To want to restrict how much we have the heating on

[reallyagain]

After a winter working from home last year we were hit with a horrendous heating bill (several thousand on top of already paying quite a high amount per month). So this year with gas prices being so high I’m really conscious of being careful. DH wants it on much more than I do and it’s causing endless rows. He’s turned it on 4 separate times today and is sulking when I comment. We share heating bills - I suggested he pays more to have it on more but he refuses.

How much do you have the heating on if you work from home?

I’m sure the ridiculous costs of energy and our old Victorian houses have something to do with this. But I’m pretty sure we’re the only country that suffers like this. Sitting in our houses in thermals and blankets and gloves.

Lovely toasty houses in Scandinavia....

I’m sure the ridiculous costs of energy and our old Victorian houses have something to do with this
Agreed.

From what I read on here, British new build houses are like sweat boxes. Shame nothing brilliant can be done retrospectively to the older properties (current options aren't enough).

@reallyagain

User do you know the meaning of the word "incurred"? I'm assuming not given your last post

Op, you have lots of people trying to help you and make suggestions and you are SO RUDE! Talking disparagingly to them, being sarcastic, really being generally unforthcoming when asked questions in post after post . You are coming across like a really horrible person.

Households will be the last thing to face rationing, but there’s lots of energy intensive industries that will be switched off first. Lots of industries vital for food production.

Maybe people should consider the implications of having heating on high constantly, if you’re cold now maybe think about how it’ll be when winter actually hits.

3 storey, 4 bedroom old draughty house; always WFH; have thermostat on 18 in the day, 15 at night and perhaps an hour or two up to 21 in a chilly evening...£100 a month.

@BernadetteRostankowskiWolowitz

I’m sure the ridiculous costs of energy and our old Victorian houses have something to do with this Agreed.

From what I read on here, British new build houses are like sweat boxes. Shame nothing brilliant can be done retrospectively to the older properties (current options aren't enough).

I'd hate to live in a new build though as you say they can be sweat boxes! My flat may be cold in winter but on the flip side it's lovely and cool in the summer.

@RobinPenguins

I’m a bit depressed at the thought of potential gas shortages this winter. Loads of us doing the right thing wearing layers and turning the thermostat down a wee bit being offset by people keeping it on 24 all the time and refusing to dress more warmly for some bizarre reason.

Well today I had on leggings, t shirt, hoodie, socks and slippers and I was still cold.

You can moan about people as much as you like but all the layers in the world won't stop the air being cold will it?

The air might still be cold so you wear more than leggings. You will have to if we get restrictions.

@TuftyMarmoset

Totally agree *@RobinPenguins* there are some people who seem to think it’s a human right to blast their heating so they can walk around in shorts and tshirt all winter and I really, really don’t understand that mentality. It’s winter put some clothes on ffs.

Indeed. I have this with my DH a bit but he's started wearing a t-shirt and a shirt now (and then a jumper and ultimately a hoodie). If you're still cold at that point, then you put the heating on.

We heat the rooms we work in during the day and then the lounge at night. I've been trying to avoid putting the central heating on as we have an aging boiler.

In the evening we sit together under a duvet on the sofa rather than having the heating on. It’s lovely family time and incredibly warm and toasty.

I would seriously think about how you are going to feel when winter actually hits and it gets properly cold. Make sure you have supplies ready and alternatives to heating, conserve and reduce your use now.

We have yet to put our heating on and saving it for when it’s needed. There are those with medical reasons to be warm, but people need to think about why energy prices are going up and not just that you can afford the bills.

You can moan about people as much as you like but all the layers in the world won't stop the air being cold will it?

Indoors with a thermostat set to 18/19 degrees? No the air won’t be cold.

@Noavocado

The air might still be cold so you wear more than leggings. You will have to if we get restrictions.

But the air will still be cold and therefore I will be cold! What is so difficult to understand?! I can put on 10 pairs of leggings and waddle around like the michelin man but that isn't going to warm up the room is it? I do not want to sit in a cold room while I'm working or any other time for that matter but I can't move around when I'm working.

