What's more cost effective, have your heating on all day or only have it on when you need it?

Answer 1

This certainly isn't a stupid question!!!

Modern electronic thermostats have a high and low temperature setting, rather than a fixed setting and a timer.

With the old system, a timer was used to switch the heating no and off, usually in the morning and evening and all the thermostat did was to set the room temperature for comfort. So the boiler would fire, heating the water in the radiators to warm the room and, once the desired temperature was reached, the thermostat would stop the boiler from firing.

With a modern system, the boiler is left on all of the time, but the thermostat has an upper and lower limit, for example 15 Centigrade and 20 Centigrade, with a built-in timer to switch between the two settings. The idea being that in the morning and evening, the upper temperature is used but, during the day and over night, the minimum is maintained. This means that the most the house needs to warm up is 5 C, which is a much more efficient use of the heating system as energy isn't waisted heating the cold walls & surfaces in the house.

To control room temperatures even further, Thermostat Radiator Valves (TRVs) can be fitted to some, but not all, of the radiators in a house so individual radiators will switch off once the desired room temperature is reached.

*Edit* It's interesting that my answer has two "thumbs down", when I actually know what I'm talking about as my father is a plumber! Ask any heating engineer, or plumber, they will tell you that a two-temperature heating system is more efficient and cost effective than a system where the heating is switched off most of the time. If you heat a house from cold, 80% of the cost is wasted in heating the walls and other surfaces of the rooms, if you keep them warm, but at a lower temperature, during the day and over night you only heat the air to the required temperature which, over a winter, provides an overall reduction to your heating bill.

Answer 2

Just having it on as required is more economical.
If you're out all day at work or whatever there's no point in heating the house all day because the heat will be lost through the windows / doors / roof etc.

The most cost effective thing is to make sure your house is well insulated. This means that less heat escapes from your house and the heating doesn't need to be on as much.

As a rough guide in units;
Your house needs say 100 units of heat to feel warm. Now say your heating puts out 50 units per hour, but you lose 10 per hour as above.
Having the heat on a thermostat will mean the system comes on for a few mins when the house drops to 90 and replaces the lost 10.
Leaving the system off means that those 10's keep escaping so you come home and the house is only at 20, so you need to have the heating on for an hour & a half to bring the temp back up.

Hope this isn't confusing.
Basically, it doesn't make a huge difference either way, but insulation does!

Answer 3

It is more cost effective to have your thermostat set to a low temperature, between 70 and 74, when you are home. If you are not home, you can set it for a lower temp, but don't let it become too much colder, otherwise your heater will work overtime to get it back up to 70 when you need it.

Answer 4

Don't think this is a dumb question like some. I think it depends on the type of heating you have. If it's gas central heating then on low all day would sound better at least you wouldn't be coming home to a cold house. Electricity, well that's always expensive, probably cheaper to buy a few more fleeces!!

Answer 5

having it on all day so it does not get cold i think it costs more to keep heating the house up from cold the same with the hot water

Answer 6

My partner works in Energy. He says that in winter the walls of our houses heat up and lose heat through open windows, we should keep them warm, by not having any windows left open but opening them briefly everyday to flush the humid air out but then close them. Did that make any sense.

Answer 7

basically, set your thermostat to a minimum temperature to maintain a comfortable 'unheated' room.. such as 15c during the day.

Unless its seriously cold outside, this will probably not triggered during the day. (It stops the walls and windows chilling the room further and also prevents damp and smells in unused homes...)

when you return, set it to a more comfortable level and boost it when its colder outside...

its the most cost effective AND energy efficient method

Answer 8

This question appears regularly in this column.
Do you leave your car running in the driveway while you remove the groceries, take the kids into the house to stay with the babysitter, have a pee etc, knowing that you will be leaving in ten minutes ? NO WAY JOSE
It is a luxury that few can afford.

Answer 9

keeping your heating running is better than shutting it off and then your furnace has to work harder and longer to heat it back to the temp you had it.
just turn your stat down so it wont run as often, depending of course how cold it is outside.

Answer 10

No brainer, only when you need it....even better...go visit friends and familly and stay out more often...then you will never need to turn the heating on! LOL