Anyone trying not to have heating on

[TheOpalFox]

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!!!

Well yes everybody does have different tolerances for cold, and heat.

If I had the income to heat my home in winter to a more comfortable level I would probably have the thermostat set at 16°. But the reality is I can't afford to.do that. So I just need to cope with what I can afford.

It might be madness to you but it's reality for me and a lot of people. Especially given that the government took away the winter fuel payments for pensioners like myself.

T-shirt and shorts?! Soft . I went swimming in the Antarctic when the first sea ice melted and relaxed in my swimming costume, chatting to the penguins. It was lovely.
You just need a heat pad and an Oodie when it gets below -25°c.

I don’t need it on yet. Ours is set to come on when the house temp drops to 16° which won’t happen for ages yet- it usually doesn’t switch on until mid/late October. Sounds a lot cooler where you are than where I am (south coast).

I love cool, fresh air too. I keep my bed really cosy with blankets, but I can't stand stale, stuffy air.

9c here we have oil heating and a very old house with drafts and single glazing. Condensation on windows in the AM

We are going to rely on the log burner th8s year and heating on only when in the minus. We just can't afford it anymore. No way of moving either. But log burning costs about £300 to £500 in winter compared to the £3k in oil for heating along last year. The hot water is oil but is peanuts compared to the heating costs

I open my windows daily, but we often get really strong winds and can only open windows on one side at a time. In winter/cooler weather a short blast works well.

Well, you’ll be getting it back this year I imagine. So no issue.
You said you were comfortably warm at 17.5 though, which I’m not.

A log burner is heating, just in a different (smellier) form.

Why? Jeep your body warm, not the space. That’s how we’ve always done it. We have a log burner for the main room but aside from that it’s every man for himself. We’ve had the house be at 6 degrees before! Lots of warm drinks, jumpers and blankets on the bed. I can’t sleep if my room is above 16. On holiday I get the aircon on straight away at the lowest possible setting. I hate a hot house!

Lots of houses would end up damp at that temperature.

Quite. That's like people saying"oh we don't have the heating on until Jan 1st", but then go on to say they've got a log fire. That heats the house, mate!

People living in houses with terrifically expensive oil heating - do you ever consider moving?

I think a house i literally couldn't heat would be a deal breaker for me.

They really don’t heat the whole home! We have one and while the main room can be 25+° when the fire is in, the bedrooms upstairs or the bathroom downstairs can be 10.

I hate 'coal' fire/log burner season tbh - so many folk where I live use one or the other, and it stinks. The horrible particles stick in damp air too. Folk burning old pallets and other unsuitable wood. Yuck.

My mid 70s parents are competitive underheaters and act like anyone whose cold is ridiculous. It’s infuriating and now quite worrying. We fell out massively last year because my dad almost died of pneumonia and the house was still bitter and with windows open. I was reminded of this yesterday when mum brought up that dad nearly died. I had to bite my tongue. I know I’ll be worried again this year, and the same will happen. Drives me nuts

Why? Look at the recommendation for tenoeratures to keep healthy and to stop the house getting damp.
It's your choice to live like that, though. I'd hate it and would feel uncomfortable and miserable.

We just have good ventilation. Not a single patch of damp!

Don't bite your tongue. Tell them.

It's still a form of heating, even if not central heating.

I have had heating on yesterday and this evening. It absolutely poured with rain yesterday and after being out for an hour. My jacket had to go in tumble dryer.
I refuse to live in a cold damp house it’s not healthy. It got cooler around 5 ish so heating was on.

That's awful. It's still heating, though. One room is toasty. Perhaps sleep in there?

Right, but we're not all you.

Not sure posting about holidays and fuel allowance in the same post will get you much sympathy!!

Why on earth would I do that?! It would be horrid!

Especially given that the government took away the winter fuel payments for pensioners like myself

@Whenthetimeisright Do you mean your income is above the threshold? I think it's a ridiculously generous threshold!