Anyone trying not to have heating on

830 replies

TheOpalFox · 21/09/2025 20:21

Anyone else tried to not have heating on? Even tho your cold? It’s 8 degrees and I’m cold but can’t afford to have heating on all the time :( what a way to live!!!

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Packetofcrispsplease · 02/12/2025 09:03

smilingontheinside · 19/10/2025 11:05

Well if they are not banned yet then I'd use the wood. I burned kiln dried wood in my log burner and they were fine, hardly any ash either. I love an open fire but sadly where I've moved to they are not allowed. Think people more likely to get sick from breathing in the clouds of vapour emitted from folks walking/standing around that you walk through and from eating all the crap in foods these days than burning a fire a few days a year. I do wonder how those of us born 50s and earlier ever survived 🤔 No heating other than coal fires, stews on the stove for days, no sell by dates, playground equipment set into concrete with metal slides that got red hot in the summer, had no safety rails and were as high as a house 😁

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Nearby neighbours have a wood burner and I know whenever they are using it ( not really necessary in a well insulated new build house that has a lot of solar gain and very good heating system ) as my eyes are red and my asthma is much worse .
Also a while back had trip away with relatives in a cottage that had a log burner and they insisted on getting that going 😭
We had a coal fire in my childhood home in the back and an electric fire in the good room .
As a child I often had a cough all winter .

Baggyit · 02/12/2025 09:07

Electric throws are a complete game changer if money is tight for heating.
My son is living in an old drafty flat and I gave him a lidl one.
He loves it.
They are super cheap to run and after 5-10 minutes of it on he has to turn it off, such is the comfort.
I would highly recommend to anyone watching bills.

Idontpostmuch · 02/12/2025 11:05

Howtogetthrough · 01/12/2025 20:23

Just wondered how you were doing OP as regards resisting putting the heating on.
In the past i've generally managed to be pretty Spartan and lived a reasonable life with the thermostat set so the heating comes on in the evenings when the temperature dips below 14. But this year I seriously thought I was going to have a heart attack induced by the cold so have reset the thermostat and reset my mindset. I will never be comfortable heating my home but I hope to prevent damage to my health from the cold going forward.

@Howtogetthrough What makes you think you were heading for heart attack? Do you have health problems? If so you might be eligible for some help. Or are you just being influenced by all the talk in the media about heart attacks in cold weather? Health aside, 14 degrees seems hard. We have ours on for a couple of hours in the evening. Around 16 or 17 degrees. No working thermostat but have measured with accurate thermometer. It can get as cold as it likes during day because if I'm at home I'm active 😁. Perhaps if you increase heating slightly it will be more comfortable, but not if it causes you worry. Stress is the most unhealthy thing for your heart.

Howtogetthrough · 02/12/2025 11:16

@Idontpostmuch
Actually I was feeling quite physically affected by the cold and have at times this winter. And actually miserable with it.
Unfortunately having altered the thermostat last night I woke up stressing about it and have altered it back again, apart from a couple of hours in the evening where I 've left it slightly higher.

I don't feel as though I'm can win: be a bit warmer and stress over the cost so I don't even enjoy the extra warmth or be cold and not worry about the cost.

landlordhell · 02/12/2025 11:19

Ours is only on when home in the evening so 5-9 on 18-20c.

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