9 degrees inside - is it now a false economy to not put heating on?

[blanketseverywhere]

I'm trying to get by without putting heating on. According to the smart meter, it's currently 9 degrees in the sitting room (north-facing). The house feels very cold, but if I sit in the kitchen (south-facing) in many layers, with scarf and fingerless gloves on etc, it's not unbearable for WFH. In the evening I can use blankets / hot water bottles etc while watching tv and have two duvets on the bed at night.

However, at what point will temperatures of this level start to damage the house - or me? I feel achey all the time which I think is from being 'tense' in the cold, if that makes sense. I also have a constantly red and running nose / scratchy throat although I don't really feel ill.

I'm not using the tumble dryer so drying washing inside most of the time, although do try and keep windows open for air circulation... but then that makes it colder! I don't think we have any damp but I'm worried about the house constantly being cold - is this an issue in itself?

Is it going to get to a point where it's a false economy not to put the heating on because it will possibly be doing damage to the house, or should I carry on trying to hold out if possible and just carry on layering up? I realise this probably sounds a bit daft but I really don't want to store up even bigger problems!

I am on prepayment. At this point dd prices are the aame anyway.
You could buy adapter for non shower tap. If I remember correctly they are about a tenner.
That gas saved could easily go on heating.

I read an article on BBC, probably under their Health section, yesterday about the effects of cold. 18 degrees is the cut off point at which our bodies start working hard to keep our core temperature up. At 13 degrees the risk of stroke and heart attack rises because our hearts are pumping hot blood around to keep our vital organs warm.

If you can afford to heat the house then do put the heating on. If not could you stay in the warmer south facing rooms?

We rent and aren't allowed to use shower attachments or install anything shower-like unfortunately.

18 degrees is the cut off point at which our bodies start working hard to keep our core temperature up.

Is this naked people or people wearing appropriate clothes?

@blanketseverywhere

Is it going to get to a point where it's a false economy not to put the heating on because it will possibly be doing damage to the house, or should I carry on trying to hold out if possible and just carry on layering up? I realise this probably sounds a bit daft but I really don't want to store up even bigger problems!

Yes, it is going to get to a point where it is false economy and you are potentiality harming your health. You either currently have a bug, or your health is already suffering.

Have you sat down and gone through last years usage and then worked out what the same usage will cost this year? If you were not in your current home last winter you will have to try and work the usage out. For us, December and January are when we used the most energy followed by February, November and October. You can then work out from there as to what is affordable this year taking into account the £66 government support that virtually every household is getting.

If you need to cut back on usage of energy generally are you aware of how to do this? It may be that you find that making a lot of little changes can add up. We used far too much energy and have cut back with lots of small changes which have not impacted on our comfort much, but have halved our usage. It will not be so easy to make big reductions if you didn’t use a great deal in the first instance. There may also be other things you can cut back on to allow you to prioritise heating.

Drying laundry indoors will create damp, can it be placed in a room away from the main living area with a window opened a little to help reduce condensation and damp?

Please put some heating on.

I’ve read a few articles recently on the effects of cold on people, if your house is at 10 degrees your health is at risk due high blood pressure and your brain doesn’t function so well. You don’t need to have it on constantly to achieve a comfortable temperature. I’ve found laying helps with a thermal long sleeve top as a base, sweatshirt then gilet works well. Plus a bit of heating on if the temp starts to drop too much.

I saw that BBC article but it raised more questions than it answered for me. Is "working hard" a bad thing, for younger, averagely fit people? What about going outdoors? Surely it's not unhealthy to venture outside in winter? I'm not being extreme with our heating but also think you don't actually need houses to be that hot

It’s the room/environment temperature etulosba I’m sure it be more comfortable with clothes rather than naked. I haven’t tested it naked tbh, I’m not that brave.

