How are people who WFH managing their energy bills?

[confusedlots]

A few years ago most of us would be out at work all day, no heating on in our homes, no energy being used to heat up lunch etc, sitting in nice warm offices and using their electricity to make cups of tea etc. It seems like madness that in the cost of living crisis, that lots of people are expected to WFH, heating all those individual houses every day in this awfully cold weather, or else just freezing if you can't afford it.

Are people trying to get back into their offices to try to save money on heating their homes during the day? Or to stop them freezing if they can't afford to heat their homes?

I save more than £200 a month commuting costs by WFH 3 days a week. Still have to pay the pleasure of £230 a month to commute into London the other 2 days a week though.

On my WFH days I keep bundled up in one room (door closed) with a big jumper and heated throw. Heating is usually off, but in this cold snap I have kept the thermostat at 14 to stop the house dropping below (it will happily drop to around 10 degrees if the heating is off for a long time). I keep move the thermostat to the office with me so that once the office warms up it cuts off. Also have a candle going to put out some heat. With me, the candle and heated throw the office usually warms up to about 16 or 17. Not massively warm, but not unbearable.

Extra energy costs are cheaper than cost of commuting.

Heating is on 24/7 at low level.

I tuck a hot water bottle into the back of my trousers during the day.

Yesterday wore a hat scarf and coat but that's the first time! Last year I moved my desk to the warmest room in the house but this year haven't been arsed. So in the coldest room instead 🤔

I'm wearing lots of layers and have a heated throw on my lap. But this week I've had to put the heating on more as the cold damp air was triggering my asthma.

I tried going into the office one day this week but it was a ridiculous amount of faff to have to pack my laptop and all cables, headset etc, book a desk, check into the desk, get it set up, take all the food, drink and cup I needed for the day, the monitor was tiny and I need a bigger one to look at spreadsheets, and the glary overhead lights gave me a migraine. I'd rather stay home even though its cold and lonely 😂

I now WFH 99% of the time and the heating only goes on for an hour in the morning and then in the evenings when the dc are home.

I have an oil filled radiator in the room I work in when I absolutely need it, but I layer up, fingerless gloves, hot drinks and hot water bottle. I find I am generally ok until mid afternoon.

I also bought a thermal top yesterday.

When I was working in the office, I had a 40 min commute (minimum) and had to fill my car up at least once a week (which currently costs £100) so I think I am saving money, or at least breaking even and I get to be at home when my dc get home from school, even if it is a little chilly!

I don't get how the roads are always so busy with commuters with so many now wfh! slightly off topic! I do hybrid working and find the cold days at home a bit miserable and depressing and have had to suck it up with the heating. Not depressing enough to tempt me to drive 45 minutes each way to the office though, which with the cost of fuel would be a similar cost to heating the house all day.

£8 to get to/from the office (cheapest option) so not energy savings to go there for me.

I’m in Ireland, we can claim 30% of electricity, gas and internet costs when we wfh. It helps a lot!

Yes. DHs employer is saving a fortune on office space, as they only have a smaller space with hotdesking now, plus it has enabled them to hire the best people across the UK, not just those who live in London. There's a huge benefit to businesses as well as individuals.

I don't WFH but I'd be fine if I did as my flat stays warm constantly. I'm top floor so all the heat travels up and it's a well insulated newish building. I have the heating on at 19 for 3 hours in the morning and at 20 for 3 hours in the evening, rest of the time it's at 16. It's costing me about £80 a week at the moment but I'm massively in credit from the summer months so my direct debit is still £170pm.

Myself and DH are both now on WFH contracts and we love it. We don't have to commute, we have saved over £300 a month in childcare as we can do the school run. We don't heat the house v during the day, we both work on the same room so we have an electric radiator in there with the door closed to keep it warm. The heating comes on twice a day as usual morning and evening.

Of course. MN seems to think that wfh is a weird covid thing, but it's the direction my sort of jobs roles (worked across multiple industries over 10 years) have been heading. Covid just sped that up and added some extra jobs roles temporarily.

Although, 100% wfh is unusual in the roles I come across on my day to day, pretty much everyone works hybrid, so at home 2-3 days a week.

I think people still need to do drop off for school/nursery etc and I will often head to the (busy at 7am) pool/gym and then head home to wfh.

Also, I find it's busier mod week as that's the most common office days around here. My workplace affectionately calls them TWaTs. (Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday-ers)

I think it's partially because of public transport use being down? As in, there is less commuting going on but more of it happening in cars.

@Bestcatmum wfh is not a new thing though. I know two people who have 100% worked from home for at LEAST 10 years now! One is in global telecommunications I think and the the other in banking.

I bundle up into a heated throw.

Layers, heating just one room - but I am saving money by not having a 35 minute commute and then back again, not buying lunch. Work also gave everyone a £500 payment towards energy this winter.

And agree @Helpmesortit I have worked from home since 2013 and only recently took on a hybrid role for the first time!

I refuse to sit in the cold. Currently our gas is fixed £79 a month. They put it up from £22 ! Reviewed in April apparently.

The electricity is about £120 or £110 as ds works part time so often on the Ps4.

We just have six radiators and a gas hob.

I totally get that some people are finding that heating bills are lower than commuting+childcare costs. (I'm ignoring coffee/buying lunch costs as you can choose not to spend on those things).

But surely this isn't everyone working at home? Where I work I'd say there is a huge number of people within a short driving distance (or even walking/cycling distance). Most of them are still choosing not to come in. I suspect there will be a tipping point where these people perceive being in the office as more beneficial than being at home, but we've clearly not reached it yet.

I wfh, and energy bills are a big concern. We have only been offered a 1% pay rise. Company has closed all offices permanently, so they are saving a fortune.

None of my colleagues live near the office (business park on the edge of a city). Everyone has at least a 30 minute commute.

I work in University Admin.

Before Covid, I would have laughed at the thought that we could WFH when we were in such a student-facing role. Now it's just how things are and we go into the office one day a week. We haven't now got enough offices for all the Admin and Academic staff so for us, WFH is here to stay.

(I'm ignoring coffee/buying lunch costs as you can choose not to spend on those things).

You can, but I think there are people who know from bitter experience that for whatever reason they do end up spending on them if they're travelling into work. Willpower, poor planning etc. In that situation, it makes sense to factor it into one's personal equation.

among my friendship group, all WFH full time or hybrid:
Programme manager in the NHS
IT developers
IT consultants
Engineering consultants
Corporate communications
Transport planner / consultant
Lawyers
Social Worker
Marketing manager
I think the only people I know who go to "the office" full time are teachers / childcare providers and Dr's!

@chaddydays my dh is an engineer and he works from home a lot. We work in pharma and a lot of my company work from home 100% of the time and others like my dh are hybrid…but very flexible on that.

I am a Senior Business Analyst for a bank, my nearest office is 2 hours drive away!
My DH is an IT manager his team are spread around the UK, his office is 10 mins from our house but he WFH 98% off the time