Do you find your new build house significantly warmer than an older house?

[AmyInTheBoonies]

Hi - I am going to move in the next few years and am scoping out places / types of houses to look at.

One thing that is really important to me is that it is warm. I am now in a big, cold 1930's semi and it makes me miserable to be so cold and the heating bills are still high.

Has anyone moved into a new build, are they loads warmer? Someone told me recently she didn't think her's was! I'd be buying a detached new build if I did go this route.

We now live in a 1980's house, having lived in a Victorian terrace. It's much easier to keep it warm - having full double glazing makes a huge difference (previously we had leaky single glazed sash windows. We didn't own it so couldn't change this). I would expect a new build to be better still - it should have better insulation in the loft than we do.

I haven't had a new build, but I've had old houses and modern ones.

Old houses with solid walls are much colder than cavity walls, which are much colder than walls with CWI.

Old houses with floorboards and fireplaces suffer much more from draughts. New houses often have concrete floors with a layer of rigid insulation below the top layer.

Loft insulation is very cheap and easy so however old your house, it can be done to a modern standard (unless you have a flat roof).

You can get an idea of comparative heat losses using this calculator
calculators.baxiknowhow.co.uk/boiler-sizing/
and change the parameters for construction detail to see how the result changes

(but the figure will IMO be a bit on the low side if you want to heat your house quickly from cold, or have it warm even during unusually cod weather)

I live in both Front is 1900s and back is 2005. It's noticeably warmer when you get to the bit with insulation. Even with double glazing in the old bit, it's still freezing with suspended wooden floors over a void with airbricks, chimneys and no cavity insulation in the walls.

Our newbuild is very toasty. We have friends who live in an old house and we just don't go and stay with them in the winter: it's bloody freezing even with central heating and open fires. Interestingly they are always keen to stay with us in the depths of winter.

We previously lived in a 1930's semi and moved to a late 1990's much bigger detached last summer. Our new house is much much warmer and retains heat a lot more. We've installed a 8kw multi fuel burner and we haven't really had to have the heating much at all, just for an hour before we get up most days.

My new build is definitely insulated better and we leave the heating on a constant temperature and it's as cheap as the other house where we didn't do that. However I find there's a cold feeling to it still (I think you notice things like the wind through the letterbox, Windows that let a draft in, etc because the rest is so warm)

Our 2014-built house is ridiculously warm (a bit too warm for my liking, tbh). We have the heating on for two hours in the morning and two in the evening in winter and it's a constant 22-24 degrees at all times of the day and night. It's underfloor heating, which I gather is quite efficient.

I have lived in both. New build is significantly warmer and cheaper to heat. Previously had a 2 bed/2 floor victorian terrace and a typical winter month fuel bill would be £120-130. Our new build is 3 bed/3 floors and is £90-100 a month.

I've had both, an old tenement flat (freezing) and currently live in a new-build shoebox. The new build is a million times warmer, the radiators are tiny so I was a bit dubious but if you put the heating on it's warm within minutes. It never gets that cold anyway though, today my house was 20 degrees inside and it was 1 degree outside!

It is about the only thing I really love about this house though...

I live in a new build and it is saving me a fortune compared to our 1930s house. I didn't put the heating on at any point between April and November last year!

Our house is only 18 months old and is the same design to our old one next door (built 20 years ago). Our new house incorporates much better insulation and under floor heating. The difference between the two identical houses is huge. Rooms are thermostatically controlled and the heating only kicks in on really cold days meaning costs are a lot lower.

DP's house is 2 years old, mine is a 1930's semi. His is so much warmer it's ridiculous.

Our house is 8 years old and it is insulated like a mothereffer. Super warm.

My dad's house is a new build and is so so warm. In the summer it's far too warm but in winter it's lovely.
I live in a 60s semi and that is much warmer than the 1890s terrace I lived in before but nowhere close to how warn my dad's house is.

Another warm new build here. There's been times where the thermostat has been knocked to 20 degrees and we are roasting.

On the downside it lacks the character that an older house has.

We recently moved from a mid terrace new build to a detached nearly new build. The mid terrace was too warm quite often really, heating bills were very low. Our detached takes a bit more heating up and loses the heat more. But still pretty warm. I used to live in a 1900s terrace which was freezing in the winter.

Yep. New build is significantly warmer and easier to heat (and keep clean) than my beautiful Victorian semi.

This house is not winning any beauty awards but yes, it's much easier to heat and keep warm.

Miss my open fire though!

As above, our turn on the century (21st century, that is) house is much much warmer and cheaper to run than our previous early Victorian home. It's no where near as beautiful, but it has really reduced our outgoings.

Oh, this is despite our double glazed windows having 'little thermal value) according to our survey. We do have carpets, which makes a difference.

Thanks for the replies. I will be giving up so much space, character and a lovely big garden if I swop to a new build it is reassuring to hear they are warmer.

I am just so sick of battling to keep the house warm enough. This is despite having loft insulation, wall insulation and a multi fuel stove!

It's a shame new builds are such boxes (tiny bathroom and bedrooms I've found when looking around). But being cheap to run and warm will be worth the trade I hope.

My last, 2001 house, was so much warmer than the current 1930s one. It was a town house & the living room was on the 1st floor, which made that SO warm. However, we've done a loft conversion in the 1930s house & that's now so warm we've been using the summer quilt in winter & a duvet cover in summer. It also warmed up the formerly cold main bedroom. So, I'd say loft insulation & not living on the ground floor!

the big chains selling plastic windows would have you think they save lots of energy. In fact, the cost is so high that it is only worth buying new windows if your old ones are rotten, otherwise you will never recover the cost. Your external walls have a much bigger surface area, and are usually the biggest heat loss. That's why a house with solid walls is so hard to make comfortably warm, especially if you are sitting by an outside wall.

Best payback is with draughtproofing and loft insulation, which are fairly cheap and make a big difference.

Anything with 2006+ building regs is going to be incredibly insulated. Our 2009 house is so warm we use half the gas the gas company projected based on the size. And we have the heating on low 24/7.

Happy house hunting!

I've lived in both. Victorian farm house - LPG bill over £120/month in the winter (and that was 15 yrs ago) and always slightly damp chilly.

Currently (for last 13 yrs) new build with CWI, double glazing and roof insulation- dual fuel averages at £63/month and always toasty. (I did the meter reading last night).

Various Victorian terraces were in between, but nothing has ever touched the new build for warmth and low heating bills.