My heated blanket costs 40p to have over me whilst I work for about 6 hours. It was seriously worth the £40 I paid for it. Do you have a smart meter. I watch mine religiously and work out what I am spending each day to make sure I dont exceed my direct debit plus government grant. It means I can normally heat the house at least an hour or 2. I think some people have decided they will simply not heat at all but to what end my grandparents dont want to line the pockets of the fat cats so are sat freezing in their eighties when they have thousands saved in the bank. Its crazy they are prepared to risk their own health.

Put the heating on. You’re risking damp and mould and ill health by sitting in purgatory.
My father in law was a miser, (I’m not saying you are), he really was, he had the gas fire in one heated one room, he refused to put the heating on in the rest of the house. When he died and we had to empty the house we found wardrobes full mouldy clothes and shoes. And these were in the bedroom they’d been sleeping in.

We’ve only had the central heating on twice in the past month, but our house retains the heat well (we’ve spent the past 10 years increasing the thermal capacity of the house to achieve this though).

if I’m in a room long term I try to keep it to around 18 degrees. Anything lower than that makes me feel generally unwell.

I'm currently relying on a small portable electric heater and a heated throw, as well as a dehumidifier.

I’ve worked out that to run the central heating/hot water costs around £2 an hour, whereas I keep the heater on the 700W setting which I believe works out around 25p per hr. The heated throw is 150W, which I have on the lowest setting which costs less than 2p per hour.

what did you used to pay for your heating and electricity as it can be reasonably straightforward to work out how much a heater costs to run ie 1KW = 34p per hr.

but the cold/damp will damage your health and your house, so unsure unless you’re generally on the bones of your arse financially why you couldn’t run a low KW heater for a few hours a day etc

I saw that BBC article but it raised more questions than it answered for me. Is "working hard" a bad thing, for younger, averagely fit people? What about going outdoors? Surely it's not unhealthy to venture outside in winter?
Totally agree. People keep quoting this article, but it was about a man wearing shorts and an open shirt! It's 14c here, I'm healthy and wearing warm clothes. My hands are warm. It's fine for me. Obviously, it's not good for sick people etc, but that article is so misleading, and just worries people like me, unless you read it carefully.

I've got my heating on. I pay a direct debit all year round to save up for the winter. Before the price hike it was £32 a month for gas (but I lived in a place I had to heat water for a bath and now I live in a place with an electric shower) and now I pay £40 a month for gas, all year round. Then the government are putting £400 into our banks for the heating this year. Surely you can afford to put it on low for a few hours of the day in one or two rooms?

Also pay out for a cheap humidity metre. Thy don’t cost much though I appreciate you have no money.
They can save a fortune in repairing damage caused by mold

We were congratulating ourselves how little we'd needed the heater on during a relatively warm November. Then on Friday my cleaner pointed out that several of the window frames - most of which are only a few years old - had developed black mould....

I listen to a podcast recently on the most efficient ways to heat the house. If you’ve got GCH it’s better to use that than a small electric heater in one room.

Those dismissing the article please remember that babies and small children are more vulnerable to cold

Even when wrapped warm they need to be breathing warm air

That's very low, are you in a new build? Can I come and live at your?

yours.

Put the heating on. It isn't healthy and sounds like a miserable existence. Unless you are at the stage of "do I chose heating or eating?" (I hope this isn't the case) put the dam thing on.

@blanketseverywhere thanks for posting this. This is me exactly. I’m WFH in a freezing cold house, aching, stiff and miserable. Reading these replies has made me less scared to stick the heating on. I thought I was doing the right thing by being stoical…

Along with the elderly and those with certain health conditions.

Those dismissing the article please remember that babies and small children are more vulnerable to cold. Even when wrapped warm they need to be breathing warm air
Yes, I did mention sick people. Babies too, and old people. But for healthy people who are struggling financially, they don't have to heat their house to 18c as the article implies. Everyone needs to look at their own circumstances.

I think unfortunately due to the rise in standing charge lots of attempts to lower (or not raise bills so much) will still not work. Can you work out (with smart meter etc) how much heating for eg an hour will cost. It may make you better to see what you can/ cannot afford.

I’m sure you know that those prices are low, for a lot of people it costs them a lot more to heat their homes so there’s no “surely” about it.