N
naughtyboy
Guest
is it cheaper to keep heating on all time on low setting or just put it on higher when its needed?
cheers
cheers
rtbcomp
Moderator
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Playing the Devil's advocate - use it when you need to.
Once the house is cold, it's cold and can't loose any more heat, if you keep it warm that heat goes to waste.
Admittedly it will heat up more quickly to the required temperature if you keep it warm.
But again, the cost of fuel isn't the only cost, if you let it get really cold there is the risk of condensation, mold and burst pipes.
Personally I'd use a frost-stat, set to come on at about 6 degC
Once the house is cold, it's cold and can't loose any more heat, if you keep it warm that heat goes to waste.
Admittedly it will heat up more quickly to the required temperature if you keep it warm.
But again, the cost of fuel isn't the only cost, if you let it get really cold there is the risk of condensation, mold and burst pipes.
Personally I'd use a frost-stat, set to come on at about 6 degC
brightspark
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its cheaper to turn the boiler off when not in use . mines set timed to come on an hour before getting up on a morning then off 1 hour later as no ones in till 5pm its set for 4 pm till 10pm . initialy the boiler takes more time to heat up but if boiler was left on permanently low it would use far more gas so turning it of is a better option . ive done both with the same boiler over 20 years and the bill is cheaper putting it on timed
Luke
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If you work on the principle that your house isn't perfectly insulated (which it certainly isn't), whenever the boiler is heating the house above ambient, it's wasting money. So, only heat the house when you need to.
As above, Our heating is on for half an hour before we get up (and actually off for most of the time we're getting ready for work in the morning - houses should heat up quicker than they cool down, otherwise your insulation is really bad!!), then on in the evening for an hour or two. Again, the heating goes off long before we go to bed, the house won't cool down that quickly, and you don't need the house to be warm when you're under a duvet.
An analogy - you have a bucket with a hole in, sometimes, you need to fill the bucket to a level. Do you add water all the time, or only when you need the bucket full to the level? Does the bucket leak more the fuller it gets? Yes it does!!
As above, Our heating is on for half an hour before we get up (and actually off for most of the time we're getting ready for work in the morning - houses should heat up quicker than they cool down, otherwise your insulation is really bad!!), then on in the evening for an hour or two. Again, the heating goes off long before we go to bed, the house won't cool down that quickly, and you don't need the house to be warm when you're under a duvet.
An analogy - you have a bucket with a hole in, sometimes, you need to fill the bucket to a level. Do you add water all the time, or only when you need the bucket full to the level? Does the bucket leak more the fuller it gets? Yes it does!!
My two 'peneth worth.
When I lived in my flat I used to switch my heating off when I went to work/out.
I was telling my mate how much my heating bill was and he said to leave it on all the time at a set tempreture. Tried it and my heating bill went down by about a 3rd.
When I lived in my flat I used to switch my heating off when I went to work/out.
I was telling my mate how much my heating bill was and he said to leave it on all the time at a set tempreture. Tried it and my heating bill went down by about a 3rd.
Shox Dr
Chief Engineer to Carlos Fandango
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No.
2 examples
I've had this on going argument with a mate for yrs. I put it on when required. In the depths of winter it comes on 1/2 in the morning and from 1600-2030hrs.
My mate on the other hand, (similar sized house same era '70s) he used to have it on all the time. cost him over 1k per yr to heat. Ours 300quid.
my MIL was told to run it all the time by the "gas man" it cost her 1200quid a yr. After I tell her about said matey, above(she still didn't believe me), now runs it as and when necessary. Now her bill is circa £400.
2 examples
I've had this on going argument with a mate for yrs. I put it on when required. In the depths of winter it comes on 1/2 in the morning and from 1600-2030hrs.
My mate on the other hand, (similar sized house same era '70s) he used to have it on all the time. cost him over 1k per yr to heat. Ours 300quid.
my MIL was told to run it all the time by the "gas man" it cost her 1200quid a yr. After I tell her about said matey, above(she still didn't believe me), now runs it as and when necessary. Now her bill is circa £400.
malcolm
& Clementine the Cat
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Went down a bit - maybe 10-20%, but we don't have periods of too hot anymore which could explain that (apart from when the temperature overruns on the change from night to morning setting).
You would have thought there would be a sensible way to do it these days what with heating oil costing so much.
You would have thought there would be a sensible way to do it these days what with heating oil costing so much.
brightspark
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just make sure u have trv on yer rads and heating on a programmer timed 
trv= thermostatic radiator valves .
trv= thermostatic radiator valves .
Shox Dr
Chief Engineer to Carlos Fandango
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I tried running it all the time and it's cost us a fortune, stat is only set to 18C as we don't like the house too warm.
The only thing I hate is the time it takes to warm the house (as we don't have a fire) so I bought a couple of 1800watt kitchen plinth heaters, I can heat the house in around 5 minutes with these then use the central heating to keep it warm.
Have been thinking for a while of ditching gas altogether i just don't think it's an economical way to heat a house anymore, was thinking electric rad or maybe underfloor heating in each room with it's own stat, that way I can keep the rooms we are using warm and not heat the whole house.
The only thing I hate is the time it takes to warm the house (as we don't have a fire) so I bought a couple of 1800watt kitchen plinth heaters, I can heat the house in around 5 minutes with these then use the central heating to keep it warm.
Have been thinking for a while of ditching gas altogether i just don't think it's an economical way to heat a house anymore, was thinking electric rad or maybe underfloor heating in each room with it's own stat, that way I can keep the rooms we are using warm and not heat the whole house.
Shox Dr
Chief Engineer to Carlos Fandango
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Time to heat a building depends on many things. I installed the heating circuit in this house the mains in 28mm feeding manifolds to individual rads using 12mm and 10mm.
So if a rad is either off, or at temp that leg does not get used, and hence the water doesn't require heating thus speeding heat up times and saving gas.
All the rads in the house are hot within 15mins. The house is a large 4bed semi.
As for underfloor heating, you have to remember this is intended as a background heat source. To be supplemented by other means if and when necessary. This is because the heat supplied by underfloor heating is slow release, and cannot react fast enough temperture changes.
So if a rad is either off, or at temp that leg does not get used, and hence the water doesn't require heating thus speeding heat up times and saving gas.
All the rads in the house are hot within 15mins. The house is a large 4bed semi.
As for underfloor heating, you have to remember this is intended as a background heat source. To be supplemented by other means if and when necessary. This is because the heat supplied by underfloor heating is slow release, and cannot react fast enough temperture changes.
brightspark
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as said underfloor heating is ok mainly just used over concrete and wooden floors that are tiled . they run at 100watts per square meter . ijust wired a load up in someones house total load 8kw
i wouldnt fancy there bill along with the boiler radiators and aga 
Also, if the house wasn't originally designed for underfloor heating the heat will go down as well as up, so, much is wasted. The slab needs to be substantially insulated underneath.
Wealthy mate of mine has it, the circulated water type, installed during construction of the house. It's ok but there are hot spots and if you happen to be standing on one it gets uncomfortable after a while !! Noticed this during kitchen conferences !
Wealthy mate of mine has it, the circulated water type, installed during construction of the house. It's ok but there are hot spots and if you happen to be standing on one it gets uncomfortable after a while !! Noticed this during kitchen conferences !
brightspark
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me neither . the pipes are evenly spaced and each room is run of a zone valve and a thermostat . the water ones that is . electrics the same. run of a room stat and theres also a probe in the floor wired in between the elements . so it takes the temperature of the floor and the room as well
