Brrr...

Surely it's not whether the heating is on but the temperature at which it is set that matters. Ours is on all day everyday but we regulate the temperature according to the weather. So , in the summer it is usually on at around 5° and, therefore, it never kicks in, but we can just switch it higher if necessary.

Currently it is set at 21 during the day. We have a hive controller so it is really easy to control.

I often wonder if people understand what a thermosat is for you don't need all this switching on and off stuff. Set it at the temp you either want or can afford.Set the timer so it comes on at say 6 am and goes off at 11pm and Bob's your Uncle as they say.

We set it at 19.5 but this is a very well insulated house.

not having been born in this (cold - relatively speaking, of course) country, and having spent my youth on the Mediterranean, I do feel the cold, and the heating in our house comes on automatically whenever the temperature drops below a certain level (it has been known to come on in August...!) However, I do take the very serious point made by vegasmags about cost and ability to afford a warm house.

I have never understood why not having the heating on(when you can afford to do so) should be something to be proud of. Personal choice should be the deciding factor. I'd rather do without some other things than be cold.

We don't normally have ours on until the end of October, but we have put it on a couple of mornings this week and it is clicking on at 15 degrees. We have cavity wall insulation and it does make a difference. Our last house was very cold.

As I am typing this it is 29 degrees here in Cyprus, very unusual to have such hot and humid weather this late in the year. Can't wait till the rain and the snow (yes, we do get a snow here at the house quite often from November till February) starts. At least the nights have started to cool down to a reasonable 18 degrees.

Is it just me or does anyone else find that 18 deg in summer feels much warmer than 18deg in autumn/winter?!

We have a pellet stove which is very efficient. So I didn't feel too guilty about turning it on yesterday just to make sure it was ok after the summer break!!! I tend to feel the cold more especially when it is raining as well.

Heating controlled by thermostat, comes on when its cold first thing in the morning and, so far, has not come on again until later in the afternoon. I believe when you are older and probably suffer from things like arthritis, it is essential to be warm. Also the dog appreciates a warm radiator by her basket!! Summer thermostat turned down to "frost control"!! So far has never come on. Saw a road gritter out yesterday, probably making sure it still was in running order, I hope, although I do live in a hilly country area.

I have the thermostat set to 18.5 and leave it on 24/7/365 but will also turn individual radiators on/off according to need.
In the summer it just doesn't come on, but if there were a cold snap then it would.
I was told by a damp surveyor that once I got the damp in the house sorted out I should never let the temperature drop below 18C, hence why I set it to 18.5.
I always think when you come in from outdoors a house feels warmer (just cos you're away from the elements), and the temp I have it at is just right for me. If I'm cold watching telly I put the gas fire on, as well as a snuggly blanket, but in the rest of the house I'm usually moving around doing things, so I don't need it too hot.
It's nice when I have to get up in the night to find the rad next to the loo is all warm!

I forgot to add: my gas bills have gone down since I started keeping it on all the time

put it on wednesday night as we both had wet hair from showers.. only up to 18 degrees though, switched off again when we went to bed.
yesterday evening put it on at 16 degrees and then switched it off again, just need it to take away the evening chill at the moment.

My living room is at 22 now (2 pm) and the bedroom is at 21. I only have storage heaters so I can't put the heating on when I want it, I have to decide the day before if I'm going to want it. I'll probably put it on when the bedroom goes below 18.

I'm not in the "heat or eat" trap but I'll have to be careful and go to warm jumpers and hot drinks before I use electric heaters.

19.3c in our dining room where the thermometer is at the back of the room
18.6C in The living room where it is nearer the window.

It's cold and damp here with no hint of sunshine.

Ours has been on and off through September too if we've felt chilly (we live close to Ashford, Kent).

Currently have it set around 22C, from 06.00.a.m. until 08.30.a.m. and then in the evenings from 4.00.p.m. until 8.30.p.m. If it gets chilly outside of these times (like today), then we have it on. Hate to be cold !

P.S. We have a gas fire in our living room, which looks EXACTLY like a real fire (without all the inconvenience !) and it's ben great. Thing is, it's really old now and needs replacing......don't know whether to get a new gas one, or maybe a wood burner ? The wood burners seem to throw out sooooo much heat, which would really suit me ! Wonder how expensive they are to run ?

So, two questions.....
How much mess do they make ?????
How much does the wood cost ?????

Keep warm everyone.

My storage heaters keep my well insulated bungalow warm day and night. No bother of servicing or oil deliveries. I have walking difficulties and have poor circulation and get very miserable and depressed if I am cold.

Well, Londoner, wood burners are brilliant, but do make a lot of mess and unfortunately the price of wood has shot up. Looking at £75 for a trailer load and that is in the Midlands. So if you do live down south I suspect would cost more. A regular trailer load might last you 3 months if you were careful.

My DD has just had a "clean burn" woodburner installed. It is amazingly clean. I don't know how it happens but it roars away merrily and never any ash to empty! How it does it I don't know, but I think I want one too.

Wood burners are brilliant, we have two, one in sitting room which we have on mainly in the evening, and one in the room next to the kitchen where we spend most of our morning, and only have our central heating coming on in the morning for when we get up. Need to have a good supply of well seasoned logs though. We are lucky where we stay, (Scottish Borders) as we can get a lot of our wood for free or quite cheaply. I don' think they are any messier than a coal fire but DH enjoys keeping the home fires burning - it's turned into a hobby of his!

Pippa000 we went to Cyprus at the beginning of March one year and went up into the mountains. As we drove along we were startled to see a skier cross in front of us - in the air - from one side of the road to the other!

It's a bit chilly here, heat on morning and evening so far! If we are in in the afternoons we have the heat on on in the conservatory if the sun isn't shining.

We've put a clean burn 12Kw woodburner in the granny pad. We've had a couple of small fires to burn off the new smell and today we decided to get it up to full blast while we were working in there.

Stripped off to T shirts in a very short time. We're self-sufficient in wood so it's going to save us a lot of money.

Our wood burner is multi fuel, it burns wood and egg shaped coal. We start it with coal and when there's a good glowing bed of embers, just add a log.

If we want it to stay in all night we put more coal on it and turn down the control.

It stays in, as long as someone nips down at 6 am to stoke it!

Our first house had a Parkray solid fuel heating system. A lovely little stove in the sitting room that heated water and radiators. All the fuel was bought prior to use, so no nasty bills.

X

12kw! How big is your room?!

DD's is 5 kW and it warms the room and halfway up the stairs too! I was thinking a 3kw if I get one.

Cottage we stayed in a while back had one with a boiler behind it. It was good. One of those with a squirrel logo on it.