It's a heating one I'm afraid!

[zingally]

We've recently moved to a new house. A late 60s, dormer style, 3-bed semi. It's lovely, we love it. But we've come from a more modern mid-floor flat.

In the flat, even with the heating off, I never knew it fall below 15C inside, even in the most bitter of winters.

But in this short cold snap, we've been coming home from work about 4pm, the house is 12-13C and feels absolutely baltic. I turned the heating on as soon as I got in yesterday, and it was almost 9pm before it hit 18.5C.

This morning I suggested leaving the heating on while we're out all day, at maybe 15C, just to keep the edge off, then we can give it a boost once home? But DH told me I was mad! I'd be just throwing money down the drain, heating a house with no one in it!

I confess, having lived in a flat for donkeys years, I'm not that well-versed in how to run the heating, but I thought that was a reasonable suggestion...? But DH looked at me like I'd genuinely gone mad!

Some days I'm home by 4pm, other days it's closer to 6pm. DH usually gets in just after 6.

Who is right? Me who thinks keep it ticking over low, or DH who thinks completely off and then turn it on once home?

How much gas are you using ?

Bleed the radiators.

Make sure the roof is well insulated (relatively cheap to do).

Find where the heat leaks are and stop them.

I let my house get down to low temps during the day normally. At the moment though I have the heating on high all the time because the temperatures are very low outside and I want to protect the plumbing. Saving £5 on gas to risk £1000 fixing a devastating cold water leak is not worth it. These low temps only hit a couple of times a year normally.

See if you can find what the flow temperature is set to on your boiler (may be a simple dial on an old boiler or a digital reading on more modern boilers). It may be set too low, hence your heating taking ages to heat up the house.

Check all radiators - if they have TRVs make sure they are set high enough. When heating is on, feel the temp on each radiator - heat should be evenly distributed. May need bleeding if not.

You need to look at why the house is getting so cold and strategic heating.
It could be getting cold due to: Poor loft insulation (go up and have a look), lack of double glazed windows, drafts around doors / windows, lack of cavity wall insulation.

You can get grants for insulation if you meet certain criteria otherwise a weekend spent showing that recycled plastic bottle insulation up your loft could do wonders if there is none up there.

If you've got old sash windows or other you can get plastic clear sheeting that you apply inside the windows like cheap artificial double glazing to give an air gap and cut down drafts. Keeping thick curtains closed helps too.

For drafts you can close internal doors, use draft excluders, put curtains up over doors or to stop heat escaping upstairs.
We live in an old cottage and use all these to help keep it warm.

After that you need a thermostat and a timer. My heating goes on at 6am so it's warmed up the bathroom for 7 when we all start showering and the thermostat is set for 19oC. It goes off at 8:30. If I am not home during the day we'll be at about 16oC when I get home in the evening if the heating hasn't come on so my timer is set to switch it on for 4pm so it's warm when we get in. It then goes off at 7pm and we revent to lap blankets and hot water bottles on the sofa. Obviously I adjust for changes to plan and sometimes I knock it on during the day for an hour if I am home. I also run the dehumidifier for a few hours a day and wipe damp windows to keep the moisture down.

Sadly keeping a house liveable all wanter can be a bit of a job!

I agree we moved into a late 60s chalet style house and couldn't believe how cold it was compared to our old semi. We did lots of things to improve it but it's still not great.
Yes to putting the heating on a timer.

We got a Hive thermostat which includes an app you can use to turn the heating on remotely so I stick it on when I am on my way home which takes the edge off when I get in. I can also set timers throughout the day if I want (although my life isn't quite regimented enough to make that my preferred option). I think they are around the £100 mark if that is in your price range.

Our issue is around the frame unfortunately.

I suspect if we remove one of the edging strips that have been installed, we'll be able to see daylight! We have a motorway which, as the crow flies, is 300m away on the opposite side of the house. I can hear the traffic noise through the window, even when the windows are shut. If our neighbours are in their driveway on the opposite side of the road, I can hear their full conversation as if they were standing in the room with me. They're the worst windows I've ever known!

We're getting them looked into, but in the meantime, the curtains are shut!

Do you have a smart meter, could you compare costs of leaving it on low, using a timer, blasting it etc?
I remember a thread last year and the answer want as clear cut as you’d think. I know in my house it works out really inexpensive to leave it on at 17 all the time and turn it up to 19 in the evening.

Keep it at 15-16C minimum during the day. It takes more energy to heat once the temperature drops below this as the fabric of the building gets cold and you need to heat that too and not just the air.
Agree with others to check your insulation and for draughts as it shouldn't get that cold in a few hours.