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.’

If it's any comfort @Thethingswedoforlove my own experience over the past 12 months is that it is definitely more expensive to have the heating on overnight BUT not massively so. In December I estimate it was probably about an extra £30 for a 5 bedroom detached house. It's also more pleasant when getting up in the night for a wee and it's almost completely eliminated any condensation. Caveat is that it's quite well-insulated, our minimum temperature is 16°C rather than 17°C and we have a cheaper fixed rate than the current cap.

Split between 6 people, I doubt it will be horrendous. If your DD is worried, maybe she could keep an eye on the meter over a week or so and see how it's panning out in advance of getting the bill.

Where is she at uni? Im in Yorkshire and it is so cold atm, it was -10 last night. We have had our heating on overnight.

It's not the DD trying to do the convincing here by the look of it but her parents.

Keeping heating on overnight is bonkers. You're in bed asleep and you don't need it to be 17c or 20c or 25c to sleep.

It's really not possible to give a one size fits all answer as every house and heating system is different

The only way to know for a particular house is to do tests if you can find days that have exactly the same outside temperature profile and literally measure the usage doing it each way

Why are you paying her bills and meddling in her affairs with housemates.
This is a time to learn. If they run up a massive bill, divided by 6 it will be a sharp lesson but they will manage by tightening their belts. Not learning this lesson now can be far more costly when she has her own property.
Most students these days live in warm houses, more than half have en suite bathrooms. It is not 1995 anymore.

Leave them to it! If you don’t want to pay, set your child a limit for monthly bills and let them manage the situation themselves.

I did my own experiment a couple of years ago and found in my house it is cheaper to keep it at a constant 16 degrees overnight and 17/18 in the day. Those temperatures feel right for my house. Sometimes I will boost it up to 20 if particularly cold. We've had a lot of problems with damp in the past as it's a fairly old house which we have now got on top of by ventilation and heating. I would say to anyone that it depends on the house, the people living in it as to what is best and comfortable. Our heating comes on overnight if it falls below 16 and to be honest that is what is comfortable and also cheaper for us, rather than having to heat a freezing house first thing in the morning.

Do they though if their choice leads to a cost that the DD or parent whos paying either can't afford or doesn't think is necessary

If one flatmate takes 3 very hot baths a day and the others take one 2 minutes showers is it right that they have to subsidize the hot water cost?

Right? I'm really surprised at everyone saying they leave their heating on overnight. We have super thick duvets and no-one gets cold. They only time my heating is on overnight is if it get to below around -2 or lower then I put it on very low to help the heating pipes which are in our roof.

A lot of people believe it's cheaper to keep it on all the time and I've got friends who leave it on overnight. I believe that's not the case so I only put it on when needed. I did have it on lower overnight when mine were babies as I worried about them getting cold, but not since then.

Suggest that as they are students and committed to evidence-based learning they conduct an experiment. Run the heating at 17 degrees 24/7 for a week, recording the outside temperature three times a day. After a week turn the heating off from 11pm till 7am, still recording temperatures. See how much gas/ electricity they've used by reading the meter daily.

Every individual and household lives differently, and every house holds and loses heat differently. The only real way of knowing is to carry out the experiment.

Surely they'll get one bill and then decide 'thus us extortionate' and that'll be that. If it is a lot.

How about instead of persuading them not to, you have them ask for more regular billing so they can keep track. Or get the landlord to install a smart meter (isn't everywhere its possible meant to have them by now?)

Probably because as a parent of a uni student we end up being the ones that have to cover extra costs!

Possibly because the student isn't getting a full loan and the Government expects that parents top up to at least the maximum amount. Which in reality often doesn't even cover the annual rental, let alone food, travel, bills etc.

I agree, that they shouldn't need to interfere in house politics, but if ultimately parents have to pay the bills, then I can understand why they might want tooo.

And I don't believe that most students live in warm houses. Certainly Ds lived in a house where the heating rarely went on. The 6 occupants could just not afford it, despite all having part time jobs.

Neither of mine have had en-suite rooms beyond Halls accommodation either (a total of 6 years of accommodation so far in 2 different locations).

Exactly! Heating goes off at 10pm on at 6am here. Crazy to have it on when everyone is asleep wrapped up in quilts .

They'll get a rude awakening op when the bills start coming in. Just keep advising her but obviously her decision. Does she have a job to add to her loan to pay for her bills?

to be clear the op states that I was advising her rather than involving myself. She has asked for support.
and I genuinely had no idea that anyone has their heating on overnight. I have learned loads through this thread and as I have already posted I will suggest she perhaps suggests an experimental period or that she just backs off and that I will support her with the fallout in terms of heating bills.

I have it on overnight as I get up during the night for the toilet. No way I’m freezing.

Tell her to set her alarm for 1 am and get up and switch it off every night and then feign ignorance (or get up early and turn it back on).

It seems it is much more normal than I realised and she will have to accept the view of the majority in her house. Thank you for the helpful thoughts and experiences.

Dressing gown, slippers?

And no I do not have the heating on overnight- it’s not good for you and nobody I know does. Sleeping in a cool room is beneficial. Also these idiots probably want it on at 22, not 17 during the night.

We are in central Scotland, we've not had the snow that other parts of the country have had but overnight it's been -8 or -6c for a week. Our house is well-insulated, double glazing and so on, but the heating is on when people are up and about only.

If money was no object I'd still not heat the house overnight as it's totally pointless.

It isnt! I don't know one person who chucks money down the drain by having heating on overnight.

You only have to do a search to see it is not cheaper and uses more fuel. What our plumber advised with a combo boiler that the boiler is on all the time so doesn't have to work so hard to heat up. It really depends on how efficient your system is how accurate the thermostat is etc.