Settle an argument between me and DH (bit boring!)

[SuzanneSays]

Sorry to bore you all but DH has demanded we settle this through mumsnet jury...we live abroad, it's about 22 degrees outside, not hot but not freezing however temp drops in the evening so we light a fire to keep it cosy.

Every morning I fling the doors and windows open to air the house as otherwise it gets stinky. DH then goes around closing them all saying why heat the house up every night just to cool it down in the morning.

Help-who is right? Do you even care??? Ha!

I would air too but I do get his point. I would still air though unless freezing outside. So long as you don't have the fire or heating on an windows open, that's counterproductive.

you are, any heat generated from the fire last night will have long gone by now

How does the house get stinky? I get it that there might be a few cooking smells and you may both smell slightly unwashed first thing in the morning, but surely that doesn't need every door and window flung open?

You're right. House needs to be aired. If nothing else, cooling down bedrooms reduces the chances of little critters breeding.

You're sitting down in the evening which is why you need to be warm and cosy - not the same in the morning!

Poor old DH. I sense this isn't going to go well for him

You are right. You need fresh air, I like fresh air!

I air every morning just to stop condensation building up.

You're right.

Houses need to be aired. Nothing worse than stuffy, fusty smelling houses.

Windows open in the morning, definitely.

22 degrees? I have all the doors and windows open here and it's 12 degrees.

HIBU.

He's wrong.

I open all the windows every morning for a couple of hours to air the house through. They must all be shut by 2pm before the condensation time descends and temperature cools.

Then if I need to I put the heating on in the evening.

The time the windows are open lessens over January/February but even then they still get opened for 20 minutes to air through. Bedrooms stink in the morning no matter how clean you are.

Always air the bedroom while I go to the bathroom in the morning. Otherwise it gets stinky!

I wouldn't br happy with all the windows and doors being 'flung' open, no. Can you do it not quite as drastically?

Of course you are right! I air my home in the north west every day all year round!

Is it 22 degrees in the morning when you are throwing open all doors and windows, or does it heat up to 22 later in the day?

If the former, YANBU, 22 first thing is warm enough to air the house. If the latter YABU - you don't need to fling open every window and door.

I do the same. HIBU, sorry husband

It's not just about temperature. Presumably, air inside a house is gradually depleted of oxygen and builds up carbon dioxide (unless you have a lot of houseplants) and an open fire will contribute to that. So opening window replenishes the balance.

You are right. Houses need to be aired to prevent condensation and mould.

I would say HIBU, I hate stuffy houses and air every day.

I am very pro opening windows. So I'd naturally say HIBU.

But he's also being illogical as it is harder to rat up damp air (er, I think I read this). So by airing the house, and assuming you don't live in a jungle or somewhere else equally humid, you're letting out the condensation and making the fires heat the house more effectively.

Erm, not rat up. Heat up. No to rats.

An open fire will not deplete oxygen nor increase carbon dioxide, rather it creates airflow (aka draughts!). Even the most modern and well-insulated house is not airtight, nor should it be.

I'm a window-opener, like the OP.

I air out in the morning too! My other half thinks it's stupid, but I don't like it feeling stuffy and smelly, I'd rather be cold! :P

I air the house every morning too and it's much colder than 22 degrees! Hate a stuffy house.

I air the house every morning and it is 15 degrees inside today.