Energy costs, the way we were, and how we might cope today.

Energy price increases are undoubtedly affecting us all and at varying degrees. These days we are home far more than when we worked so we expected to pay more... But we have taken to going for a walk each afternoon when the house has felt chilly instead of sitting reading a book.
I cant imagine how hard it is for those who have issues with health or mobility and my heart goes out to them .
I would encourage movement as a good technique for warming up if at all possible. Even arm raises or stretches. Good for the heart and mind.

We too had one coal fire and tin bath nights! Ice inside windows, sitting blowing breath clouds! Then we had new build but warm air heating only downstairs. Then the whole hog.with one house with no Insulation etc built 1974! Fffffreeeeezing and rotten central heating we couldn't afford to use! So #1DS had little matinee jacket over cardi and babygro with bootees too just to be warm in cot with pure wool honeycomb blankets!! He was warm as toast but room very cool but mum said was good to be cool in baby room?!. Nowadays everyone appears to sit with hardly any clothes on!! Vest tees shorts bare feet! My young neighbour has opened door dressed like she's on beach in snow conditions once and I actually forgot what I'd called for in my shock! Why must their bills be like? We're lucky our house is really warm and ok to heat but we are quite often in 100% wool sweaters layered with legwarmers(trendy) and currently writing this wearing wrist socks to ease flared arthritis in current cold snap! True that folks spoiled and soft now. Resulting in over use of fuel high prices and others less fortunate paying dearly for the privileged

I was bought up in the fifties when the only heating we had was a coal fire. Later this was replaced by a gas fire. As a child we had a paraffin stove in the bedroom I shared with my sister and a wall fitted overhead electric heater in the bathroom. I too remember ice on the inside of the windows. Central heating and double glazing were not fitted in the flat I was living in until 1985.

I see no reason to stint on heat if you can afford the bills. We cannot take it with us when we go.

Our heating goes on and off at set hours and heats the house to a set temperature, we do not waste time constantly fiddling with the thermostat. On cold days like today we light the wood burner for a boost.

WE pay our bills quarterly so never have to argue or fight about what any monthly payments should be.

I also grew up in a house where there was ice on the inside of the windows in winter and only a gas fire in the living room. My mother did put a small paraffin heater in the bathroom as she worried about pipes freezing, but it stank the house out. I still live in the same house - but fortunately now we have the luxury of double glazing and central heating. However, we only use the central heating when absolutely necessary - we have a log burning stove in the living room now which keeps that room toasty. Our energy company wants to put our payments up from £72 to £110, which I think is extortionate, but looking at what some others pay, I realise we must be on the frugal side! I'm sitting here freezing right now but I refuse to put the heating on until night time!

harmonypuss How I envy you not feeling the cold, although if you are over 70, I would be inclined to obey the advice that says keep your house, or the part you are in heated to a minimum of 18 degrees. Just because you do not feel the cold, does not necessarily mean it is not doing you harm.

I'm disabled, live alone and haven't turned my heating on at all this winter.
I've still got my summer duvet on the bed.
If I get a bit chilly I'll put a jumper on or grab a throw.
I use very little in the way of gas and electricity but when I switched to a new fixed rate in July (well before all these price hikes properly hit the country), it was almost double what it was before, so I have to watch how much power I use.

Oh, and granmariel, we have a draught excluder at the front door. It really does make a lot of difference.

I am lucky enough to have always lived in houses with central heating except in the mid eighties and shared a student house. They were cold, snowy winters too but we soon got used to it by wearing extra layers. I try to keep the heating to just over 20 but I do feel the cold and my music room, where I spend many of my waking and working hours, is a converted garage and always cold so I have a small fan heater in there. However, I do wear plenty of layers and today, where the outside temperature has hardly crept above zero, I have a thermal vest, wool polo neck jumper and a gilet on top and tights and socks under my trousers. I often wear a cardigan in bed and like a hot water bottle as l don’t like to keep the heating on overnight or l get headaches.

I spent a couple of hours at the weekend making draught excluders to go behind various doors and both me and my DH were amazed at the difference it has made. We have also done an "audit" of which radiators we really don't need to have on and turned these off (why have a radiator AND a heated towel rail on in a small bathroom?). If you came into our hallway you would think we were freezing but I really can't see the point in heating a room that we are basically only walking through to get to other rooms/upstairs.

I doubt it was healthier to live in the cold houses of our childhood. Many of them were damp as well as cold. My father's waiting - room resounded all winter to the coughs, sneezes and snuffles of patients with colds!

He saw a lot of bronchitis too, but all right some of the sufferers had been gassed in the first World War and weren't just suffering from cold rooms.

My sister's godmother had chillblains on her hands and feet from November till May, working as she did in a draper's shop that only had a very small open coal fire in the back shop and no heating in the shop itself - plus a communal W.C. in the close that was open (the close , not the communal amenity) to both the street and the back yard.

