Elpenor
Dancing as fast as I can
The neighbour of a friend had it on his windows to block out radiation apparently (he lived near Aldermaston)
Living without central heating this winter?
- Thread starter David Clapson
- Start date
bcuster
Well-Known Member
It still gets darn cold here in the winters. Central heating is a must, indread the utility bills...
spring-peeper
Well-Known Member
Again a no - central heating is not a must. There are always alternatives.
It gets cold over here in Canada.
We do not have central heating. We have electric baseboards instead. We can adjust the temperature for each room.
But we do have a wood furnace in the basement. When it is going, the floors are warm. That helps out a lot.
existentialist
Tired and unemotional
Fingerless gloves are your friend, there.
girasol
Addicted to handstands!
Back in the day I lived in a housing association house with no central heating - so most of the house was always cold, as we couldn't afford electric heaters in all the rooms. I used to put bubble wrap on the windows in my room in for some insulation but it was still cold. The watered down washing up liquid froze a few times in the kitchen. I had 8 years of living like that. At least the rent was cheap.
All this meant that when I moved to a well insulated house with central heating I had a habit of wearing layers - which means the heating can be off most of the time (I'm at home all day). I have lost my edge though, and I don't live on my own, so the heating is programmed to come on in the morning and evenings - usually about 5 hours a day.
All this meant that when I moved to a well insulated house with central heating I had a habit of wearing layers - which means the heating can be off most of the time (I'm at home all day). I have lost my edge though, and I don't live on my own, so the heating is programmed to come on in the morning and evenings - usually about 5 hours a day.
LDC
On est tous des pangolins
Depends a lot on the type of house I expect; its build, size, location, how much sun it gets, etc. My grandparents house didn't have central heating and I spent loads of time there when I as a kid and never remember it being unbearable. It was the south of England though, so maybe warmer than for some. They had a coal fire in the lounge they ran all day in the winter and had a storage heater in the hall downstairs that was useless, but nothing in the bedrooms or kitchen. It was a solid Edwardian house though, but quite big as well. We had loads of blankets etc. on the beds and used hot waterbottles when needed.
As an adult have lived and spent time in house with little or no heating, sometimes water in glasses has frozen by the bed at worst. It was manageable, but not lovely, and I can remember having showers and baths to warm up sometimes. Sitting still (if you work at a desk for example) is the hardest to stay warm though, then I'd keep one room warm and use blankets etc. to make it bearable.
I've got soft though, I wouldn't want to live in a house without heating now, as much for the damp as the cold tbh, damp houses are grim.
Yeah, skip the foil on the walls and windows etc...
As an adult have lived and spent time in house with little or no heating, sometimes water in glasses has frozen by the bed at worst. It was manageable, but not lovely, and I can remember having showers and baths to warm up sometimes. Sitting still (if you work at a desk for example) is the hardest to stay warm though, then I'd keep one room warm and use blankets etc. to make it bearable.
I've got soft though, I wouldn't want to live in a house without heating now, as much for the damp as the cold tbh, damp houses are grim.
Yeah, skip the foil on the walls and windows etc...
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farmerbarleymow
I'm Petee's spirit animal
I've still not used mine - it's hanging on the door hooks along with my coats, still with the tags on.
bimble
floofy
did it for 5 or so years, in a shared house in london where i had the attic room and since then i really really appreciate the central heating. i was lucky that my room there had a functioning fireplace but that feeling of having to steel myself for venturing downstairs to go to the frozen kitchen or have a wash in the mouldy bathroom, thats a shit way to live nobody should be having to do that in this rich country.
miss direct
misfungled
For my nose?
Aladdin
Well-Known Member
You can even get fingerless gloves that connect to a laptop and get warm... my sister used them during the first lockdown as her hands were getting very cold.
This winter is not going to be easy.
Looks like I will be on TRR by winter and sis the same. We have to keep the house warm as the octogenarians need heat. I'm feeling the cold more too due to health conditions.
The one good investment has been in winter duvets.
There are 2 gas fires. The heat from them is good but doesn't last like a solid fuel fire would.
Seriously thinking that we need to swap in a stove instead of one of the gas fires. The gas is also crazy expensive so thats going to stop us using them.
Looking at getting two electric panel heaters. They can be moved around to heat rooms that need them. And we will probably swap the sitting room wih the dining room. The back of the house is that bit warmer with kitchen heat and sun (if it appears).
