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

I have so many similar memories- an Ideal coke boiler in the kitchen - got a nasty burn from that! - Have the scar to this day- coal fire in the sitting room and that was it! No other heating - ice on the inside of the windows- the winter of 1947 was freezing- vests, Liberty bodices, wool blankets, but we managed - no other alternative! Everyone was in the same boat -

For health reasons I have had to leave my house and come to a small ground floor flat. They are totally heated by electricity, no gas available at all, and with a bad back and mobility problems I do feel the cold so much more. Have only been here a few months, had to move during covid and my family have not been able to come over and help me set things up in a better way.So I have no idea what my bills will be. did a lot of checking and went to Igloo and set it up but they have gone bust and now with e.on. As both Paul and Martin Lewis say I am staying on the price cap until april as no schemes will be better but am extremely worried about the cost when it comes. The best I can do is go out for a walk when I am able, and go to bed early with a good book and pajamas and bedsocks on . Well I was brought up with only heating downstairs and the beautiful frost patterns on the inside of the windows, but I could move about well then.Ah well thank goodness for free breathing, a walk and a visit to the library. At least the days are getting just a little bit lighter , to cheer us up.

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 remember ice on the insides of our windows we had a fire in the living room and a tiny electric heater to take the chill off the bedroom before going to bed. With hot waterbottles keeping the beds warm. The only time I remember suffering from cold was when my feet and hands were so painful after playing in the snow.
I do think central heating and double glazing has led to us being ’soft’. There is some research pointing to the idea that if we are acclimatised to colder conditions we could be healthier.

Is it about time to unprivatise essential services - water, electricity and gas?
I had come to the end of my fixed term electricity contract (no gas just oil heating and water) and was looking at what is available; Standard rate has a higher unit cost and lower daily charge but the fixed term offers had a lower unit charge and much higher daily charge. Why?

I would urge those who are eager for others to sit in the cold to think about the unforeseen consequences of such sacrifices

I don’t think anybody here is advocating any such thing!
However, when I see girls in skimpy tops and bare legs, lads in t - shirts (and frankly my hardy Postie in his shorts ?) I do wonder if some people have lost sight of the difference between summer and winter temperatures. My mum woukd have said “Get a vest on “ and my Scottish Granny knew for a fact “They’ll catch their death of cold”
Look at the suffocating heat in many shops - then released out into the open air whenever the shop door is opened just as one example.
So go back through this thread and tell me whoever said the elderly, the very young, those with disabilities or health issues should “sit in the cold” but perhaps we all need to bear in mind that the planet cannot afford to tolerate wasteful energy consumption and what we are going to experience with higher energy bills is but a microscopic reflection of the cost to the environment.

We had fireplaces in the living room and one bedroom. Yes ice on the inside of windows was the norm in the winter. An electric immersion for hot water. The bedroom fire was only lit if someone was ill and I mean ill and a Dr was due to visit. This was in a house where my dad was a miner who had really cheap coal. No shovelling it on just because it was there! I am as guilty as the next wasting energy eg running hot water tap, washing machine not fully loaded, oven on for only one dish and heating on higher than it possibly needs to be. Big Think campaign in this house needed.

I’m one of the many who remember a fire in the living room and Jack Frost on the inside of my bedroom window. In this modern day I’m comfortably ensconced in a centrally heated home. Last week I received a missive from my energy company. They told me based on their calculations I will now have to up my DD payment of £76.26 to £121.45 (near enough a 60% increase) which is lining their pockets, not mine. I refused to pay such a hike and took meter readings which were sent to them. To cut a long story short I informed them that I would make an increased payment of only £95 which they accepted without challenge. Nobody has to pay the hiked amount that these energy companies demand. A bit of simple working out should show you the minimum extra that you would need to pay. It’s very important to take actual meter readings first though and send to the energy company.

When I retired early my contribution to the household finances was to keep the heating off in the day in the winter. I have Reynaud's syndrome and froze every day for months huddling up with hot water bottles.

Unfortunately, I had, unbeknownst to me, inherited arthritis and this bad posture and cold exacerbated my back problems.

In October I had to have an operation on my spine and since then, to aid my recovery, I've had the heat on. Goodness knows what it will cost in money but the cost to my health was incalculable and I will not be so foolish as to endanger my well being and freedom again.

The cost to the NHS was roughly £10,000 and the risks of the operation were paralysis and death but the pain was too acute and enduring to bear without the procedure.

I would urge those who are eager for others to sit in the cold to think about the unforeseen consequences of such sacrifices.

Maggiemaybe

Charleygirl5

In my area when the local library was open daily there were many people who spent most of the day there, reading newspapers and generally trying to keep warm.

Same here, Charleygirl. And now both our local libraries have been closed. And the bus services round here are so bad, heaven help anyone hoping to use them to keep warm. They’d spend more time shivering at bus stops, waiting for buses that never turned up.

There were also lunch clubs and afternoon tea clubs which were run by volunteers for older people so they had a meal, met others socially - and could keep warm.

Due to Covid they're probably not running at the moment.

