To wonder how long the no heating brigade will last when it turns cold?

[womaninatightspot]

I’ve been contemplating how much I can reduce the heating and electric throws. It’s chilly here today, sixteen degrees, but grey and drizzly. I’ve lit the wood stove, I do have a cold so maybe I feel more susceptible to chills.

I feel like I’ve fallen at first hurdle. Definitely going to be keeping one warm room in the house so it’s not just really unpleasant for the dc. I’ve recently paid 365 for four cubic metres kiln dried wood but it’s going to cost 1K to fill the oil tank for 1000 litres. Was a third of that last year.

I'm hoping that my fury at the government for allowing this outrageous theft to happen will keep me warmer than usual.

I mean, I'm not doing it for fun. The money isn't there. So when it's cold I'll have to layer up. And up.

But what happens if ever ill
and forced to stay in bed for a prolonged period

plus people’s circulation generally get much worse as they age and much more vulnerable to respiratory illnesses

I don’t shut my windows at night even when it’s icy outside. I grew up without hearing and have always lived in houses without heating. Near the Scottish border

Blimey, where do you live that you need a fire on today?

Posted too soon.

I’m actually thankful that I’m used to cold. I dread to think how some people will cope this winter.

Going to try and hold off as long as possible, but I'm in Finland so there's no way we can get through the winter without heating, but at triple the price of last winter it's going to be on much lower.

Today we've been doing all we can to reduce heat loss - new insulation strips in the windows and doors, going to put insulation on the ceiling of the bike shed (it's under our porch, heat will get lost there through the floor), disconnecting the electric hot air radiator in ds's room and we'll put a plug in oil radiator there which is more energy efficient.

I've got the air con on in London ! It's bloody roasting

A fan or installed?!

Makes me never more thankful to live in lovely mild Kent
My thermometer is currently showing 25 degrees. In shade

Well, I don't usually have it on in winter so unless we have an unusually cold snap, I think I'd be alright.

You do seem to be overlooking the fact that a lot of people won't have it on at all over winter not because of a pervasive "blitz spirit" but because they simply won't have the money to. No one's doing it to piss you off.

Some of us won’t have any choice. So we’re not a “brigade”, we just can’t afford it.

No dishwasher, just cold water, washing up liquid and a good scrub. I've found that a good way of washing greasy pans without having to boil the kettle is to put washing up liquid on it as soon as it comes off the heat and then add a little cold water. The heat of the pan heats the water and detergent enough to quickly scrub it and it's clean.

With hand washing, cold water is as effective as with hot with soap. It's not ideal, but it's also not awful. It would be a different matter entirely if we didn't have an electric shower...

We will turn it on probably around October. I'd rather cut back on everything Vs being cold. I'm so sorry for those that can't.

So hand washing in cold water (freezing cold in winter if not remnants ever of hot water having passed through the pipes)

and do you ever have roasts? You must be scrubbing with cold water for ages!

how many and how old are your children?

No washing machine?

All your laundry washing is on the cold setting?

take it your children don’t play any winter team sports?

Well I’m in north east Scotland and wouldn’t consider 16c a good summer temperature like another poster! I’d say that is quite.m chilly. We have a very old draughty house in need of insulation which will be done slowly. It is 20c here today. I would light the multi burner as it hits about 16c outside.

I’m not wondering about the “no heat brigade” I’m wondering about myself. I’m absolutely determined to use as little heating as possible. I am very fortunate in that I have a tiny bit of savings as a cushion. But my only income is my State pension so those savings will have to see me through for the rest of my life, not just this winter.

I’ll be running just the radiator in the living-room and the bathroom if the heating has to go on, and as I don’t have a shower I’ll be having strip-washes instead of unaffordable baths. Needs must

We rarely have the heating on anyway. Usually for about a week when it’s really really cold but that’s because we have a baby. Probably won’t change our habits this year tbh.

If your my mum ... 78 years and counting.

She never has the lights on, thermostat set to 6 degrees, sleep In your coat, walk around with a head torch....... over 60k in your current account. Possibly more than over 150k in other accounts.

Both the dining room and living room bulbs blown and refuses to get them replaced. They have to wait till dh goes down and buys new ones for free ( to her - around £70 of petrol for us)

If she can do it, then I'm hopeful.

Mind you it's my idea of a throughly miserable existence. By choice.

My washing machine only takes from the cold pipe & heats the water itself - having no working boiler doesn't mean the PP washes all laundry at cold temperatures.

I'm putting the heating on this evening because the temperature has dropped & I have DGS overnight - if he wasn't here it wouldn't be on.

I don't normally put the heating on until November unless it's very cold.

Unfortunately we're on a card meter so won't have much choice if things get really bad. Fortunately we're southish England but god knows how I'm going to dry washing without heating

Ive said this before, there should be more distinction between Scotland and the south of England. Its colder and damper and much wetter up here. There should be more help for the vulnerable.

And in Scotland we are paying higher rates for our energy despite being one of the colder parts of the UK. So we've been really been fucker over (again)

Obviously it will depend on whether people don't have a choice due to finances but will people (if they have any choice) need to keep heating on for a certain amount to prevent burst pipes/leaks?
When my dad passed away and the house was empty the insurance policy stipulated a minimum temperature that we had to keep it at to prevent burst pipes etc