The brother arrived the other day wearing a puffa vest that apparently warms itself up. You plug it in and charge batteried or something. He said it was great. Might look into getting them for the octogenarians.
Last winter I had my granny's old fur coat on the bed and it really did keep me warm when heat was off.
This winter...If things are very bad..I might just wear it in the house.
cupid_stunt
Chief seagull hater & farmerbarleymow's nemesis.
Looking at my annual gas usage, and including VAT, at last winter's unit price it worked out at around £420pa, on current price - £760, and with another estimated 60% increase in Oct. - £1,217, so almost three times more than last winter.
* Gas is only used for CH & hot water, loft & walls insulated, windows & doors all double glazed. I've not included standing charges in these figures, because there's nowt I can do about them, and although they have gone up, it's been only by about 1p per day.
My 30 year old boiler is being replaced at the end of this month, thanks to my wonderful landlord, with a new efficient A-rated combi boiler, the engineer says I should see savings of at least 20-25% / £243-£305pa, although there's an online calculator that thinks it could be as much as £399, so whatever it is it will certainly help.
So, I am estimating it's going to be reduced from £1,217 to around the £900,, just over double last winter, I've got this intention to try and cut down on use by another 25%, bringing it down to a more manageable, but still shocking £675, I would be happy enough with that, rather than go cold.
I'll be working more out the house this year compared to last winter, and even when I am home during the day I'll try not to use it, just putting it on for half an hour in the morning and whatever is required in the evening, but also turning it down a bit when in use, and wearing more cloths & fingerless gloves (as existentialist mentioned above), they do really work in keeping your hands warmer, and thus your fingers too. I think it's doable without too much suffering.
I've looked at the electric use as well, but I can't see any possible savings I can make with that.
But, I am in a fairly good position compared to those in older buildings and/or with health issues, etc., and clearly more needs to be done by the government to help with this winter, the £66-67 per month discount off energy bills between Oct. & Mar. is just not enough, and let's hope the predictions that prices will start to drop from next spring are right.
* Gas is only used for CH & hot water, loft & walls insulated, windows & doors all double glazed. I've not included standing charges in these figures, because there's nowt I can do about them, and although they have gone up, it's been only by about 1p per day.
My 30 year old boiler is being replaced at the end of this month, thanks to my wonderful landlord, with a new efficient A-rated combi boiler, the engineer says I should see savings of at least 20-25% / £243-£305pa, although there's an online calculator that thinks it could be as much as £399, so whatever it is it will certainly help.
So, I am estimating it's going to be reduced from £1,217 to around the £900,, just over double last winter, I've got this intention to try and cut down on use by another 25%, bringing it down to a more manageable, but still shocking £675, I would be happy enough with that, rather than go cold.
I'll be working more out the house this year compared to last winter, and even when I am home during the day I'll try not to use it, just putting it on for half an hour in the morning and whatever is required in the evening, but also turning it down a bit when in use, and wearing more cloths & fingerless gloves (as existentialist mentioned above), they do really work in keeping your hands warmer, and thus your fingers too. I think it's doable without too much suffering.
I've looked at the electric use as well, but I can't see any possible savings I can make with that.
But, I am in a fairly good position compared to those in older buildings and/or with health issues, etc., and clearly more needs to be done by the government to help with this winter, the £66-67 per month discount off energy bills between Oct. & Mar. is just not enough, and let's hope the predictions that prices will start to drop from next spring are right.
two sheds
Least noticed poster 2007
Don't the council have some sort of Duty of Care to make it more energy efficient/less of a threat to health?
Probably not, although I wonder whether you or your council could apply for a grant to have it done (some of them are 100% grants I think). Your council may even offer a grant that your council could apply for
two sheds
Least noticed poster 2007
That's a form of central heating to be fair. And I can imagine Canadian houses are a lot better insulated than British ones. Much more important to avoid taxing the rich than insulating homes over here.
teuchter
je suis teuchter
How much you feel the cold is affected quite a lot by how active you are. This seems obvious but someone recently told me she never really understood why everyone complained about a certain house being freezing until she had children ... At which point she had extended periods sitting inside and not moving much.
Especially if you're doing something like working from home at a desk job, I think it can help quite a bit to go out for a walk first thing in the morning and maybe at lunchtime too. Helps reduce that feeling of never being able to get a bit warm no matter how many layers you put on.
