Active discussions

Please or to access all these features

Talk
AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To ask a house maintenance question (that I should probably know the answer to)

39 replies

Bhgsa · 23/12/2024 15:36

For a bit of context I am a single parent and haven’t been away with ds since he was born. He’s now 5 and this week we are going away for a week in the uk. I feel really stressed! Random things keep coming into my head and one of them is should I turn off the hot water settings?! At the moment the water comes on automatically twice a day for half an hour each time. I don’t really want to meddle with it as I’m not good with that sort of stuff but then I started wondering what will happen if it keeps heating up twice a day and not being used? Will something explode? Is it dangerous etc. Hoping for some mumsnet help!

OP posts:
Crunk · 23/12/2024 15:55

Does your system have a “holiday mode”? Mine allows me to stop heating the water and set a min temp for the house to stop freezing. I didn’t have a clue how to do this either but googled the controls. It’s had quite an impact on my bills as I use it every time we’re away now.

Before I’d figured it out my empty house just had warm rooms and hot water. Nothing bad happens!

Original poster
Bhgsa · 23/12/2024 15:53

@Anotherparkingthread @SapphireOpal ideally I would like to switch it off. It hasn’t been horrendously cold yet. The house is detached but the hall thermostat hasn’t gone below 15 so far this winter while it’s been off. Is it too risky to keep it off?

OP posts:
TallulahBetty · 23/12/2024 15:53

Leave heating on low so that it comes on to protect pipes if needed. Then set it to come on a few hours before you're due back, so the house isn't stone cold when you get in (horrible!).

Anotherparkingthread · 23/12/2024 15:48

Bhgsa · 23/12/2024 15:45

@Anotherparkingthread thanks. Would you leave the heating off?

Show quote history

I would personally but the pipes at my house don't freeze, and I'm tighter than a ducks arse so I wouldn't want to pay for heating when I wouldn't be there.

It's fine if you want to leave it on I know lots of people who do. What property type is it? That can make a difference. My grandparents leave theirs on when they're away.

SapphireOpal · 23/12/2024 15:48

Bhgsa · 23/12/2024 15:44

@MonopolyQueen thanks. It’s a nest system so I could set it for 16 all the time and then it would click on if it ever went below that. But I was planning on just leaving it off, would that be a mistake? Temperature sometimes goes down to 15 if I have heating off but not yet seen it go lower

You don't need to leave it as high as 16 - ours goes on 7 when we're away.

SlipperyLizard · 23/12/2024 15:47

Turn the hive to manual and down to frost (7.5 I think), to protect your pipes, then just remember to turn it back onto your usual schedule before you get home, so the house is warm.

Original poster
Bhgsa · 23/12/2024 15:45

Anotherparkingthread · 23/12/2024 15:44

It won't explode lol. If that was a thing houses would blow up every time anybody was out all day and the government would have had to step in due to all the unran baths destroying the place! Provided you aren't trying to save money it's fine just to leave it. I would probably do the same thing if I didn't understand the controls well.

@Anotherparkingthread thanks. Would you leave the heating off?

OP posts:
Original poster
Bhgsa · 23/12/2024 15:44

@MonopolyQueen thanks. It’s a nest system so I could set it for 16 all the time and then it would click on if it ever went below that. But I was planning on just leaving it off, would that be a mistake? Temperature sometimes goes down to 15 if I have heating off but not yet seen it go lower

OP posts:
Anotherparkingthread · 23/12/2024 15:44

It won't explode lol. If that was a thing houses would blow up every time anybody was out all day and the government would have had to step in due to all the unran baths destroying the place! Provided you aren't trying to save money it's fine just to leave it. I would probably do the same thing if I didn't understand the controls well.

Original poster
Bhgsa · 23/12/2024 15:43

@VioletIndigoBlueGreen thank you. does this mean I should leave the heating on too?

OP posts:
MonopolyQueen · 23/12/2024 15:43

I would not turn off hot water personally for just a week. It will heat up to the temperature you set it to, it won’t go past that temperature so if it hasn’t cooled naturally or been used, the boiler simply won’t heat it up any further.

Leave your central heating/ normal heating on “low” for a few hours at night around 16 degrees to stop any pipes freezing or home getting damp.

VioletIndigoBlueGreen · 23/12/2024 15:42

It will be fine. There is no risk to water heating up and not being used, but there is a risk if your house gets too cold and your pipes freeze (unlikely with the current forecast in the uk for the next week tbh). Frozen pipes might burst and cause a flood. Leaving water and heating on for half an hour twice a day sounds like a good idea to keep everything working smoothly while you're away.

AirborneElephant · 23/12/2024 15:40

It will be fine. If it reaches temperature it will automatically shut off, just like the heating. Bit of a waste of money to keep it hot all week though, it’s better to get familiar with the controls if you can.

Nerdlings · 23/12/2024 15:38

There is a property section and their are lots of knowledgeable people on there who might be able to help. I think there is a plumber who is always good to answering questions

Swipe left for the next trending thread