I have heard that it is better to leave your central heating system running at the minimum, setting rather than to turn it off and have it kick on by timer twice a day.
Some people also say it's cheaper (because the water doesnt have to be heated from cold each time?).
What is your view, is it best to leave central heating running all the time or by a timer?? If you have sources to back this statement up i'd appreciate it.
Watch out Britain. IT'S COLD!!
:~{
2007-01-22 22:27:17 · 9 answers · asked by Anonymous in Home & Garden ➔ Other - Home & Garden
After checking out some resources to answer your question, it has become quite obvious that this is a very, very good question. The amount of information available is almost overwhelming, while the difference in opinions is even greater! Initially, I was just going to post the copied text that follows, but after further investigation, I believe you should check out the link I've supplied as it seems to provide more info than I have time to decipher. Good luck and thanks for introducing me to a topic that I've never really considered!
From the US Department of Energy:
"A common misconception associated with thermostats is that a furnace
works harder than normal to warm the space back to a comfortable
temperature after the thermostat has been set back, resulting in
little or no savings. This misconception has been dispelled by years
of research and numerous studies. The fuel required to reheat a
building to a comfortable temperature is roughly equal to the fuel
saved as the building drops to the lower temperature. You save fuel
between the time that the temperature stabilizes at the lower level
and the next time heat is needed. So, the longer your house remains at
the lower temperature, the more energy you save.
"Another misconception is that the higher you raise a thermostat, the
more heat the furnace will put out, or that the house will warm up
faster if the thermostat is raised higher. Furnaces put out the same
amount of heat no matter how high the thermostat is set— The variable
is how long it must stay on to reach the set temperature.
"In the winter, significant savings can be obtained by manually or
automatically reducing your thermostat's temperature setting for as
little as four hours per day. These savings can be attributed to a
building's heat loss in the winter, which depends greatly on the
difference between the inside and outside temperatures. For example,
if you set the temperature back on your thermostat for an entire
night, your energy savings will be substantial. By turning your
thermostat back 10° to 15° for 8 hours, you can save about 5% to 15% a
year on your heating bill—a savings of as much as 1% for each degree
if the setback period is eight hours long. The percentage of savings
from setback is greater for buildings in milder climates than for
those in more severe climates. In the summer, you can achieve similar
savings by keeping the indoor temperature a bit higher when you're
away than you do when you're at home."
2007-01-23 00:23:02 · answer #1 · answered by LuckyDawg 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
I think leaving it on all day is cheaper. When you shut it down for periods of time, everything in your house gets cold too. So, when you start heating again, the cold air from the couch, walls, carpet, anything, starts coming out and you have to heat that also. By the time you truely get everything heated to the temp you want, it's time to shut it down again. Then the whole process starts over.
2007-01-23 06:40:30 · answer #2 · answered by Shari 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
I have a combi boiler, and last year done a metre check over a 3 week period. One with the timer on and another with the boiler on 24 hours a day. Leaving it on permanently used the least energy, so therefore cheaper. I use the thermostat on the boiler and radiators to control the temperature.
2007-01-23 06:32:17 · answer #3 · answered by mrs mac 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
If you were to be in your home all day I would say leave it on, but if you are out most of the day, it only makes sense that if an appliance is off it doesn't use energy.
2007-01-23 06:30:44 · answer #4 · answered by TE 5 · 2⤊ 0⤋
i leave mine on and it works really nice, and thing about heating from cold being more expensive is true, because since i started leaving it on the bill has been less.
2007-01-23 06:31:46 · answer #5 · answered by ashi 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
It is best to leave at set temp.
2007-01-23 06:31:22 · answer #6 · answered by billieleann78 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
its cheaper to keep it on even if its just the water heater...expensive to keep turning off and on
2007-01-23 06:32:50 · answer #7 · answered by JAMES O 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
anything all is the same
2007-01-23 06:31:05 · answer #8 · answered by ICE 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋
question to long and fuzzy
2007-01-23 06:29:59 · answer #9 · answered by abhay kant 2 · 0⤊ 3⤋