Especially if you're doing something like working from home at a desk job, I think it can help quite a bit to go out for a walk first thing in the morning and maybe at lunchtime too. Helps reduce that feeling of never being able to get a bit warm no matter how many layers you put on.
Superdupastupor
fun to funky
Thermal leggings, pair of wollen socks, pair of 'warehouse' socks (dunno what to call them- seems like they would go inside steel-cap boots, pulled hallf way up your shins over the top of the leggins, slipper. Thikk fleece trews. Synthetic running top... long sleeved good! couple of jumpers, wollen hat, finger-less gloves.
Got Slovak army surplus jacket, where you can unbutton all the warm layer, when I zip that up it fit my torso super snug.
This is what i was brought up with, this is winter.
Got Slovak army surplus jacket, where you can unbutton all the warm layer, when I zip that up it fit my torso super snug.
This is what i was brought up with, this is winter.
two sheds
Least noticed poster 2007
"noun
- Any of various heating systems in which a central source of heat is used to distribute heat (and sometimes hot water) throughout a building in a controlled manner.
- a heating system in which air or water is heated at a central furnace and sent through the building via vents or pipes and radiators"
girasol
Addicted to handstands!
My husband got a plug that gives the cost for appliances and based on that we got rid of a really old radio that was costing £20 a year just to be on standby, we also now switch off the telly at the plug as that also cost a surprising amount on standby. Some of the newer appliances are much more energy efficient and barely cost anything. We got an electric heater for the shed, that is also quite efficient - so a good way to save is to get energy efficient appliances/electric heaters. They may cost more upfront but save money in the long run.
teuchter
je suis teuchter
Electric underfloor heating in each room (for example) wouldn't satisfy those definitions but the end effect would be the same.
two sheds
Least noticed poster 2007
definition 1, central heat source distributing hot water. Arguably definition 2 as well, radiant heat as well as conductive/convective.
Artaxerxes
Look out, he's got a gnu!
This, I'm a bugger for not having the heating on and every rented flat ends up with mouldy windows.
Even with the fucking heating on an hour or half hour a day it happens.
teuchter
je suis teuchter
I mean resistive electric underfloor heating. It doesn't satisfy either.
two sheds
Least noticed poster 2007
The insulating Semptatap wallpaper (there's cheaper but this gives a really good hardwearing surface as long as you don't fuck it around, also nice and a bit spongy ) has been really good at cutting down mould except for the ground floor north wall which has now got a bit - I've moved furniture away from it as much as I can. It also seems breathable which is important for my place.
Am thinking of adding another layer on that wall. I did read that corners of rooms are susceptible to damp and was tempted to add a sort of triangular piece over those areas but I think it might look a bit strange.
In the meantime though this stuff is fucking excellent. Just ordered my second bottle because I lent one to my neighbour and now can't find it
doesn't smell as badly of chlorine as the Dettol Mould & Mildew remover which is also very good, but I may have mentioned that the foam is fucking excellent - stops reappearance for a while too.
) has been really good at cutting down mould except for the ground floor north wall which has now got a bit - I've moved furniture away from it as much as I can. It also seems breathable which is important for my place. Am thinking of adding another layer on that wall. I did read that corners of rooms are susceptible to damp and was tempted to add a sort of triangular piece over those areas but I think it might look a bit strange.
In the meantime though this stuff is fucking excellent. Just ordered my second bottle because I lent one to my neighbour and now can't find it
doesn't smell as badly of chlorine as the Dettol Mould & Mildew remover which is also very good, but I may have mentioned that the foam is fucking excellent - stops reappearance for a while too.
two sheds
Least noticed poster 2007
Definition 1: Any of various heating systems in which a central source of heat is used to distribute heat (and sometimes hot water) throughout a building in a controlled manner.
but whatever
Storm Fox
Trying the find the next noun to verb
All the HG products I have used are pretty good.The insulating Semptatap wallpaper (there's cheaper but this gives a really good hardwearing surface as long as you don't fuck it around, also nice and a bit spongy
Am thinking of adding another layer on that wall. I did read that corners of rooms are susceptible to damp and was tempted to add a sort of triangular piece over those areas but I think it might look a bit strange.
In the meantime though this stuff is fucking excellent. Just ordered my second bottle because I lent one to my neighbour and now can't find it
doesn't smell as badly of chlorine as the Dettol Mould & Mildew remover which is also very good, but I may have mentioned that the foam is fucking excellent - stops reappearance for a while too.
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