How are you coping with this cold snap?

I'm keeping the heating on all day on the coldest days. It's either that or spend all day with the cat glued to my lap. He really doesn't like the cold. I pay for the heating by direct debit, and hopefully the warm summer will have balanced out what I'm using now.

I have an old cold house and heating bills are horrendous so really limit when heating is on. I have a halogen heater in living room and it's nice and warm plus it helps my SAD. Heating goes on a few hours in evening and 1 hr in morning. Halogen at other times when I'm in living room during day.

We have a thermostat like that. We have never played around with thermostat settings. We set the temperature for 18.5 in daytine, 15 degrees at night and set the timer. If, like today, the temperature drops below 17 degrees between the morning and evening heating periods we press a button that turns the heating on again. Simples.

I have friends who play with their heating settings like a piano, I have seen no evidence that it saves them any money,or heats the house any faster. if anything it seems to end with a colder and raftier house.

ayse

Had a new boiler yesterday and a new wireless thermostat. The thermostat won’t allow me to turn the heating on and off. It has to be done by turning the temperature down low. To be honest I don’t really understand how to get the best out of it. Our bill was huge yesterday as it was set to be on at 21.5 and switch on if the temperature dropped below.

DH seems incapable of shutting the doors or turning off the lights! It means the sitting room drops in temperature very quickly and with the new system the heating just comes on. It’s driving me nuts!

I’m going to leap into bed soon so I can relax and keep warm with the blanket. I’ll be very glad when the weather gets warmer and heating costs aren’t such an issue for me!

We also have a wireless thermostat like yours which controls the temperature but we also have a main control box which allows the heating to be put on timed or constant. It will also boost the timer by any amount of selected hours. It also controls the hot water.

Ps light candles but stay in the room!!

We have the central heating on for an hour in the morning and an hour in the afternoon set at 18. We are an inner townhouse and fairly well insulated. If we feel cold we will put the heating on but not in the bedrooms as we like a cool room. We have throws, blankets and the cat to stay cosy.
We eat well and keep hydrated which is important plus move a lot as we have three floors. So far, so good but family in Australia struggling with their very hot days.

Had a new boiler yesterday and a new wireless thermostat. The thermostat won’t allow me to turn the heating on and off. It has to be done by turning the temperature down low. To be honest I don’t really understand how to get the best out of it. Our bill was huge yesterday as it was set to be on at 21.5 and switch on if the temperature dropped below.

DH seems incapable of shutting the doors or turning off the lights! It means the sitting room drops in temperature very quickly and with the new system the heating just comes on. It’s driving me nuts!

I’m going to leap into bed soon so I can relax and keep warm with the blanket. I’ll be very glad when the weather gets warmer and heating costs aren’t such an issue for me!

Nor do all elderly people want smaller accommodation. As you get older and less mobile, you become more housebound and you may well need more living space for in house hobbies and interests. ... rooms described in estate agents details as 'bedrooms' are being used for a wide variety of alternative uses, as offices, gyms, sewing rooms, libraries, workrooms and so on.

Indeed.

We've an art studio, GC playroom, gym, offices for both of us.

Space to live and enjoy.

By not opening curtains in bedrooms and rooms not used in the day .
Having the heating turned up and the woodburner on earlier.
When on the sofa using a heated throw .
I'm quite toasty !

I quite enjoy ironing, and it adds a little heat to the room, too. So the board is out, as is the iron, and I can see the pile of ironing - which must all be done so it can go up to the loft with the Xmas decs ( it’s mainly napkins etc) BUT …. In order to do that I have to emerge from beneath the heated throw DS1 gave me this year! Maybe someone could invent trousers as warm as heated throws? Please.

HelterSkelter1

Good plan barmcake. More small, well insulated houses should be built for single persons and very small families. Thoughtfully planned inside and out.

It would be an encouragement to older people in often too large houses to downsize.

Yet 4 or 5 bedroom houses seem to be the norm on the new housing estates.

We have some of the smallest houses in Europe and having recently visited a number of 3/4 bedroomed show homes, on local new estates, regardless of how many rooms they have , they are all small and poky. One house had a study that measured 6ft by 4ft. Barely room for a tiny desk and a chair. The hallway was shoulder width and the dining end of the kitchen could barely fit a small round table and 4 chairs.

