What can I do to minimize my heating bill?

Question

I'm living in a four bed room house alone and I only home in the evenings. I mostly use my bed room and the kitchen. Is there any way I could only heat the places I use so as to lower my heating cost?

Answer 1

1. Install a 7 day automatic set back thermostat, and program it to match your lifestyle (e.g. raise temp to 65 in the morning while you get ready for work, set back temp to 60 while you're out, set to 67 when you return for the evening, set back to 55 while you sleep, etc). You can always override the setback when you're home. The point is to have it set back automatically, every day, so you don't forget.

2. Wear sweaters & turtlenecks in the house so you can keep temperature lower than usual

3. Buy small electric space heater (oil filled) for use in the one room where you spend time in the evening,

4. Use a down comforter on the beds so you'll be comfortable when temperature is down at nite.

5. Seal the doors and windows and other places where there are air leaks into the house. Best time to check is on a cold, windy nite - walk around, feel the drafts, and mark them to fix. The cold air drafts both force the heater to come on more often, and make you feel colder so you're tempted to turn up the heater.

6. If you have rooms you don't use often, close the heating registers into those rooms, and keep the doors shut, so you're heating less total space. Don't do this for bathrooms with exterior walls, however - they may need the heat to keep the pipes from freezing.

7. Snuggle more often (either w/ dogs or humans).

Answer 2

If you have your thermostat in the area that you will be using then close off all of the registers (Heater vents)to the rooms that are unused and close the doors. If the thermostat has a timer adjust it to come on a little while before you get home and that way you won't have to stay bundled up till your house heats up. Again be sure that your thermostat can get the benefit of the air flow from the heating unit, because if you have it in a room and close the vent and the door the room will get cold and cause your unit to run constantly.

Answer 3

Turn the stat down by 2 degrees
Insulate as much as possible
Adjust the timer to be on only when you are at home
Maybe fit thermostatic rad valves.
Close up unused rooms and cut them down on the rad valve to a minimum temperature
See you are saving money already
Go to your council and see if you qualify for a reduction on the council tax living on your own too
There really is a number of ways to save on bills you just have to think of them.

Answer 4

Buy a small heater and cut the temp down on the thermostat.

Answer 5

YES GAS SPACE HEATERS, BUT YOU SHOULD KEEP THE HOUSE ABOUT 60 IF YOU ARE IN EXTREME YANKEE-VILLE!
AND ... GAS SPACE HEATERS TO HEAT WHOLE HOUSE IF YOU NEED TO... 100% OF HEAT GOES IN HOUSE ( NO QUESTION ABOUT THAT ) UN USED HOUSE @ 60 SO YOU CAN STILL USE ALL PIPES & CHECK THEM PERODICALLY & USE EACH BATH ONCE A WEEK SO THE TRAPS DON'T DRY & SEWER GAS ENTERS HOUSE.

IN HOUSTON WE HAVE WINTER... I BELIEVE IT WAS ON A TUESDAY LAST YEAR!

YEAH YEAH WOOD IS CHEAPER IF YOU DON'T HAVE TO BUY IT....

YEAH YEAH BRAGGING ABOUT HOUSTON, BUT TRY A WHOLE MONTH OVER 95 W/ 98% HUMIDITY! STILL BETTER THAN SHOVELING SNOW!