Daylight is FREE!

[chocolatesaltyballs22]

Is this really tight of me? The kids are constantly sitting in their rooms with curtains closed and lights on during the day. Have just yelled at one of them (for the millionth time) that daylight is free and to please open their curtains and switch the light off.

AAARRGGGHHH I can't wait til schools and universities are back, it's driving me nuts having the kids at home all day every day!

[Angelina82]

Mine do this and it bothers me too. More because I worry about their mental health if they hardly ever see daylight than anything else.

[Murrfect]

I tell my ds it’s only sunlight n fresh air that kill the millions of dustmites that crawl all over him in the darkness.

Windows and curtains are thrown wide open as soon as he wakes up.... 1pm n counting today

[chocolatesaltyballs22]

Bathroom light goes on every time as well, regardless of whether it's actually dark in there. Drives me utterly insane.

[DistinguishedCarrot]

I'm afraid it's not just teenagers OP. I'm back at work and turn the lights OFF every time I go to the perfectly well lit bathroom.

[fwwaftp]

This sort of thing annoys me too.
I know it's not a huge amount of electricity and not a huge cost if the light bulbs are energy efficient but it is still an unnecessary waste and I think we should be encouraging everyone to make small changes to help the environment as these small changes do add up.
There's no evidence these kids are off the preachy climate change types but if they are I'd be having words about that. I don't like teenagers telling me how to be environmentally friendly and all the rest when many of them are sitting with lights on, phones plugged in all day, endless showering etc.

And then there's the other issue that it's actually good for your mental health to be exposed to daylight.

Flick the trip switch on the relevant circuit to switch the lights off for a while.

[Callipygion]

Lights should be on a separate mains fuse to sockets, or so I thought? I’m pretty sure ours are as if a bulb blows it throws the fuse but the sockets aren’t affected.

[SDTGisAnEvilWolefGenius]

Teenagers (and university aged children) melt in daylight - didn't you know, @chocolatesaltyballs22?

We do occasionally see ds3 (23) in daylight, so I am reasonably sure he's not a vampire.

This brings to mind the old joke - why don't university students open their curtains in the morning? Because then they'd have nothing to do in the afternoon!

[Socialdistancing]

Mine draw the curtains to watch tv as the light reflects in the screen.
It drives me wild seeing them sitting staring at the tv in darkeness.

[sirfredfredgeorge]

I'm genuinely concerned about the lack of vitamin D and the risk of rickets and I force mine to a) go out for a walk with me each day (ie. actually outside, in the daylight), and b) to take a daily vitamin tablet.

This may be a reasonable concern, but having the curtains open doesn't help, windows block UVB which is required for vitamin D production.

[Giningit]

YANBU. Got the same issue here with one of the teens.

[Redcrayons]

Lol at ‘free sunlight’.
My dad used to go on and on about burning money by leaving the lights on. My punishment for being so reckless in my youth is two teenagers who can’t open curtains and don’t know how the off bit of the light switch works.

[Zaphodsotherhead]

My kids used to do this too. And then they'd come downstairs, draw the curtains and turn on the lights there as well. It was so that the glare didn't upset their very important gaming or TV watching.

The only way to cure it is to wait for them to move out and have to pay their own bills. It's amazing how they suddenly discover this free source of light when the electricity comes in their name...

[Ariela]

Unfortunately if I turn the leccy off upstairs it means I can't work!

Chances are the upstairs circuit is on one fuse on your fuse board, and downstairs on another. Might even be split lights & sockets. Worth taking a look at your fuse board and seeing if you can turn off just the lights upstairs.

[MayFayre]

YANBU. Drives me nuts .

I breeze into rooms, turn off lights, fling open curtains, open windows and say ‘fresh air and daylight please’ several times a day. Teenagers roll their eyes and close the curtains as soon as I leave.

[MulticolourMophead]

I have very low energy light bulbs, not that the DC are actually using the lights.

We tend to keep curtains closed when the sun shines directly on those windows. I open and close curtains during the day as the sun moves around. Otherwise, the house gets very warm, like a greenhouse. I still have plenty of light in the house without switching on bulbs.

[PlanDeRaccordement]

YANBU generally, but there is one exception: on hot sunny summer days, it’s better to close curtains on sunny side of house to keep house cool inside.

[PigletJohn]

The running cost of LED lighting is insignificant. at least 50 hours for 15p.

[chocolatesaltyballs22]

I don't give a rat's ass if it's 15p or £15 quite frankly - it's me who's paying the bills and they need to learn not to be wasteful! I've had to have the conversation about 20 minute showers as well.

[mrsBtheparker]

Sounds like the same youngsters who would come to school in a short-sleeved shirt whatever the weather then expect me to have my classroom like a sauna because they were cold! The concept of seasons seemed to be beyond their comprehension. I offered to let my form put their outdoor coats in my stockroom but No, not wearing a coat to school.

[Redkatagain]

DSc does this. Stopped doing it as much when I started saying "open your curtains, you're not a vampire " and started calling her Little Count Dracula in public.

[youngestisapsycho]

Ah yes... the 20 minute showers! That's whole other thread!!

[Polkasquare]

@UncleShady

I do a marvellous impression of my dad that involves turning the light off throwing opening the curtains and indicating the ginormous and free light in the sky that is the sun. For added effect I can also roll around on the floor screaming 'I'm melting, I'm melting' like the witch in the Wizard of Oz, or 'I'm blinded, the light it blindsssss meeeeee' which is more of a freestyle flop onto the bed with dramatic arm flung across face Gone with the Wind style.

How much do you charge per visit?

[EyesOpening]

haven't RTFT but it's bad for you to not open the curtains!
Obviously in a heatwave keep them closed for a few hours around the hottest hours though
www.you.co.uk/curtains-making-ill/

[ILiveInSalemsLot]

Mine were doing this until one dc found a weird large insect in his room.
‘What do you expect??’ I asked. ‘All these weird creepy crawlers thrive in darkness. You must have tonnes of them festering in all the dark corners’
Seems to have worked a treat.
Curtains and windows opened daily AND rooms got hoovered!

[Thislittlelady]

Are you living in my house? I just done this ten minutes ago. Aaaaaahh. Let’s all scream together. 😱