I won't be able to heat my home..

[Ihateboris]

Due to the war in Iran, I simply cannot afford to heat my home.

I'm on heating oil, and since day 1 of the war, oil prices have risen sharply. I've just done a quick calculation, and to fill my tank today it will cost £550, the day before it all kicked off it would have cost £260. I'm just hoping and praying we have a mild winter. 🙏 Just venting.

Be wary of using electric heaters. The average unit price for electricity is now 26p. A 2kwh heater would cost about 52p per hour. Doesn't sound a lot but say you had 2 of them and ran them for 4 hours a day, that's £62 a month before any other usage or standing charge.

All energy prices are going up soon. I believe those on means tested benefits will get help. 🤷‍♀️. But, not the rest of us. 🙄

That's nonsense.
I've lost over ten stone in the last two years and when I was fat, I still felt the cold very much.

I love my heated blanket , I'm never cold now in winter . I've had to buy a mini one for my cat because he loves it too . 😀

Yes we have an account with our supplier, means we pay a set amount every month and don't need to find big lump sums at inconvenient times. We're £500 in credit at the moment so that should cover our next delivery, unless Mr Trump decides to do something colosally stupid again.

Whatever you do don’t use just heaters. Oil filled radiators only when you need to, dupe oodies and blankets and cheap pillar candles generate plenty of heat. We did without for 2.5 years when the Ukraine war broke out, thought we were ok last year and enjoyed some over winter but ran out in February and haven’t been able to entertain filling since and won’t. Also mould becomes a problem after a while so just keep wiping down ceilings and high corners with spray or bleach/vinegar diluted.

I’m in Ireland and it’s about €1300 to fill my tank ( £1114) 900L tank 😞

Op of the tank is completely empty you run a real risk of significant and costly repairs as you will get sludge and air into the fuel lines, causing your boiler to stop. I’d buy an emergency 20 litres at least to put in there

Holy shit

How long does that last?

@Octavia64 can you recommend any thermal socks ? I got some and they were too thick I've some before that were thinner and still thermal.

Op I'm sure you already do this but layers.

Thermal vests /socks / tights ...

Hot water bottle under the feet.

As pp said electric blankets are amazing.

We also got some thick velvet / thermal curtains one year very good price from Argos and they have also doubled up to protect us from the sun we hung them outside our windows.

Unfortunatly the air still gets cold.

Another idea is to get a dehumidifier esp if you can't heat the house.
That will remove moisture end damp but it does throw off some heat ?
We have a great 12 l one from meaco and it's brilliant

Using very very sparingly 8 months , we have a stove also but unfortunately no back boiler , so radiators have to go on to prevent damp , old house .

the price of wood and coal had gone up by at least 30% , 40% in some suppliers and the electricity bill has doubled in three years ! Times are tough!!

Yes and members of my family are unable to be outside their own home because of all the smoke from selfish people burning wood in their log burners! If my mum breathes it in, it puts her in hospital as her lungs are so weak, like many, many other people out there. Have you no shame? I bet you recycle as well don’t you?! To ‘save the planet’ 🙄

we have been without oil since March and Im not intending on buying any

NE of Northern Ireland- cold and windy

We have a stove that keeps one room toasty , we have lap blankets and wear a fleece indoors - and we haven't hit winter yet

TBH, Im glad my mum died in March this year because id be really fearing the bills this winter - we had to have the heating on for her as she wasnt very mobile

And you know, it broke my heart seeing her in her later years living as we did in the 70's - layers and layers.

As a pre war baby she had lived through a lot, but it shames me that she died after working all her life, paying her way, being feared of having the heating on to keep her warm and having to live as we did in the 60s/70s - fuel being a luxury

That is so sad to read. It's depressing that heating is now seen as a luxury 😕

OP do you have an oil buying group in your area? Someone in my village set one up, and because they order in bulk for loads of people, the prices are way cheaper.

Have you worked out what 2-3 hours a day of heating would cost you?

In all honesty I haven't, no. I'm just going to bite the bullet and order some oil and then be extremely frugal with the heating.

I'll look into this. Unfortunately the company I buy from have a 500L minimum order which is a big chunk of my wages.

I think you need to
otherwise how do you know that you can’t afford to heat your home? And you can track it is maybe you can’t afford 3 hours a day but you can afford 2 hours.

I think you need to delve in to it more before concluding you “can’t”

Lecky blankets….best invention ever!

It’s definitely worth asking around, maybe posting on local Facebook, to see if anyone knows of a local group. Ours has got bigger and bigger, hundreds of people in it now, so the orders are always big, meaning that individuals don’t have to order the minimum 500L.

Also, if there isn’t a buying group, have you asked the oil company if you can pay by direct debit monthly? I think most of them offer that. It might make it more manageable.

Yes, thank you for taking the time to send suggestions. Much appreciated.

Do you have any family members who would buy you a tank of oil as a one off gift/help? It is an appalling situation when heating is a luxury that has to be cut.

Go through the menopause too. That works for most women (not me though 🫩).