Anyone not going to have heating on at all ?

[Bycandlelight22]

So apparently my electric bill is going to be 2344.57 a year. And my gas will be 3363.23 a year.

According to the bill I just got between 8th-15th September I used 29.82 in electricity. And between 8th--15th September I used 2.22 in gas.

When winter sets in I'm planning on not having the heating on at all. We will wear extra layers and have blankets etc. Then my gas should be very simlar to what it is now?

I have heard that I could save money by using an air fryer ? And simlar gadgets is this true or is it just a trend ? Are they suitable for large familys ? Is there anything else that could help ?

You need to be careful your house didn't get damp.

I couldn't do it but I will be trying to use oodie and heated throw as much as possible

What about the risk of burst pipes in freezing weather?

Is there any risk your house could get damp and mildewy if it is cold?

I think it's sensible to plan how to have the heating on less (how to do that depends on hour set-up) but it will probably need to go on now and again.

Houses should be at least 12° (preferably at least 16) or it's really difficult to feel comfortable, even with layers on.

*your set-up

We will have the heating on because DH won’t be without it. Personally I’d reduce our usage. I already save water and use it to flush, and I go round turning lights off.

A few years ago my boiler broke and despite a lot of effort I couldn't get it fixed across the whole of winter, there was snow outside and the temperature in the house was 4c.

The one thing that got me through this was a heated faux fur throw, they are fairly expensive, expect to spend £50-120 but cost pennies to use all day.

As a child we had no heating at all. And for that person who regularly writes that no one has no heating, they must have had a coal fire - no we didn’t. NO heating.
I would caution having no heating as I had chest infections every winter.
If you have no heating on and get a burst pipe or damp, that will cost you to fix.

I think you would be storing up problems with damp and mould if you don't use any heating.
It makes a lot of sense to have heating on lower temperatures than a lot of people use, and to have heating on for fewer days, and for fewer hours a day if that is what your budget means you need to do.

Of course, a lot will depend on how mild / severe the Winter is...what your house is like...who else lives in your household....what your lifestyle / commitments are in terms of how much you will be in your house and how much you sit still and so forth.

No. Having no heating on at all will damage both your home and your health in ways that will fundamentally adversely affect your quality of life and which can become intractable.

@Bycandlelight22 there's a big difference between reducing usage and using none at all. Can you not try turning down the thermostat or have the heating on for a shorter amount of time rather than not using it at all.

Are the figures you gave from the new price guarantee kwh and standing charge figures or were they calculated from the original October price cap that is no longer going ahead?

I don't think no heating is an option asper pp.

I grew up in a house with no heating upstairs - is that workable? Ideally you'd have thermostats on the upstairs rads so you could maintain on low and let the heat rise from downstairs.

This. Fuel poverty isn't anything new, it's just that more people are falling into it. There is more than enough research to show that those in fuel poverty suffer more ill-health and die younger. There are other factors at play as well, but fuel poverty is a huge indicator. It is possible to reduce your usage without going to such extremes. Or possibly to increase your income?

I didn't have the heating on at all last year and won't this year either. It's not fun.

The house is a new build so should be well insulated. In my old house I never had heating on because the insulation was so bad. And never got frozen pipes . So hopefully it will be ok. Thinking the same damp wise .

I grew up in a house with very little heating, only the sitting room heated with an open fire. I was constantly getting sick, had a runny nose all the time, felt weak with no energy.

My asthma only cleared up as an adult, when I could live separately and pay for my own heating.

Would low heating and more layers be a compromise?

We have had many years of not having the heating on due to low income / disabilities. The house did get damp and mouldy. It wasn’t great but we all survived. We had to have the windows open a LOT and used those damp trap things in the corners of the room and I was constantly cleaning with dettol mould spray. A lot more people live with no heating than Mumsnet thinks…! (Sadly).

Also - re freezing pipes, if your thermostat is set to 9.5 or thereabouts it should kick in if temperatures become low enough to freeze a pipe, but we’ve lived like that for several years and never had any issues.

Heating on no gas in new home but lower temp to avoid damp windows open a bit for ventilation as well but oodies throws cosy socks will help.