But a lot of people are not going to have a choice, are they?

Or rather, let me rephrase that. Of course, they have a choice - keep warm and bankrupt yourself paying the heating and electricity bills, or keep warm and eat the bare and cheapest minimum to stay alive, or turn down the heating, stop airing the rooms " to keep the heat in" - remember that phrase?

Bundle yourself up in layers and layers of clothing and remember to buy an old fashioned hot water bottle or three because you can't afford an electric blanket any more.

And try to enjoy re-visiting the conditions of your early childhood at a time of life where you can no longer run three times round the garden to warm yourself up!

My dad was a miner too! We got a ton of coal for 7/6d but you had to shovel it yourself from the outside entrance yourself into the coal shed. But my goodness it was cold.

I too grew up with no CH with just a coal fire in the living room. I can’t stand being too warm. I find both my sons homes far too hot and have to keep nipping out for air. Their families sit around in t shirts and dress similarly when they visit and complain they’re cold turning up the thermostat. Since the price rises I’ve told them to wear jumpers because the thermostat is staying put at my level

Yep, agree, same here, brought up with just one coal fire. But as a family of 6 we were healthy and could cope with that.

I saw one poor lady on TV ( BBC news) yesterday with a disease that is killing her and she is now in a wheelchair.

She cannot keep herself warm due to her illness.

Her husband's salary will not increase but they have to spend twice as much on heating now.

Felt really really sad for her, she wasn't ranting and raving, was not demanding benefits, was just presenting the facts.

Wonderfully, an email went through to the studio during the article, which was read out at the end. A man had said not to worry, he would be in touch and would cover her bills.

Madeleine45
Please, please do not live like that. If you need the heating on, put it on. As a vulnerable person they can’t turn your heating off.

My elderly father almost died because he lived in an old house with central heating but it never felt warm in winter. He had COPD and got constant chest infections. When he was released from hospital he ended up back in there within two days and almost died again, I had to bring him to live in my house where he managed another three years.

Here in Aberdeen I don't have the heating on during the night. I go to bed with a hot water bottle. With a good duvet I don't need the cardigan I used to wear when I was a child. Like many others we had a fire in the living room and no where else although 2 of the bedrooms had fireplaces. We too had beautiful frost patterns inside the windows in the bedrooms. Other things will have to be sacrificed to keep the heating on this winter.

Here in North East Scotland, with central heTi

We only had a coal fire with a back boiler that heated a tank of water and then we all shared the bath water, being the youngest in those days wasn't great lol. A paraffin heater was put on the landing at night in the winter to try to warm the bedrooms causing condensation to run down the windows. We have got used to the comforts of central heating, etc, but it must be terrible for anyone who is unable to get around, just sitting freezing cold if they are unable to put it on. I bought a lot of fleecy sweatshirts and they are great in the house when the heating is off.

Grantanow

Quite right pce612! There was no need to privatise water and look at the result: raw sewage dumped into rivers but fat profits for Tory friends. The gas price is a world issue but the UK government failed to ensure the privatised energy companies created gas storage for the winter. UK gas storage is minimal compared with EU countries. Who benefits? Guess who. If they could privatise fresh air they would.

Yes you are right, this should never have happened. When Blair in power did they do anything to reverse this . No. Any incoming Gov that would take all utilities back into U.K. hands, would get my vote. Can’t see it happening though.

CrazyGrandma2

My DD bought me one of these for Christmas: Bedsure Oversized Blanket Hoodie. It's so soft and keeps me really warm. Ideal for in the house.

I have one of these also, a treat to me at Christmas. Agree with you, and so much warmer than a dressing gown, as no cold gaps.

Quite right pce612! There was no need to privatise water and look at the result: raw sewage dumped into rivers but fat profits for Tory friends. The gas price is a world issue but the UK government failed to ensure the privatised energy companies created gas storage for the winter. UK gas storage is minimal compared with EU countries. Who benefits? Guess who. If they could privatise fresh air they would.

Most of my long life I have lived in warm houses. I do suffer from poor circulation and arthritis so now I don’t see why in spite of the cost I should cut down on the heat as long as I can afford it. You cannot take money with you when you die.
However I believe we would be better off if the utilities were nationalised

I remember al the things others have said while growing up, I wouldn't want to go back to ice on the windows one source of heating for the whole house, and I think its a disgrace some people have to wear outdoor clothing when indoors in order to keep warm. Something must be done by the Government to stop this happening, the old and vey young need constant heating but if you dont have the finances what do you do, its hard to think we live in 2022.We need a Government that cares for people.

I'm thinking of going on the 5:2 duet for energy, i.e 2 days a week turn everything down to minimum. I hope while it won't quite cut 2/7ths my consumption, due to fridge etc being on, I am hopeful that this will help but not ideally in winter.