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.

Oh yes! I used to see my breath when I breathed out. I used to try and melt the ice on the inside by hotting it with my school ruler and picking at the ice with my school compass.

I have fond memories of childhood.

^This. I am finding this thread very depressing. The healthy and cognitively able may be able to find creative solutions to keep warm if they can't afford oil, but I worry about the elderly and vulnerable this winter. People reliant on oil heating are often in isolated locations and their difficulties may go unnoticed.

Indeed. I obviously started this thread to vent and also for suggestions. However, I'm fortunate that I can stay out of the house until late and then just get straight into bed when I get home from work. There will be people who don't have this option. It's really worrying.

@Ihateboris Alternative options could include reaching out to your other utility companies to see if anything could be made cheaper.

Asking on local social networks if anyone is giving away any oil radiators, wood burners or heaters.

Checking if any grants are available via your local council or charities. There’s many available for people who are classified as vulnerable as well as those who are not, even more available if you live in Scotland or Wales.

Depending on your situation if you work or not, claim any benefits or not, maybe look into opportunities to earn a little extra cash. There’s quite often threads on here where people give suggestions and advice about topping up income without having to get a 2nd job or massively disrupt your life.

Put what you can afford in the tank and heat it to a few degrees lower than usual and have it going off an hour earlier and coming on an hour later??
I’ve bought the proper Oodies while on sale and wear them in the winter, they are so warm and snuggly.

How do you avoid mould and damp? Cold, damp air is dangerous

May I ask the temperature of your unheated home in,say, November or January, even March and which country and region you live?

Honestly if I had no heating at all when it’s freezing or under for days on end, the temperature would barely hit 4 or 5 degrees. I experienced this during a long power cut a few years ago in November. House became colder each day till it was literally a recommended fridge temperature. I remember starting to feel unwell and the only tolerable place was in bed with multiple layers and hat on.

I can not believe that my post has been deleted.
I can not believe someone reported me for finding it outrageous that in 2026 someone should be celebrated for sitting under two duvets with hat and gloves on.

@JustOneMoreScroll you are correct, it is depressing that frozen windows as seen through the lens of romanticism.

Just because it happened in the past does not mean that we should think it is acceptable today. I mean why bother using a seatbelt, modern medicine, computers, when we didn't in the past.

It is not acceptable that peoples means of warming their homes has increased by over 100%.

It is not acceptable that there are areas of society, in their warm homes, that try and make out that this is normal.

They either live abroad or in a terrace/flat which uses other people's heat.

When it is really cold heating is required to stop the pipes from freezing.

Heating on MN is a bit like the MN chicken.

Last winter my new bungalow felt baltic and I spent most of my time huddled up in bed or under a ton of blankets, all to save paying a fortune on electric heating.
In order to avoid doing the same this year, I've just invested in a log burner. We've got woods just around the corner and I've been picking up twigs and small branches all summer whilst walking my dog. I've also saved loads of paper and card and have been making paper bricks to burn. So far I've got 3 wheelie bins full of twigs etc and over 200 paper bricks, which should seriously cut the cost of heating my home this winter.

As PP said, make sure that you heat your home enough to prevent mould. I am on mains gas but when the prices skyrocketed in 2022/23 I got mould on my bedroom wall from not heating it enough.
Another thing you could look at, to potentially free some money, is your water bill. There are some “ social” tariffs for people on low income. I cut my monthly bill by £20 by signing on it.
If you use broadband internet but don’t require super fast connection, many companies also have social tariffs.
My council also has a yearly fund where they give financial help to people on low incomes. It is a lump sum, around £150 a year. I don’t know what criteria are as I have never applied, but I don’t think it is just for people on benefits. So maybe it is worth checking with your council.

😂😂😂😂😂😂 this made me laugh out loud!

Def invest in a calor gas heater. We had one when our boiler broke years ago. We still sometimes use it now even though got a combi boiler. It's good for heat confined to 1 room. I use it in the dining room too when wfh. We have a company that deliveries a bottle to us when needed.

When I was without central heating during the beast from the east, I still had a gas fire , I know you've no gas, but you could sub an electric one to take the chill off the room. I got myself a faux oodie from Costco, wore wrist warmers/fingerless gloves and a heated throw and wore my sheepskin boots inside. If I was in another room, ie not sitting down in the evening, I wore jumpers too and warm trousers. I had an electric blanket for my bed, one that I could leave on low if it was cold, and had a wool duvet.
I didn't buy everything just then, some things I already had, just topped the stuff up really, as is been without central heating for some time.

This. I am astounded when people say they never heat their home. I'm in NZ and have even been known to put heating on when there is a cool day in the warmer seasons. There is no way I could live in an unheated house during the colder months, no way at all. Having said that, here we generally only heat the living areas, the rest of the house is a bit chilly.

To those of you struggling to keep warm may I suggest layers of merino. Wool is great for keeping warm.

People shouldn’t have to wrap up warm in their own homes.

I would hope whoever is the beneficiary of your Will OP, would step up with a contribution of sorts.

What an odd comment, firstly you’ve no idea if the op has anything to leave, and secondly you’ve no idea if she does if the people concerned have anything spare.

Wow! What an incredible idea!! Why didn’t we all think of that! Because increasing your income is that easy.

well the comment wasn’t for you….

The OP up thread mentioned she has a niece, so there is some sort of family unit in situ.

@Ihateboris I notice in one of your replies you say you’re a Tennant, and I wondered if you are receiving any benefits at all? If your income is low you might be eligible for some UC, and then your landlord can replace your heating system via a government grant, and then you wouldn’t be reliant on oil. I know this doesn’t fix this years dilemma, but it might help for next winter.

https://www.entitledto.co.uk/

https://www.gov.uk/apply-boiler-upgrade-scheme/check-if-youre-eligible?gclsrc=aw.ds&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=19584756958&gbraid=0AAAAApPyt--yd8wNE_SE0EGBoZ2q1lIA5&gclid=Cj0KCQjwkt_UBhDMARIsALpnOAzWD7hBpoGC0edef1a_gj71ZHcbI1EzrijsJ-TUD6d8rUmmubPAuFkaAiz1EALw_wcB

https://octopus.energy/boiler-upgrade-scheme/

Many thanks for your response. Unfortunately I'm not eligible for universal credit. My landlord won't entertain changing the heating system in any of his properties (he has over 100!).

Sorry, that wasn't meant for you

I leave the house around 8am and arrive home 630ish. I'm a cleaner and dog walker. I'm absolutely shattered already (I'm 55).

I lived in an oil heated house until I moved. Couldn't afford ever to put oil in the tank so I lived with one open fire and lots of jumpers. It was hell. You put your coat on to come IN. So, solidarity, OP.

Now I live in a tiny cottage with electric heating that I can't afford to put on more than a couple of times a week. Fortunately it's a mid terrace, so I am heated by my neighbours (who don't ever seem to need to budget and run their heating all day) with heat coming through the walls. I have a heated throw, run to warm myself up, wear layers and heat myself rather than the house.I zap on the heating only if I am ill, have visitors or if I notice the place starting to feel clammy (which doesn't really happen because - neighbours). I also have a logburner I can light if it's freezing and, because it's a bloody enormous one put in by previous owners, that heats the whole house up for days on one afternoon's lighting.