If double, does it have fins between the panels?

A radiator of that size will certainly give out less heat than the fan heater - do you need both the heating and the fan heater to keep the room warm when it is really cold?

How big is the room (including height)?

markin

As a temporary measure put the fan heater in fan only mode and point it at the rad to get more heat output.

michael079

doodling said:

Hi,

michael079 said:

doodling said:

Hi,

When was the heating installed?  How big is the radiator in the room where you use a fan heater?

As a guide, a radiator with a 2kW output (probably the same output as the fan heater) would be a double radiator around 1.2m long and 0.7m high, with fins between the panels.  Is the radiator in the room that big?  (I'm not saying that it needs to be exactly that big but it should be of comparable size).  If you currently need both the central heating and the fan heater to get the room to a temperature which you are comfortable with then you might need something bigger.

My guess is that it is an old central heating system designed for "background heat" rather than to achieve the kinds of temperatures in the rooms that we expect from a modern system.

A 2kW radiator will cost you around £550 plus fitting which shouldn't take more than a day so a total cost well under £1000 - I suspect you'd save more than that in a year if it means you don't need the fan heater.

I also suspect that the rest of the central heating system is probably a bit poor as well - if you have more money to spare then better controls would also probably save you money.

If you already have big radiators then your problem is lack of insulation (or it is a very big room).

Radiator in the living room is 89cmx60, slightly smaller in the hall and kitchen and bathroom nearly half the size. Insulation in loft is on the floor

Is it a single or double?  If double, does it have fins between the panels?

A radiator of that size will certainly give out less heat than the fan heater - do you need both the heating and the fan heater to keep the room warm when it is really cold?

How big is the room (including height)?

It's a double radiator and yes with fins. 

Room is 17 square metres and 2.64cm height. 

The fan heater doesn't need to be on all the time. For example if its cold (its usually more for my mum than me, her condition means she feels the cold more) then we may need to put the fan heater on for 10,15 maybe 20 mins and then off for a little while. And then in again maybe an hour later 

michael079

markin said:

As a temporary measure put the fan heater in fan only mode and point it at the rad to get more heat output.

Looks like type 22

michael079

Robin9 said:

With respect @michael079  that radiator is but a token gesture -  mine in a room 5 x 4   is 1500 x 800  and double panel.

Does a radiator that big use more gas though? I understand it will obviously heat better, but I'm just trying to work out how it all affects gas usage. For example, I still don't understand if we are paying for actual usage, why turning the heating down doesn't affect the bill, and whether I should be turning it down at all now if it doesn't affect it.

Sorry if these are really obvious questions it's just the whole thing confuses me so much due to the illogical bills