Charleygirl5

In my area when the local library was open daily there were many people who spent most of the day there, reading newspapers and generally trying to keep warm.

Same here, Charleygirl. And now both our local libraries have been closed. And the bus services round here are so bad, heaven help anyone hoping to use them to keep warm. They’d spend more time shivering at bus stops, waiting for buses that never turned up.

MaybeMaw Energy consumption in this country is falling and has been for quite some years. peak energy consumption was in 2001 and has been steadily dropping since. nic.org.uk/data/all-data/historic-energy/. The data can be reached by clicking on the link at the bottom of the first page of this document.

In the domestic sector, insulation in homes, technical developments like LED bulbs and more energy efficient appliances means we can use all these modern appliances and gadgets while keeping energy consumption falling.

In my area when the local library was open daily there were many people who spent most of the day there, reading newspapers and generally trying to keep warm.

Pre-covid, I discovered quite a few people using their bus passes in winter to spend time on public transport for the warmth, not the journey. Young mums and their children were on the bus too for the same reason. The more I used the bus, the more befriended me, the more I learned.
Thank you for the sensitive, considerate and thoughtful post Maw.

Nexus
£100 per month is a lot of money for what your using. Is there a reason you have to use a keycard.

I agree Monica and it is also important to remember that the invention of many of these appliances gave women in particular much greater freedom and equality.

M0nica

I think people are forgetting the downsides of the 'old' days. Chilblains, increased numbver of colds and respiratory diseases, smog from all the coal fires. Smog killed my grandmother. yes, I know air is polluted today, but the sheer constant filth of the days before smoke control orders has to have been experienced to be believed - and I did experience it.

In cold houses walls streamed with condensation, excarbating respiratory illnesses, Old people dying of hypothermia.

As far as I am concerned, I can see nothing to be nostalgic about, living in cold, damp uninsulated houses,with condensation streaming down kitchen and bathroom walld, with a permanent cold and red swollen knuckles and toes, sometimes the skin on the joints was broken and raw.

Absolutely agree.

We should be looking to progress by new technology not regress to poorer health outcomes because of lack of heating and all the problems it causes.

M0nica

I think people are forgetting the downsides of the 'old' days. Chilblains, increased numbver of colds and respiratory diseases, smog from all the coal fires. Smog killed my grandmother. yes, I know air is polluted today, but the sheer constant filth of the days before smoke control orders has to have been experienced to be believed - and I did experience it.

In cold houses walls streamed with condensation, excarbating respiratory illnesses, Old people dying of hypothermia.

As far as I am concerned, I can see nothing to be nostalgic about, living in cold, damp uninsulated houses,with condensation streaming down kitchen and bathroom walld, with a permanent cold and red swollen knuckles and toes, sometimes the skin on the joints was broken and raw.

I'm not being nostalgic about anything although our North facing two up two down unheated stone cottage in Scotland was pretty dam' cold at times!
But- we are consuming very much more enerģy than we did then, not just central heating but domestic gadgets, tv, more of us have washing machines, charge our phones, laptops or tablets etc etc etc
I have made some concrete suggestions but if we are serious about saving energy we also need to be prepared for a lifestyle change.

i stay in a HA flat that got new heating in about 9 years ago, it has never been on, i use a halogen heater in my living room and the electric blanket at bedtime. i grew up in a house that had a coal fire and that was it for heating, we had water bottles and my mums old winter coat on the bed, no duvets but plenty of blankets usually got from jumble sales. i have a keycard so i know how much i am spending on my electric, it has gone up in price from about £10 a week to nearly £25, i make savings by not using my cooker and boiling the kettle for the few dishes that i have rather than turn on the hot water.

I totally agree Monica.

I think people are forgetting the downsides of the 'old' days. Chilblains, increased numbver of colds and respiratory diseases, smog from all the coal fires. Smog killed my grandmother. yes, I know air is polluted today, but the sheer constant filth of the days before smoke control orders has to have been experienced to be believed - and I did experience it.

In cold houses walls streamed with condensation, excarbating respiratory illnesses, Old people dying of hypothermia.

As far as I am concerned, I can see nothing to be nostalgic about, living in cold, damp uninsulated houses,with condensation streaming down kitchen and bathroom walld, with a permanent cold and red swollen knuckles and toes, sometimes the skin on the joints was broken and raw.

I have reduced mobility so I cant skimp on heating. I wouldrather cut down on other things. I dont heat the bedrooms but the heat from downstairs rises to keep them dairly comfortable.

Nowadays I never open the door when I have an unexpected caller as it lets the cold air in. Its deliveries and appointments only. Anyone else I speak to over the intercom on my ring doorbell. I find that they don't really want to stand there in the cold for long so it gets rid of timewasters and whining neighbours.

We live in such a different world now, it’s not just that there is only one source of heat in the house. It’s also a fact that we live so differently.
For instance , we had one television and everyone would be in the same room. Four bodies in one room generates more heat than one person in four rooms using different devices.

Apparently you're allowed another username but clicking on that is pointless as it didn't work!

You did it