Average household size is only 2.35 people, so while there will be areas where families have a difficult time getting suitable accommodation

As for all these recommendations that older people ought to be encouraged to down-size, it is a red herring to suggest it would ease any housing crisis for families and the like. All it would do is place older people in competition with first time buyers for smaller properties, which will only drive prices at the bottom of the market up making it more difficult for first time buyers.

Nor do all elderly people want smaller accommodation. As you get older and less mobile, you become more housebound and you may well need more living space for in house hobbies and interests.

When you see houses for sale with 4 rooms upstairs, it is surprising the number of times you see that rooms described in estate agents details as 'bedrooms' are being used for a wide variety of alternative uses, as offices, gyms, sewing rooms, libraries, workrooms and so on. This is not limited to the elderly.

Yes, of course, some people will want to downsize to a smaller proeprties in old age, often to free capital invested in their home or to move near family. A number like the security of retirement complexes, but there are also many older people who want and can continue to live as they have always done and refuse be coerced by people telling them what they ought to do regardless of whether it would contribute to their welfare or not.

Well fitted Roman shades (I made ours), keep out light and cold draughts. Not at all difficult to sew, pull up snug in the day for sunlight.

The thing is the lovely cozzie heated blankets are so cosy you dont want to get up to make tea or dinner !

I must admit I am enjoying this cold weather, much better than the wet, mild winter of last year.
We haven’t had any snow yet however.
I find it’s always easier to put on layers and the heating to keep warm as opposed to trying to keep cool from the heatwaves of the summer last year which I really didn’t enjoy.

PS. The heating is never turned off, as recommended.

I have underfloor heating. I only have it on in the two bathrooms when it’s very cold, such as now. The bedroom thermostats are set at 18degrees, but the temperature has never dropped below that, so the heating has never come on, except for when I turned the thermostats up to check that the heating really works, and it does. The hall and open plan living area are set at 22 degrees. I think some warmth in very cold weather is important for the fabric of the building.

Our heating has been on at 21 deg as usual (off at night). In winter I nearly always wear my lovely sheepskin house boots from Celtic indoors, and lately I’ve been wearing a quilted gilet as well as a warm jumper and an underlayer. So I haven’t felt at all cold indoors.
Outside is a different matter! Warm coat, good boots and socks, warm gloves and a woolly hat!

I totally agree with you HelterSkelter1. There are more single people now than ever, but developers only build for profit. I notice a lot of new build flats have electric only, which I would not want.

Sending healing thoughts to you Nuttynanna2. I hope someone is around to help you.

I have the heating on all day at around 18°. I’ve got to the stage that if I can afford it, then it’s going to be on come what may. Since my Big Op, I feel the cold much more. I cosy up in front of the telly & woodburner, under a fleecy rug with a hot water bottle at my back. Amazing how a hwb makes all the difference.

Greenfinch

Me too. I sleep better when the nights are dark. I really struggle when the mornings are light despite blackout blinds.

Me too. And I sleep better when it’s cold too.

Underfloor heating keeps the house warm but I have really noticed the drafts coming through windows and doors. They are wooden and the house is south facing and the frames have warped in the sun and don't open and close easily anymore. Lots of windows and patio doors so would be very expensive not to mention disruptive to replace.

Thankfully our boiler is just fixed after no heating since Friday. It’s been perishing. What helped the most was a hat and gloves, layers as opposed to one thick jumper etc. a hot water bottle and extra blankets and lots of warm drinks. I noticed I felt much more tired which I know is normal when it’s cold but does make you feel like doing nothing, when really we should gently keep active when we can. It now feels positively tropical in comparison!

Heated waistcoats/gilets are marvellous - I have two batteries so have one on charge while wearing the other. Keeps me beautifully warm.

I have district heating and it is never turned off, just turned down in the summer months, as I simply refuse to be cold.

In this weather, I light the wood burner, mid-afternoon and keep it on until I have finished washing-up in the evening.

Right now the day starts with shovelling snow off my pavement at 7 a.m. and some days I have been out repeating that exercise mid afternoon and before going to bed. Not a lot can be said for shovelling snow, but it does warm you up.

This morning the cats came in from their necessary morning walk and chased each other all round the sitting-room, ambushing each other from behind armchairs and sofa. That got them both warmed up, again.

I am in bed wearing pjs,.thick track suit, onesie with hood and a pair of socks. Two duvets and still chilly. Not very mobile at the moment because of broken femur. House is freezing even with heating on. Built in the 70's with little insulation. Have multi fuel stove in the TV room and that is kept toasty. Didn't bother me until my accident as I was always on the move.