I can’t put the heating on.

[VacancyAtNumber10AGAIN]

Just that really. I can’t afford it. £19 went in 4 days last week. I’m on prepayment. They want £300 to change to credit meters. I can’t afford that.

flat is prone to damp and mould so have to keep windows open to ventilate, washing isn’t drying. Clothes in wardrobe are freezing cold and there’s black mould all round the window frames.

I don’t see why people in the world have to live like this. It’s not the 1800’s. I’m worried for my DD’s health and my own. Does anyone know if there are any schemes etc for help with gas? Also this isn’t a begging thread, I don’t take handouts off people and I won’t even ask my own mother for help with bills.

Counting down the days until summer

I am confused is it only certain home that have these issues. Do I need a dehumidifier? I dry clothes not suitable for the heat pump dryer on radiators and have never had damp , mould or water on windows . House is kept at 23 degrees from 7am - 10pm unless nobody is home which is maybe two days a week.

*homes

You can get rid of condensation on the window with a squeegee or toilet roll on its own and then flush it. Don’t bother with those little box dehumifiers, they do duck all for the price. If you have any spare money then an electric dehumidifier as big as you can go works well although costs electric but they do put out heat as a by product. But that’s the cost of buying and electricity and maybe gas is cheaper, I just don’t know.

I think you’re the only person I know who can heat this house to that temperature for 15hours a day! Even if I had the money 23 is rediculous. Heating won’t magically make water dissapear. I used to live in a new build that was warm and thought like you until we moved furniture from outside walls and realised all the indoor drying made campy behind furniture despite the high temp. Got a dehumidifier until we got a tumble dryer.

My elderly father has his thermostat on 23 and then takes his jumper off.
I'm dreading his gas bill but he won't turn it down.

OP - if you have pay as you go meters and change to British Gas you will get a £66 monthly voucher which you can use for either electricity or gas. I tend to put about £40 on for gas and the rest electricity. I have to add more on to each but the voucher does help a bit.

Toilet roll!? Cheaper to dry the window with five pound notes.

I hear you. Checked my meter today and I used £35 in 6 days. And I was being careful! I had it off most of the time and sat under a heated throw. I genuinely don't see how I can cut it down further without affecting our health. I'm not entitled to any kind of help so what to do? I really don't know. But like you, I know if I didn't have a meter I'd give in to temptation and put the heating on more than I could afford. The days are only getting colder. Its so bloody depressing. I think to keep my house warm it would probably cost around £80 a week. I guess heating is another of those things that's only for the rich now.

We can't turn our heating on. I had Economy 7 put in when we moved in and we run a dehumidifier at night, which is also when I do our laundry. We have warm clothing, hats, gloves, duvets, and hot water bottles.

Window vac your shower and bathroom tiles as well. I know it sounds bizarre but it helps remove the moisture from the air and will help with the mould.

Im gonna try see if I can get a dehumidifier off marketplace as they’re a little too expensive brand new!

or an alternative, wire the gas up 🤣🤣🤣 hear someone in the shop saying their gas meter hasn’t took a payment for weeks and isn’t sending readings I felt like saying fucking hell I wish mine would do that hahahaha

Anyone who buys a dehumidifier second hand please Google the brand /model /model number.. We bought one from a car boot sale. It had a manufacturer recall on it. We got a voucher for a brand new one! Cost us a fiver!

This thread is so bloody depressing and absolutely no one should be having to worry about mould in their home ! It is 2022 not the 70s ! We are ok ,but am disgusted that people are expected to live like this …bloody shocking!

Is that £19 for both or one fuel?
If it's gas in 4 days, then that's 19/4, multiply by 31 for a month, making your gas £147.25 in a month. That's what I'd expect to be paying in Nov Dec Jan. Do you think that a billed meter will be much cheaper? I doubt it! I know many people whose dual fuel monthly DD is £200 plus all year round. It sucks, but I don't think your meter type is the issue here.

We put the heating on to test it yesterday for 30 minutes, wasn’t as expensive as I thought it would be but was defo more expensive than last year. Usually don’t use heating unless we absolutely have to... if we do it’s usually between jan- March.

I overlay throughout the summer so have plenty for the winter. My prepayment also has a Savings option that you can load into to draw down. Brilliant for budgeting. 😊

Thread about NHS Low Income Scheme for people who don't already qualify for help with prescriptions/travel for treatment etc.

www.mumsnet.com/talk/am_i_being_unreasonable/4684580-nhs-low-income-scheme?

Love the window vac. Use it in our fully tiled bathroom after a shower and do the windows every morning. Definitely makes a difference. Used to use a cloth, but then it would dry in the house and put all the moisture back in the air.

@ParisHotel I am wheelchair bound with a degenerative disability that means I need to stay warm or could become very unwell so no it's not ridiculous. I wondered if I was doing invisible damage to my home by not having a dehumidifier.

@NewNovember, it's possible there is slow damage occurring, but hard to say for sure until you start seeing symptoms.

Where is the water you put into the air going? Is your home well-ventilated? So extractor fan in bathroom and ideally kitchen too? Window vents? Or a window open a crack? It must be going somewhere...

If you're sure there's no condensation forming on the windows or on the toilet cistern (another prime place because it regularly refills with mains temp cold water), then there might not be overmuch water vapour in the air.

If in doubt, buy yourself a little hygrometer for a few pounds and check out the humidity levels. The warmer the air is, the more water vapour it can hold... but that water vapour will still be slowly soaking into the fabric of the building. (Extreme example: if you used a room as a sauna you might not see much water vapour, but your wallpaper and plaster would be coming off like billy-o.)

It’s very true that it is depressing. I agree I don’t think anyone should have to live like this at all! I start work in January when DD’s 30 hours come in so that will be such a big help.

Im gonna ring Scottish Power in the morning and see if they will use my rebate on the gas, if not I will ask them to send it in vouchers and take matters into my own hands. I’ve been looking to switch anyway as their customer service is absolutely abysmal so this might be the Achilles heal.
I found a dehumidifier on Facebook marketplace for £15 but it looks that old Winston Churchill could’ve used it so what I’m thinking is see about the gas transfer for the rebate, heated blanket which I’ll put on my bed and DD’s bed so it’s not freezing and then when I start work in January I’ll buy a dehumidifier then, cos it’s more of an investment anyway and I’ll always get my moneys worth!

Sorry to be the creator of the most depressing thread but the advice hasn’t half helped and I hope anyone lurking for energy advice can find this and get some good tips as well.

(If anyone wants to wire my gas up feel free I won’t snitch 🤣🤣🤣)

Thanks @PerkingFaintly that's really helpful.

Humidity doesn't always lead to damp. If you keep the house warm it's unlikely you'll get damp unless the humidity is extreme. At low temperatures the damp is caused by the humidity condensing on cold walls and surfaces.

At normal temperatures, it's more than sufficient to keep the house aired (open windows for at least 20 minutes every day - you won't lose much heat if the fabric of the house is warm) and a dehumidifier isn't needed.

I can't remember the name something like warm home and you get money towards your heating but it's not available to everyone. We get it because our son is young but I'm not sure what age it goes up to or if there is other criteria that means you might be entitled to it.
Check what you're entitled to there are a couple of apps that let you do this.
Saying that we haven't had our heating on. It's set to 15 degrees (not by my bloody choice) but I reckon it's broken.
Me and my eldest are wearing 4 layers at the moment. Rest of the family don't feel the cold though so think we're unusual.

@Rosebel theyve changed it for this year I don’t think I’ll get it now. Apparently DWP decides who’s entitled 🙄