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.’

Unless he knows the exact efficiency of your house that’s not always true.

It definitely costs more for us if we let the house get cold to heat back up that just having the thermostat stay to a minimum temperature.

This is one where there is no Ultimate right or wrong. It depends on the properties and what temps you’re talking.

Last week in our house even with the minus temps our heating only came on, on average for just under 2hours a day, never dropping below 19c and reaching a maximum of 21.5c (toasty in our home), in December we even managed a whole day with nothing and a few under 20minute blasts. Hive states our heating preforming as good heating within the expected time.

Not necessarily. It depends on what time they start working.

Maybe they are in paid employment in the evening and can only study into the small hours.

This is my house. The question was about dd’s student house which she shares with housemates.

That’s just grasping at straws now 🤣

Indeed

None of my children had heating on at night in their student houses. My own heating goes off at 10.30pm and back on at 6.,30am (however one of my sons in his own house has a new system which is set to 18C day and night . It very much depends on the house. I like my room to be about 24C in the day by the way - not all of us want to shiver at 18C but I pay so up to me.

As mentioned the students in this particular house all tend to be early to bed. My dd is often the latest at around 11pm. So that isn’t the reason the heating needs to be on.

Our heating only comes on at night in extremely cold weather. It is going down to -8 tonight so it may click on if the living room dips below 12 degrees.

Is this a temporary measure while the weather is freezing ? Can't see the problem if it is.

@Violetparis no the proposal was a more permanent solution. To essentially never let the house get below 17 degrees.

Bit weird that you know what time her house mates are in bed. Regardless, it won't cost that much to leave the thermostat at 17 degrees in the night.

@wombat15 why is it weird? I asked dd because of the points raised on this thread.

Okay, if you have just asked her not that weird. Bit surprised a house of students are all in bed before 11 p.m e ery night though.

Except an experiment like that requires the weather to be the same for both months. Which it won't be.

It honestly won't click in that much at that temp. It's not like its going to be on all night. Even with mine set around 19/20 overnight (because I'm up all night with a baby) the radiators don't get hot overnight, the boiler just kicks in now and then and I might notice that the radiators are just warm when I go to the toilet. It keeps the bitter chill out the air which stops me falling back asleep and also I don't get condensation or mould on my window sills if I do this.
Excessively cold houses get all damp and smelly.

@Wavescrashingonthebeach that’s really helpful. Thank you.

This.

I have a background in public messaging, and you have to give messages that are simple to understand and act on, because the bespoke advice will be too hard to find and act on.

I changed the heating at my office from 8-5 at 21 degrees to on constantly at 18 degrees.

It went from freezing half the time and boiling half the time to pleasantly comfortable, and it cost us the grand total of six pounds extra a month. So it does cost more, but a tiny bit more for a much more effective means of heating the space and people in it.

They need to know what the cap the landlord has set actually is. Otherwise how can they stay within it. That would be the first thing that find out. If the flat mate who is trying to find that out can do so that would be great.

My power bills are based on a yearly amount of power divided into 12. So I pay the same over the summer as in the winter.

That won't work for students as they aren't there in summer. So they need to Pat As You Go type thing now to avoid issues.

I'd suggest if the landlord could give them a figure that would help them budget and anything over that sum gets paid to the landlord monthly. That way there is not a big bill. Should be easy enough to do. Landlord could be up for it, to keep out of getting into debt to students who won't pay.

Plus do they have this landlord cap on electricity too? Do any use personal bedroom plug in heaters or a tumble dryer?

Those are dear so there should be discussion about that.

Better to keep the gas central heating on than one of them buying a personal fan heater. The bills from those are HORRIFIC.

If anyone threatens that they need to be told no and if they really need it they need an oil filled type of radiator that plugs in. Not a fan.

But for that worry alone I'd suggest keeping the heating on in the flat how the others want it. Or one will end up taking measures to heat her own room which will impact the joint bills.

@@DeliciousApples

I don't think OP said bills are included in the rent so nothing to do with the landlord.

Bills are included with the rent up to a cap. They do know what the cap is. So they have calculated a (weighted for winter) daily rate and are going to monitor usage against that using the new smart meter. They need to find out how they have done so far against the cap which is the gap in info. Dd is on it.

Another question. Is anyone in the household disabled as I believe there may be different and better tariffs for disabled people but I'm not sure. The landlord may not want to change even if that was the case. Just mentioning in passing.

PS I meant "Pay As You Go" in my previous thread obviously not "Pat As You Go" 🤣

Your daughter sounds very sensible and is doing all the right things. The only other thing I could add is that if the house had draughty window stuff then with something. Kitchen roll if needs be! The difference is unbelievable since I put draught excluder round them all. Must be saving a fortune as the heats staying in the house!