Nanny puts heating on AIBU

[littlesue]

Hi. Well first time in AIBU so ready for a flaming. I recently hired a before and after school nanny. DH hates the central heating unless it's cold as he gets really hot and sweaty and I am superfrugal so hate it on unless it's freezing cold. So I gave nanny an electric heater (radiator type) in case she gets cold. Problem is she switches on heating in the summer and today when I got home it was so hot I had to open the windows when she left and the internal temp was 24 degrees inside without the heating. I've no problem if she wants to put the heating on when it's cold but gas/electric has gone up 18% and DH thinks she must have a health condition. So AIBU? Does anyone else need heating at 24 degrees inside? Or am I the odd ball?

[CardyMow]

Blimey - 24 degrees would see me having melted into a puddle. Growing up my house was as cold as the poster above that had to wear gloves to bed (My mum is so tight that she is proud of the fact that her CH hasn't been on for 6 years. At all.). So I am very used to extra layers.

My heating goes on when a fleecy dressing gown, thermal undies (me and the dc), thick socks, a fleece blanket and fleecy pyjamas aren't enough to keep us warm. Which is usually only when the outside temperature is below zero - I make a habit of not turning on the heating unless it is below zero or snow on the ground outside.

[chandellina]

yes bills have gone up 18% across the board. nannies fiddling with the heat will make them go even higher.

[WhereYouLeftIt]

Get her a cardigan. And snuggly socks.

[Iggly]

Ah so you don't know how much your bills have gone up - it read as if they'd gone up because of your nanny!

[Marshy]

Get her an electric fan heater - they are much more effective! Probably more expensive though..........

[littlesue]

Blimey - things work fast on MN.

Our nanny is skinny so as others have pointed out this makes a big difference. I on the other hand have not been skinny for 5 years. But she doesn't eat at my house not even a snack - she can help herself to anything - we have lots of fruit, things for sandwiches, soups which she can heat up as she doesn't cook, but she waits until she goes home so she's not going to get warm except for hot drinks.

I read about the 18% increase in the press. Quick, I must get my calculator out and check if it's true. Mind you I would do this when it's time to change supplier at the end of the contract. I'm not an accountant but work with numbers as part of my job.

Nanny is very sweet but not very practical minded as her mum and dad do everything for her so doesn't have the life experience. But DS gets on with her and that's the important thing.

Someone mentioned if I have a nanny I can afford to have the heating on without question. We are not rich and a nanny is a necessity as I work in London full-time from 7:30am to 7pm and even though we know some excellent childminders my DS was too exhausted when we picked him up. I would love to give up work, but that's not going to happen unless we win the lottery. Thanks all for the different views.

[Marshy]

Those electric radiators are rubbish though, aren't they - I would have put the heating on as I hate being cold

[Iggly]

Sorry going back to the OP, I've just re-read and chuckling at the "18%" increase. Did you sit there and calculate it then explode in a fit of rage?

[4madboys]

our thermostat is on 16 deg at the moment, i turn it up when i need to, but generally to about 18-19? the thermostat is in the dining rm which is open plan with the stairs and so the heat goes up the stairs and so the rest of the house will be slightly warmer than the dining rm. at night i turn it back down again as our bedrooms are always wamer.

but really you dont need it about 20 or 21c maximum? regardless of bills i dont have the heating on when not necessary as it dries out my skin and eyes.

she should stick a jumper on and slippers if she is chilly and there is a legal temp that schools etc have to be at, so if thats an ok temp for children then maybe find out what that is and have a compromise with that?

so no op i dont think you are being unreasonable.

[brighthair]

Redhead here I always have cold feet but my heating doesn't come on unless it's less than 12c inside

24c would have me in a bikini

[rebl]

Can't you set the heating to come on if the inside temperature drops below a certain temperature and turn off when it hits a maximum temperature? Thats what we do but we do have room thermostats and I realise not everyone has those.

But I would not be happy if I was working somewhere that I was cold in. This time of year is funny, we had the heating on yesterday as the house was cold and dampish. Only on for an hour but it made a massive difference.

[lesley33]

And my workplace heating has been on when needed over the summer, We have had some very hot says as well as some very cold ones!

