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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To think that central heating is a thing of the past?

173 replies

hiddenhome · 21/10/2013 13:13

More and more people seem to be unable to afford to use their central heating Sad

How long before we all go back to just having a fire in the lounge?

We no longer use our central heating and think of it as an unaffordable luxury. We've even had radiators removed as they were taking up room. We just have a multifuel stove that we use to heat the lounge and open the door if we want heat upstairs overnight.

OP posts:
propertyNIGHTmareBEFOREXMAS · 21/10/2013 17:12

One other thing- being open plan for family room and kitchen diner as worked out really well. All the heat rom cooking really helps to keep the family room toasty. Cooking using the oven and hob tonight will warm us up another degree or two.

LimitedEditionLady · 21/10/2013 17:16

Ha does anyone else refuse to even switch the heating on until all the radiators have washing on?wasting heat!

BeCool · 21/10/2013 17:19

Those silver things you put down the back of the rads - they make a big difference. Deflects heat that would be going into the wall back in the rad and room.

I put them in last January and notice the place heats up much more quickly now - £12 well spent.

3asAbird · 21/10/2013 17:19

I remember my nans house had no central heating 3 story end terrace,

she had 2living rooms with gas fires.

in winter we would washing with washing up bowl in front of fire.

hot water bottles and electric blankets.

I also remember house we moved into had gas fire and downstairs bathroom was freezing so we had one of those huge calor gas ugly looking fires not sure if calor gas be cheaper than british gas bill.

As as adult lived in flat with night storage heaters on meter get obsessive over using anything when can see in dwindling daily.

Now we have central heating times but try not to use it if we can.

Only thing thats gas is central heating have small electric shit heater in lounge and patio doors curtains move when wind blows.

Unfortunatly as a renter its harder to make things more economical if we owned would love a wood burning stove.

Im worried about energy we with scottish power and not sure if to change as know 2 already announced rises.

HarrietSchulenberg · 21/10/2013 17:21

YANBU - I have central heating but only use it when it's teeth-chatteringly cold. I am saving up for a woodburner as that would heat everywhere that we need.

I cannot bear going to houses that are fuggy with heat. I have some acquaintances (parents of one of my dses friends) heat their entire house to an unbearable, headache-inducing temperature, even the unused spare bedroom, the downstairs toilet and the "games room" (ex-garage), even though all of them are sitting in the one living room, wearing little more than t-shirts.

Interestingly enough they are the first people to grumble when the cost of fuel goes up. They appear to believe that cheap gas is some kind of human right, and that it's obligatory to heat an entire 5 bed house to somewhere near passing out point. I want to scream at them, "Turn the f*cking heating down and wear a jumper". I don't stay long, just pick up ds (who's invariably red and sweaty) and get going.

BeCool · 21/10/2013 17:22

3asaBird
Mosey Saving Expert has a great website that will tell you if it is worth changing: Cheap Energy Club

BeCool · 21/10/2013 17:23

Harriet my exIL's are like that. It's the tropics year round at thiers. I use to go to visit and just want to lie down and sleep. madness!

C0ffeeN0biscuit · 21/10/2013 17:26

Just had a lovely new boiler put in.

Its more efficient than ever. Can control hot water and heat separately. Can lower the thermostat. Can put it on and it will go off it it reaches 21 degrees. Automatically. They guy said i can expect a good reduction in bills so that sounds like the future to me!! Warm and cosy.

Apileofballyhoo · 21/10/2013 17:32

We haven't used the heating yet this year but we have been lighting a fire. The house is a new build and pretty well insulated so the fire keeps it bearable for now. A bit nippy in the mornings downstairs though. Hoping to manage on 500l of fuel this winter. Haven't used the heating since early April (despite the cold spring this year).

moogy1a · 21/10/2013 17:34

There is a solution to the drying clothes dilemma.
Dry them in a dribuddy in your living room. Dry clothes and it heats the room at the same time.
We all gravitate towards it like it's a modern day fire (Am currently to mean to start putting coal or any of our wood supply on the multistove!)

HardFacedCareeristBitchNigel · 21/10/2013 17:37

We have the heating on for 1 hour a day at the most, bathroom, our bedroom, hall and DDs room only. We have a wood burner in the sitting room and beg/borrow as much wood as we can manage, it's very efficient and keeps the ground floor warm overnight. Otherwise it's an extra jumper, PJs, warm slippers and dressing gowns all the way. We are all quite hot little mortals as well which helps.