I wouldn't be surprised if there were restrictions fortunately we have several electric heaters if the gas is restricted, I doubt both gas and electric will be off at the same time.

@RobinPenguins

You can moan about people as much as you like but all the layers in the world won't stop the air being cold will it?

Indoors with a thermostat set to 18/19 degrees? No the air won’t be cold.

And how do you know what it's like in my flat? I can assure you the air was bloody cold earlier today before I turned the heating up!

@Stellaris22

In the evening we sit together under a duvet on the sofa rather than having the heating on. It’s lovely family time and incredibly warm and toasty.

I would seriously think about how you are going to feel when winter actually hits and it gets properly cold. Make sure you have supplies ready and alternatives to heating, conserve and reduce your use now.

We have yet to put our heating on and saving it for when it’s needed. There are those with medical reasons to be warm, but people need to think about why energy prices are going up and not just that you can afford the bills.

Luckily we’ve got backup in the form of a few electric radiators and full length thermals which we had to buy when the boiler broke last Feb, the weekend when it snowed, in the middle of the third lockdown so it was illegal to go anywhere and I couldn’t even go to work to warm up! Now that was a cold house.

We have heating on all the time, I turn it down a bit when out though. Our house is only 14 years old and doesn't cost the earth to heat. Dh would have it cooler but with a newborn that is not going to happen.

Dehumidifier makes the house feel warmer too.

Omg that is an ENORMOUS heating bill!!

Have you made sure your insulation is as good as it can be? That's an insane amount for a property that size.

In answer to your question, we work at home, very large 5 bed Victorian house, we currently have the heating on 3 times a day for an hour a time.
We have an Aga that goes on at some point for the winter months but we are putting off turning it on as it uses huge quantities of oil - I reckon with the aga on we'd get through £250 oil a month at current prices.

Our gas/elec bill in our last house (4 bed Victorian maisonette) used to average about £90/month and that was always warm enough.

And how do you know what it's like in my flat? I can assure you the air was bloody cold earlier today before I turned the heating up!

I don’t know what it was like in your flat but it can’t have been that cold if all you chose to get dressed in on the bottom half was leggings so I mentioned 18/19 degrees because that’s the distinctly not cold temperature various posters have been having a canary about.

Yeah, if my spouse said I had to be cold and uncomfortable all the time because he didn’t want to pay for the heating I’d genuinely think that was abuse (assuming we could afford it). Why should someone who feels the cold more be uncomfortable just because you’re ok with it?

Weird to split the finances that way. Do you also measure who spends longer in the bath and want to charge that person more for water?

@Anonymouslyposting

Yeah, if my spouse said I had to be cold and uncomfortable all the time because he didn’t want to pay for the heating I’d genuinely think that was abuse (assuming we could afford it). Why should someone who feels the cold more be uncomfortable just because you’re ok with it?

Weird to split the finances that way. Do you also measure who spends longer in the bath and want to charge that person more for water?

Why should he get to wear shorts and have cold showers while they pay £600 a month for heating (it would be a crazy situation even if the bill was way lower tbh)? This is so far from abuse it’s literally ridiculous to suggest it.

@RobinPenguins

And how do you know what it's like in my flat? I can assure you the air was bloody cold earlier today before I turned the heating up!

I don’t know what it was like in your flat but it can’t have been that cold if all you chose to get dressed in on the bottom half was leggings so I mentioned 18/19 degrees because that’s the distinctly not cold temperature various posters have been having a canary about.

What else do you suggest I wear? My wardrobe consists of jeans or leggings, that's it. And no I can't wear both as I can't fit the leggings under the jeans.

You still seem to be struggling to understand that no matter what I wear, the air will be cold. I don't have much in the way of insulation as there aren't many options in a single brick wall downstairs flat.

Lots of heating police on this thread...

Do you have a garden? Maybe you can persuade him to have an insulated garden office built? Then he could heat that up to 30 degrees?

I think some people are also being cautious and recognising that it’s barely even winter yet. There’s a reason suppliers are failing and bills are going up. It’s sensible to be concerned.