Parents house is 9 degrees

[rottencabbage]

My parents think it is perfectly normal to have a house this cold. They have one very small room that they heat up to a good temperature and then the rest of the house is absolutely freezing.

Does anyone else have parents like this?

9 degrees is very cold. My heating is set to 13 overnight and since I've somehow buggered up the timing pattern, on Saturdays when I come down it's very chilly.

Having said that- I and my siblings grew up in a house that had big, draughty sash windows, very high ceilings and single radiators in the stupidest place in the room (next to the open door!). As adults none of us have heating on in the bedrooms (something both my children have copied) and usually the upstairs is markedly colder than downstairs. We all prefer to layer up/sit under blankets, although I am now the proud possessor of a heated throw for the sofa and a heated underblanket for my bed, which is lovely. And my sitting room has an open fire, so is the warmest room in the house usually.

Still wouldn't want to drop to 9 degrees though.

I grew up like that. Lots of layers etc. But my DGP's couldnt afford heating so i did understand. Thankfully changed when i got to 11.

This. 9 degrees and my bedroom window is open.

The living room is warm. 18 not 25 like some MNers!

Years ago I rented a flat that frustratingly had a modern boiler but nowhere near enough radiators and no timer. I was ok in the mornings with no heating as I'd be rushing around getting ready, but in the evenings I was confined to the living room where I could put on the gas fire and get immediate heat. I actually used to dread having to go to the freezing, unheated bathroom. I survived two winters there and then moved somewhere much warmer! I'm someone who really feels the cold though. In the winter I hate visiting people with cold houses (which for me is anything under 21 degrees!)

Edited to add that I do like a cool bedroom to sleep in though!

Is it due to affordability? I only heat one room when it's very cold. I use an oil filled portable radiator. I haven't had central heating on for years

Mine is set to only come on in the daytime/overnight if it drops below 14c. It comes on in the evening between 6-10pm if it drops below 18c. I'm at home all day (postgrad student) so wear two pairs of socks and a thick cardi and a fleece top when it's cold, and sometimes fingerless gloves as my office room can be chilly.

I don't think I've ever put the heating on past 20c. I also have the bedroom window on the latch all year round, unless it's super windy as then it's too noisy, but I feel like I can't sleep properly with the window closed.

If they are happy, leave them to it. Our house is regularly about 13/14c. That’s a conscious choice. It’s just what’s comfortable. We will turn the heat on a bit throughout the day and brings it up to 15 or so. But I wouldn’t want a house hotter than that. Just heating one room is what everyone was taught to do back in the day. I think it’s probably not great for the house/damp to be that cold, but that’s a different issue.

I usually set my thermostat to 16 degrees and use a dehumidifier. Mould in the northfacing bedroom and damp in the attic got so noticable I was forced to set it to 18. I can't imagine it would be comfortable or healthy at 9 degrees.

Sounds normal to me. I was raised without central heating though. We had little gas fires in each room and if you weren't in the room, you'd be yelled at to buggery if you left the fire on.

Taking the chill off the room is...
That was my dad's favourite saying I reckon.
Jumpers, woolens, fingerless gloves etc etc. and we were pretty warm.

I seems a modern thing that everyone insists on heating their house to 20c or over, like they have to sit in shorts and t-shirts in their living rooms in winter.. wasn't like that growing up, not for us anyway.

As long as their house isnt getting damp and they are heating the room they spend time in then I dont see the problem.
I dont have central heating and use electric heaters to just heat the room Im in. Why would you need your empty rooms to be warm?

I have solid fuel heating and a back boiler so if we’re away there’s no option to keep the house warmed. Just back from a two day break and the house is freezing! I’ve had our range burning all day and it’s just about getting back to normal. I feel for you visiting your parents … I couldn’t do it. I’d just be too miserable …

That's miserable. My DPs house was cold when they were together because they never had any money because of my DM. After they divorced my DFs house was so warm!

Whenever I visited her and she knew I felt the cold she would turn the heating off because it was too expensive. I've got an ex friend who never had any heating on until December and would just layer up. It was miserable going to hers in the winter.

If you have enough money you need a warm home. Life is short with little enough joy as it is.

I cannot bear being cold. I would rather be hungry than cold.

This is actually dangerous for elderly people . It is equivilent to sleeping outdoors .Can they get any help? Keir Starmer the granny harmer wll be pleased as many will be unable to survive at this rate

Have a read of this.

As it says, there's a reason heart attacks and strikes are more common in winter.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-63602501

Neither does my best mate - her windows habe mould in and it is so uncomfortable, l won't go round in the winter any more

I don't know how anyone would willing choose this.

Lots of people cannot afford what it would cost to have it warmer.

That’s very cold we have ours at 19

My FIL was like this. Perhaps not as cold as 9 degrees but it was regularly 12 or 13 degrees in winter. How old are your parents OP? I think it can be a bit of a mindset with the generation who few up during or just after the war. FIL was seriously frugal when it came to food shop too, but he had lots of savings. He was also incredibly stubborn. My parents were of similar mindset, but not to the same extent.

That temperature is actually at the level where it's bad for their health, and for the houses health

My childhood home was exactly like this. A coal fire in one room only and an outside toilet. No bath or running hot water. I suppose we were just used to it. If I took a glass of water up to bed in the winter it sometimes froze solid. 🥶 I’m a softy these days, couldn’t do without a lovely toasty house.

I disagree, there is a gereralational mindset with some elderly. They have the money, but are terrified to spend it on ‘that much’ heat as scared it will drain their savings. It’s sad but true. If it was a case of there my mum could not afford it, then my sister and I would step in. In her case it’s just being frugal. 😕

If you go away in winter, let the heating come on twice a day with the room thermostat set to 14degrees. Leave the loft hatch open.
This is advice given to me by my plumber after I went away in winter and turned the heating off. A mains pipe froze and burst in the loft. My neighbour noticed when she saw water pouring out of the eaves! She got a plumber to turn the water off at the boundary of our property. There was an awful lot of damage.

Do you not worry about these cold houses?

I wish I could. The only way my house can be heated is by lighting the solid fuel range. This heats the water that is pumped to the radiators in the house. I have an immersion for hot water in the summer. But no way to heat the house when I’m away …

We lived half way up a mountain when we were first married. 15 degrees C was with the fire lit and the boiler ran on very expensive gas canisters. DC1 was a little red-cheeked cherub who never got ill.
Now 25 years later I still say aaaah when we get home to a warm home (centralised boiler for all apartments) because the feeling of being chilled to the bone is miserable and you never forget it.

I’d ask the parents if they’ve had reduced winter fuel allowance from the government this year and are cutting back because of it. Maybe you need to talk about damp and mould damage to buildings and health.

We put the heating on for a bit in the morning and then use a wood burner from about 3/4ish until bedtime. Our house (100 years old) gets to about 16 I would say - 9 is madness!