Advice on how to handle- dds housemates at uni want to out heating on overnight

[Thethingswedoforlove]

How can we convince them that it really isn’t cheaper to keep the house at a constant temperature?! They want to have it on at a ‘low’ temp of 17 degrees! It’s a huge house with 6 people and most students don’t even have it on during the day let alone at night. I’m at my wits end. How can we afford that bill? I told her that she should say that those that want it on overnight need to pay and she won’t pay a share of that but clearly that is a bit confrontational and doesn’t lend itself to harmonious living. How can we convince them?! It is utterly nuts. Some are saying things like my dad knows about heating bills and it is def cheaper etc.’

It is better to have the house at a constant temp - more economical and easier for the house to heat when it’s not always doing it from freezing - plumber / boiler installers always advised this
if the house reaches the temp or above, the heating will click off

I keep mine at 17 overnight. I wouldn’t want dd to be freezing? Have you seen the weather atm? The bill will be split, so not that high surely?

I also think there’s no real difference in the bill, mine doesn’t change much if I put heating on as and when

Also not sure where you’re getting the information from that most students don’t put heating on during the day in January when it’s below zero!!

It's pretty cold OP, I don't think you're going to be able to "convince" the other students that they're wrong if they want the heating on.

Some are saying things like my dad knows about heating bills and it is def cheaper etc.’

Which is kind of what you're doing OP, you just have different opinions on how you want things done.

I'd back off and let majority rule, suck up the extra, it really won't be that much over the course of the next couple of months when you actually sit down and work it out, and you're currently really putting your DD in a very difficult position.

Dd's flatmates refuse to put the heating on at all! I've sent her back with a plug-in heater and electric blanket. Their landlord won't want burst pipes but they are holding out so far...

They could try it out - a week with heating cutting on and off and a week of constant temperature. In all honesty I’d have a constant heat especially given students are often up quite late so the time when heating would be off would actually fairly minimal. I also think 17 degrees is quite low if you’re not up and moving about.

"most students don’t even have it on during the day let alone at night. I’m at my wits end."

That's a recipe for burst pipes surely!

Whether or not it's best to have it on constantly is very house dependent, on how solid and insulated the property is. 17 is pretty low anyway tbh.

If each radiator has a valve, they could turn down the ones that don't need to be on overnight say the hallways etc.

Keeping it at a constant 17 will be cheaper than heating up from cold

They need to be warm. I dont think that's unrealistic

I totally agree re the daytime and fully support it being on then. But overnight? Ok I hear the views of others and it s really helpful. I wil back off. Thank you.

Btw I was basing my assertion on this from the energy saving trust: Energy Saving Trust recommendation:
The Energy Saving Trust, a reliable source for energy efficiency advice, states that leaving the heating on all day is typically not the most cost-effective method.

it doesn’t even entertain the idea of keeping it on overnight. But I guess the relationships matter more. Just worry re being able to afford the bills but we will work with dd to support her.

Could they do it for a month as an experiment and see how it impacts on the bills? Do they have a gas smart meter? If so they could do it for less time and use the gas smart meter to work out whether it will pact the bills and by how much.

My house is set to a constant lowish temperature in individual rooms with periods when it's higher in the high traffic ones. Is that possible?

I encourage my children to have their heating on and work an extra shift if needed. You are crazy suggesting 6 people should freeze over night every night.

@Thethingswedoforlove I have a background in energy advice and it really is more economical (and better for your health) to keep the temperature on a low level at all times in cold weather. Homes are constantly losing heat and by the time you put the heating back on in the morning the internal temperature will be very low and will require more energy to reach a comfortable temperature.

Obviously encourage heat saving measures such as keeping curtains closed and tucked behind radiators, turn down radiators in lesser used rooms, keep internal doors closed and make use of draft excluders, add additional floor coverings and eat warming foods. Extra blankets and hot water bottle at bed time and keep feet off the floor when sitting. Renters can also add things like reflective panels behind radiators and draft excluders tape in windows and doors.

They can check their bill to ensure they’re on the best tariff for their needs. It’s more cost effective to utilise a gas central heating system than have individuals plugging in electric heaters and blankets as electricity costs about 4 times more than gas.

Ultimately you can only advise as you don’t live there and your DD has to reach a consensus with her roommates.

If it's a cold house they may need it on low. Although I woukd recommend old fashioned options like extra blankets,.hot water bottles and thick socks etc. too.

Silly for them to pay heaps for university and then get ill with cold.

Ultimately you can only advise as you don’t live there and your DD has to reach a consensus with her roommates.

Also the parents of the other students have an equal right to have a say as OP.

Check the rental agreement. DD was instructed by her landlord to keep heating on continuously to help avoid damp. Old Edwardian conversion with awful extensions, so very prone. She had a friendly mushroom which grew in the bathroom and regular slug visitors!! Bills were included though, so although the rent was high, she had no extra stress of worrying about extra bills.

They are a very useful resource and do have a lot of helpful advice however I’m sure you will find advice in their website also saying that it is unwise to allow the internal temperature to drop significantly, especially during cold weather when it is harder to reheat a space.

Energy advice is difficult to give generically as it’s actually quite varied based on individual set up (eg house vs flat, type of construction, level of insulation, type of heating system, level of heating controls, property occupancy and associated use etc) I’m pretty sure they have an advice line you can call if you need more detailed guidance.

Surely everyone is thinking about this the wrong way round?

You decide what an acceptable temperature is and set the thermostat. The weather then decides how often the heating is on.

I have mine set to 16 overnight and 19 during the day. In the summer it never comes on, for the last three days it's barely been off.

Yes that's how I look at it too @FixTheBone

This sounds like a sensible approach

Whether 17 is high or not depends on the location of the thermostat and where there are individual TRV's on the radiators.

I keep mine on at 14. In reality that means that it rarely comes on overnight. However when we first moved in the thermostat was located in the dining room, an internal room with no external walls that retained the heat. The heating did not come on unless we set the stat at 20 degrees.

I would suggest they try 14 or 15 degrees to start with.

(daughter/sister of two heating engineers who works for the family company)

Well you certainly wouldn't be convincing me to turn my heating off at night. It's bloody freezing. She needs to realise that in communal living she can't always get her own way and it's usually a case of the majority wins. Why are you even involving yourself?

My heating has been at 18 overnight for the last few weeks because it's really cold. No it isn't cheaper than turning it off at night and turning it back on in the morning, but I don't want to freeze in my own home.
Ultimately the heating is the choice of the people living in the house, and this is the risk of living in a shared house with shared bills. Your daughter could turn the radiator in her room (and any unused rooms) at night, which will reduce the cost slightly.