We had an entire winter without heating in this house about 5 or 6 years about (long story about the problem that was eventually solved by a forensic plumber with a stethoscope). We weren't happy about it but we managed, after a few months I bought two oil-filled radiators so at the least the DC had warm bedrooms.

This is why I'm doing it due to low income. I can't afford to have the heating on a little bit or low. I have done simlar to you in the past . I had not had heating on for 2 years in my old house. The insulation/windows were so bad you could feel a cold breeze even with heating on. So there was no point it being on. I never got problems with damp .

For the house I'm in now its a new build and well insulated. Good windows. So I'm hoping it won't be as cold as my old house even with no heating on. I have not spent a winter hear yet so not sure how it will be

I just bought two of these heated throws. They cost me £32 each and I'll be using them when WFH rather than putting the heating on. As you say they cost about 3.5p an hour to run.

Ref bursting pipes, you can put your heating on "frost protection" and it will stop this happening. If your house is so cold that your pipes freeze, then its maybe time to turn the heating on.

As for all the stuff about the damp and how it will fundamentally affect your health, I grew up in the 70s with no heating and I'm pretty damned old now and survived. It was cold at times, but no one died and I dont recall any damp or mould.

OP, I'll be using the heating first thing if its very cold for an hour. I'll use layers and a heated throw when I'm WFH and when the rest of the family come home I will put the fire (coal and wood) on. I've already got enough wood and coal for the winter (£200). We'll survive and the fire is nice.

Going to reply ad a whole as similar things have been suggested. Because of the gas and electric bills going up so much . I can't afford it. The easiest thing to not have seens to be the gas. That means I would only have a small bill for my gas simlar to now at a few pounds or so a week. So then I won't need to worry about the gas. And the money can be directed to the electricity which would be really hard to cut back on.

Someone mentioned about the price cap . My understanding is that is of no help to alot of people on low incomes who can't afford them bills even with the cap. The bills have still gone up

You’d need to be very careful to avoid damp/mildew with no heating on at all.

Ventilation will be needed where you’re doing anything that produces condensation - showers/baths, drying laundry in the house, cooking, boiling the kettle etc. The problem there is that opening windows gets rid of any heat that you might have retained.

You could quite easily create more a more expensive issue to remedy than what it’d cost to put the heating on low as needed throughout the winter. Mould is also really bad for your health.

I would try and have the heating on low for a couple of hours a day if at all possible.

I've done similar myself but it really is not common. When you are in that situation you are in real poverty the likes of which most won't experience, thankfully. In my case it was back in the old days when child maintenance got deducted from your benefits whether you actually got the maintenance or not, and I didn't get the maintenance, plus they took off what they called an "overpayment" which was the money I'd got from them before they did that calculation. It was winter and we were living off literally £50 a week.

I would do all I could to avoid experiencing such living conditions again and I will speak robustly against any attempts to normalise it. It is not normal, it is harmful and nobody should plan for it as a money saving strategy.

When I was a child (early 80s) I remember ice on the inside of my (single glazed) bedroom windows. I survived, we just had to wear vests, jumpers, cardigans etc.

I hate having the CH on, not because of the cost but it makes me feel ill, my sinuses and skin really suffer. Plus I'm menopausal so have lots of hot flushes.

DH thinks he should be able to sit in shorts and t shirt in the winter, he'd have the heat on about 24 degrees which would make me sick tbh.

Op, have you looked at heated throws? Also lots of layers, block any cold draughts, thick curtains, etc.

When it's cold in the mornings . I get my children dressed super fast and then they are off to school so I know they will be reasonably warm in the day whilst at school. I'm thinking thermal type clothing under onesies/pj's warm socks/slippers . Blanket for chilling on the sofa . High tog duvets/blankets for bed time.

As a kid I can remember no heating. Apart from a gas fire in the living room. And it being put on just in the living room. I remember my mum dressing us for school in the kitchen with the gas rings on in the kitchen. I remember no double glazing and condensation running down the windows and seeing our breath in the bedrooms. I remember central heating going in. Maybe mid eightys.