I really resent spending money on the heating, I'd rather put on another pair of socks. Fortunately DH feels similarly and DD is always so hot that she'd run round naked in the snow.

bluebirdwsm · 21/10/2013 17:37

I moved just over 2 years ago and made the decision not to put in central heating. But I have put in a woodburner in the kitchen/diner which kicks out the heat and with the doors open keeps the chill off the rest of the rooms [3 bed bungalow].
Otherwise if I want to use the lounge it can be heated quickly with a good oil-free radiator, and is warm within 20 minutes if I've been out. The room is cosy and comfortable with the door shut.
Oil-free radiators in all other rooms are used at a low setting if it's really cold.
And I never have heating in the bedroom, don't like it.
Heating bills not too bad either, wood and electricity last winter [a bad one] came to about £400. [And no gas bill].

whatever5 · 21/10/2013 17:44

I would hate to live in a cold house and I don't think I would give up central heating unless I couldn't afford to eat. I work at home a lot of the time so having a reasonably warm house is a priority for me.

I think we have had it on for a couple of weeks now although the thermostat is set fairly low (19 degrees).

wasabipeanut · 21/10/2013 17:44

I think YABU because as we have seen people will sacrifice a lot before the heating goes off. However I agree with your general sentiment. We hold out a lot longer these days before it goes on but we live in a Victorian detached house that haemorrhages heat.

I hang out in the kitchen near the oven a lot and wear jumpers. I like a blanket over my knees in the evenings if I'm not keeping warm by bloody ironing.....

Lazysuzanne · 21/10/2013 17:49

I like heating but never in the bedroom, I like a cool bedroom although I will have a hot water bottle if it's very cold.

Mind you since reaching 'the age of shifting hormones' I just dont feel the cold like I used to:o

KatieScarlett2833 · 21/10/2013 18:00

I was brought up in Scotland in houses with no central heating.
It was fucking terrible and no amount of extra jumpers would have improved the chilblains, ice on the inside of the windows, damp or constant chest infections we got.

expatinscotland · 21/10/2013 18:00

What a sad thread.

FyreFly · 21/10/2013 18:02

I think YAB a bit U.

Nothing wrong with a fire - I've never had a house without a functional fireplace and chimney and if I had to move I would never choose a house that didn't have one. I have a fire going now and it's lovely. They're cheaper than having the central heating on (which is on for one hour each morning and evening unless it gets uber freezing), greener (we use local lumber) and, if there's a power cut, you will still have at least one heated room. Honestly, I wouldn't be without one - it baffles me why so many houses are built without them nowadays.

The utility prices are getting ridiculously high I agree, but after British Gas announced their rises the other day I switched to EDF who are offering a price freeze til 2017 - take advantage of that now before the prices go up again! I won't save much in the immediate term but in the long term, if these price rises continue at the same rate I'm looking at a £500-£1000 saving.

Fluffy40 · 21/10/2013 18:14

I was brought up with no central heating. Just a coal fire in the main room.

It was awful, and the smoke made me sneeze.

We now live in a rented vicarage which has good insulation and central heating. It's lovely, and we are lucky to live here.

Lazysuzanne · 21/10/2013 18:14

fires are lovely if you have access to free wood but if lots of people had fires I dont think there'd be enough free wood to go round!

Plus there are air pollution issues (?)

KatieScarlett2833 · 21/10/2013 18:15

Imagine what would happen if we all started to burn wood as a main source of heating.

FyreFly · 21/10/2013 18:20

Not much, Katie

It would just be a move from burning huge amounts of fuel to generate electricity to power our central heating to individuals burning fuel to heat their homes.

trish5000 · 21/10/2013 18:24

www.argos.co.uk/static/Product/partNumber/8501147.htm

Was curious as to what this was. Am now even curiouser!

HardFacedCareeristBitchNigel · 21/10/2013 18:25

I'm actually just more bewildered that people can't arrange their budgets to afford to heat their homes

We can afford to. We chose not to.

Lazysuzanne · 21/10/2013 18:25

suspect coal burning power stations are more efficient than individual fireplaces?

Long term I predict vastly improved photo voltaic cell technology such that many surfaces are covered with solar cells and energy is free and unlimmited

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