is it OK to leave heaters off all year round?

[Stigster]

thank you for the comments. I dont wanna tart a new thread, so I thought I would ask one more question related to the central heating. is it a good idea to turn the boiler off when leaving the house and turn it on when coming back home? I mean to keep it on only while being at home, cause I do not see a point of heating the house while Im away for 9 hours.

That's more or less how I run my system as the house is not occupied from 8am until 5pm. No timers, no programs, I just have the boiler set to always on and use the hall thermostat as a switch to put it on and off when coming and going or going to bed at night. There is nothing wrong with running a system this way. It is only on when we feel too cold and we don't pre-warm the house. Just come in the door and whack it on at the stat.

I see turning up my stat to bring on the heating as akin to lighting a fire to keep warm. Most modern systems heat up fast enough that this effective enough for me.

 

[centralheatking]

That's more or less how I run my system as the house is not occupied from 8am until 5pm. No timers, no programs, I just have the boiler set to always on and use the hall thermostat as a switch to put it on and off when coming and going or going to bed at night. There is nothing wrong with running a system this way. It is only on when we feel too cold and we don't pre-warm the house. Just come in the door and whack it on at the stat.

I see turning up my stat to bring on the heating as akin to lighting a fire to keep warm. Most modern systems heat up fast enough that this effective enough for me.

In all this thread I see no mention of hive and remote stuff, zoneing etc weather compensation because ultimately its a waste of money, and as its still new goes wrong. I am an advocate of new products but only when they are suitable and work effectively. There are loads of posts on PF to do with the wireless stuff not doing it....
Wait 5 years to see what will happen....all the present stuff is SO intermediate, I know I have been shown where it will end up..
centralheatking

 

[Stigster]

I have no personal interest in complex heating controls for the average home. A standard wired 2 channel programmer (when a HW cylinder is present), room stat, S-plan zone valves and TRVs is all most people need to run their heating properly.

In so many cases I believe all this "Smart" stuff is a solution looking for a problem.

The caveat being a system truly properly configured, weather compensation, modern controls (wired though) can be a thing of beauty but in my humble opinion most of it is either not properly configured or not needed. Any savings made often end up lost to component failures just outside the warranty period.

 

[Modestas]

also, I don't really understand. if humidy causes problems in regular rooms, whats about the bathroom? it is always humid there, does it mean heater needs to be on all year round in the bathroom?

 

[centralheatking]

also, I don't really understand. if humidy causes problems in regular rooms, whats about the bathroom? it is always humid there, does it mean heater needs to be on all year round in the bathroom?

Light heat and Ventilation, We visit so many double glazed sealed box homes, they stink, are damp
and its all the residents fault....fresh air gentle low level heat and a slight draught. People produce massive amounts of moisture. centralheatking

 

[Chuck]

also, I don't really understand. if humidy causes problems in regular rooms, whats about the bathroom?

Bathrooms have always needed to have proper ventilation. This used to be an openable window but these days there should also be a timed electric fan and undercut on the door to allow it to work properly.

 

[Stigster]

also, I don't really understand. if humidy causes problems in regular rooms, whats about the bathroom? it is always humid there, does it mean heater needs to be on all year round in the bathroom?

That's why the building regulations specify proper extraction systems are fitted in bathrooms as condensation is indeed a problem otherwise.

 

[centralheatking]

That's why the building regulations specify proper extraction systems are fitted in bathrooms as condensation is indeed a problem otherwise.

Indeed Stig, the result is modern homes which fully insulated with 2x glazing but the people who inhabit them do not understand and live in a damp awfull fug of their own making, then maybe wonder why they get ill so often. Ventilation was a 50's mantra as a part of the Parker Morris standards for all
comunity type homes. then central heating turned up and then the muppets. centralheatking