To explain to people that UK homes have never 'not had heating'

[KweenieBeanz]

People keep responding to those worrying about energy costs, don't worry, homes never used to have heating, people survived, just don't put your heating on!
Home did not have central heating. Instead, they had fires and heated individual homes. People did not live in homes with no heating in the UK.

In the UK during the winter if a home is never heated even by late November /December temperatures inside will have gradually dropped to a temperature that's too low.
See the info here: www.cse.org.uk/advice/advice-and-support/heat-and-health#:~:text=Below%2013%C2%B0%20%2D%20If%20your,recommended%20night%20time%20bedroom%20temperature.

There is a huge difference if you even use your heating for just 1hr a day, topping up the temperature to stop it dropping so rapidly.

People need to stop acting as though those struggling just need to toughen up, 'wear more layers' and cope with the heating off this winter as a solution to energy costs, as it's simply not feasible, and it would be better for people to take action now to let their energy provider know they are in fuel poverty and need to access help.

I grew up in a flat with only a gas fire in the living room. This was in the mid 1960s -70s. The bedroom I shared with my sister had no electric sockets and no room for a heater anyway.

We all got dressed in front of the gas fire.

My mum put on a paraffin heater when we came out of the bath, and that was it.

I think the house was built as a tenement in the 1890s. There were covered up fireplaces in some rooms.

This was not unusual for period properties in my area. Ironically the flat I lived in sold for over a £1 million quite recently.

I rented a flat about 5 years ago that did have central heating but it had no timer and not enough radiators - so I always came home from work to a cold house and it often wasn't worth turning it on as the small radiator in the living room was totally inadequate for the room size, and that was the only radiator apart from one in the bedroom. Bathroom had a heated towel rail but it radiated no heat whatsoever. The only saving grace was an electric fire in living room that I had to use a lot. I can remember dreading having to leave the living room to go to the bathroom because it was so cold. The owner had lived there herself for several years previously- but by her own admission she's not someone who feels the cold! It was a great flat in other ways but 2 winters was my limit.

My overnight heating will kick in if it drops to 16c. We use to have it set to 'protect' at 7c but got caught out by the Beast from the East which seemed to take that as a challenge.

This. It's 2022, not 1950 or 1900. Rich countries should be able to give everyone affordable energy when multinationals are getting billions of dollars in benefits. The real problem is NOT why most of us can't pay for heating but why multinationals are making record profits without government intervention.

"If you don’t have mains gas connected to your home, you can’t have gas heating, central or otherwise."

Our neighbour used to have a gas tank in the garden. I don't know how much that cost.

After 18 pages @Alondra has hit the nail on the head.

"I was at university with someone who was living in a garage with, quite literally, no heating (and her LL wouldn't let her plug in an electric heater either). There are people who rent out garden sheds to desperate renters."

This was illegal.
Personally, I would have plugged in the heater whatever the LL said.

Exactly! I was born in the 50s and had never experienced central heating till the 80s. Our first home was cold, not self contained, high ceilings and hard to heat. We then moved to a modernised all electric flat, though we did have gas hot water, and was never cold. Both in London. I had never seen frost on the inside of mine or anyone else’s windows till I moved to Scotland in the late 80’s.

Gas central heating is great, keeps the whole house warm and is still economical to run, but we weren’t all constantly freezing before we had it.

How does a home without electric heaters (or central heating) have heating?

Yes I used to live in a village without mains gas. A few of my neighbours had Calor gas tanks to run central heating. At the time I think it was roughly double the cost of mains gas to run.

"According to some posters you actually did have heating because currys sells electric heaters. Its exactly the same as having gas central heating fitted in your home, who knew!"

My parents went for about 10 years recently without central heating, only electric heaters in rooms being used. It really did feel similar to having central heating. The problem with it is price and efficiency of course, but there are people arguing now that we should use space heaters instead of central heating...

I don't know why the OP is being so misunderstood.

• she didn't say just work more. She said that was one suggestion for some people who may have the opportunity to get a few more hours.

• she didn't say nobody lived without central heating. She said generally people didn't live without any heating. A single electric fire in one room is a source of heating. A single coal fire is a source of heating.

• she did explain why she started this. Not to have a go but to show that the suggestion being made by the powers that be is to just not use heating this winter, like in the olden days. In the olden days people generally did use heating even if it was one fire in one room. She is encouraging people not to go without heating at all all winter and assume that they should just grit their teeth and show the spirit of their ancestors.

Obviously some people in abject poverty had no heating at all. That was not the norm.

My heating is on overnight, usually at 19°. Cold air keeps me awake. If I'm not moving I'm cold.

Although I will buy a couple of thermometers and check the difference in various rooms after reading this.

@KweenieBeanz

I lived in a freezing house from 2009-2019.

Yes, I had central heating but I couldn't afford to put it on, often the temperature in the house was no more than 3 or 4.

No heating meant no hot water either, had to boil a kettle for that.

We all went about with hats, scarves, gloves, and huddling under throws and duvets.

It was a thoroughly miserable existence, and thankfully my circumstances have changed now, I used to long for a fire in the living room, so at least part of the house would be warm.

Perhaps because multinationals have obscene amounts of money and opportunities for politicians to be on the board of directors after they retire or are retired from politics.

You do actually have to buy the electric heaters, or the paraffin stoves, or the Calor gas heaters or have the central heating installed or have the house built with a chimney. As with any form of heating there is initial outlay, whether your own or whoever built or modernised the house.

"@Gwenhwyfar it has literally never occurred to me to heat my house overnight, but it looks like it it's expected in some families and some have even started doing so on the FB group"

But they don't have the heating ON like they have it during the day, do they? They have it set to a certain thermostat so it would come on under a certain temperature, which they'll set lower at night than during the day or they'll have it come on before they get up.
I don't think they have it on full blast at night.

The problem with it is price and efficiency of course

The problem is just the price. Electric heaters are 100% efficient.

So finally confirming that a house without heating, doesn’t actually have heating.

Back in the awld days I would wake up not being able to open my eyes until I chiseled the ice off. Our breath would freeze in mid air. The house was -20 degrees and that was balmy.

It pisses me off hearing about "back in my day". Not to use the current year meme but is this really what 2022 is? I thought we'd have robots doing the cooking and upholding law and order.

Instead we are terrified to have a hot cup of tea or turn the heating on for 10 minutes.

"Actually wish I had one myself!"

Not hygienic as you have to wash your hands in the kitchen sink.
I suppose there might be a return to some kind of compost toilets for eco reasons, but you'd need a way of washing your hands in the actual toilet room for modern standards.

@CecilyP our two vict/edwardian houses had outside loos instead of a downstairs loo. Of course we had indoor ones installed downstairs. The outdoor ones were handy when dc were playing in the garden.

As a young adult on a very low wage (pre minimum wage I think), I definitely remember living in flats in the 90s in Edinburgh with no heating. I don’t remember having a heater at all in at least one of them. Blankets, hot water bottles we did have. I wouldn’t want to do it now, esp with kids, but as healthy 20 year olds it was ok.

That’s right. As a child, I lived in a multi-tenanted house and there was definitely a coal bunker on the first floor landing.

"However, there are an awful lot of posters on here basing their opinions on what they imagine life without central heating was like."

We've probably all spent time in houses without central heating if not lived in them.
I suppose I've technically lived without central heating, but with an electric heater in every room it didn't feel any different at all!
Other placed had a fireplace and then you have cold bedrooms and only one warm room, but that's certainly not being without heating at all.