[PumpkinBones]

You would be far better off getting rid of the plug in heater and putting theheating on. They cost a bomb to run, and they don't seem to warm in the same way, more of a hot blast than regulated warmth. Set the timer to come on before she gets there, and tell her that you have done it - say you've got rid of the electric plug in one because it's expensive to run, and with colder weather approaching you want her to be comfortable.

[BarmyBiscuit]

I'm always cold and my thermostat is always set at 23. when I go to my mothers, her house is freezing. It's why I am like I am. I used to have to wear gloves to bed as she didn't believe me when I said I was too cold. I would never work for someone who banned me from turning up the heating. It's ridiculous

[TakeThisOneHereForAStart]

And maybe stock up on nice coffee, tea or drinking chocolate (whatever you think she will like) and tell her to help herself as often as she likes

Warm drinks help like nothing else when you are cold.

[TakeThisOneHereForAStart]

I'm a red head who always felt the cold, even in summer. The slightest hint of a draft would have me wrapping up in big cardigans or jumpers and shutting all the doors and windows. I never realised it was all down to my hair!

Since my pregnancies I seem to have warmed up a bit because now I have the opposite problem of always feeling too hot.

I don't think you are being unreasonable OP. We get this a lot at work, customers coming out in the middle of winter, dressed in next to nothing and then complaining that they are cold.

I have to admit, in my younger, non-bill paying days, I would rather turn on the heating than find a jumper (not any more). But 24-26 degrees is far too high and she needs to put something warmer on if she suffers from feeling the cold.

[lesley33]

I think you are being a bit U. Talk to her about money and the need to dress warmer.

But I have been skinny and fat. When I was skinny I can remember my OH being unhappy that I would put up the thermostat to 24. Yes you can put jumpers, and vests on, but I would still have found 20 cold.

Fat I can happily be in a house at 17c no bother, It really does make a big difference.

[ThePrincessRoyalFiggyrolls]

But 24-26 is bloody hot ffs, no one needs to be in heat like that.

And I have to question the redhead thing, I mean didn't they originate from celtic lands that are a little bit chillier

[ThePrincessRoyalFiggyrolls]

spiderpig I think that is a bit mean to say actually. If you read properly she doesn't have a full time Nanny but regardless that is irrelevant, the house is probably warm enough if she wore clothes but turning the heating up has a financial cost and environmental cost too when it a) isn't necessary - join the real world and wear a bloody jumper NOT a vest b) she isn't there all day and an alternative has been provided for her.

Surely if she is making the children a meal then the oven will be on at some point, if she is playing with the children then she will be moving around. If she is just sitting there watching tv not moving but babysitting I would consider swapping her! She doesn't sound massively grown up anyway op so I expect any conversation will go straight over her head!

[GwendolineMaryLacey]

I used to take a blanket round to someone's house when I was babysitting and sit there freezing and pissed off because their thermostat was on 18 and they would have had me shot if I'd changed it. Being cold doesn't make for a good working attitude, I found.

[grumplestilskin]

I don't function well when its cold. Apparently red heads need higher temperatures to feel warm, as do some Irish genes, as do people with dodgy thyroids..

Is she a good nanny? do you want to loose her over the heating?

[BoffinMum]

It's perfectly possible to be good with kids but a bit crap domestically/financially. The OP wants a better balance, I think. This nanny sounds a bit ignorant on the domestic front tbh. A parallel might be someone who fails to lock the house up properly or use the burglar alarm in the right way. not the end of the world, but not how real grown ups operate.

Spider, a lot of people are financially crippled by childcare, so that comment was out of order. Having a nanny does not mean all domestic economy goes out of the window, nor should it. A good nanny (or indeed any member of staff) should seek to save the employer time and money wherever it is sensible to do so. If the kids aren't cold, then the nanny needs to ask herself whether she has enough clothes on.

[chandellina]

feeling the cold is one thing - i feel the cold too but I don't jack the heat up to 25 (as my nanny does). would nanny do the same in her own home? I think not. we all behave a bit differently when it's on someone else's account.

[chrchrch]

OP you entrust her with your child and your house, and you're worried about heating bills... so employ someone else who will fit your requirements. Simple.

Some people like putting on overclothes when they go out, some like to wear them indoors so they don't need to adjust their clothes when they go out. If that's important to you, then find someone who fits that need.