Heating your home to the right temperature to be comfortable and yet not cost the earth is a fine balance. We are going to look at how high your thermostat should go and how to keep those bills down.
Who is in your home?
Taking consideration into who lives in your home, may influence the temperature setting you select. If you have a young baby in the house, then you may need to keep the temperature up a little to between 21-24C. Likewise, if you have an elderly person, then again nudging that dial up a notch will help to keep them warm and comfortable. These both need this slightly higher temperature as their own internal thermostat in the brain is either not fully developed yet or is starting to fail. This means that they are not able to regulate their own body temperature.
Another group to consider is the disabled, infirm or the sick. They may also require a rise in temperature. The immobile do not generate their own heat as they are not using muscles. Someone who is sick will need their temperature taking and adjusting your thermostat appropriately.
Individual room thermostats
Having individual room thermostats will enable you to have total flexibility over the heating of your home. You may find it too hot in bedrooms to have the thermostat turned up to 21C. Yet, too cool in the Living room, if you turn it down. Most adults will be much happier if their bedroom is around 16C, this will aid sleep. It is one reason why having a bath before bed makes you sleepy. As your temperature drops, you start to drop off too. Hallways and empty rooms will also be fine at 16C.
Main rooms are slightly different, and if you are sitting for long periods, such as in your living room, then a temperature around 21C will be plenty. Your kitchen will not need heating as high, especially when you are cooking. This again will be around 16C. Your dining room is very often not in use, so having the ability to turn this individual thermostat up and down will help keep that bill under control.
We like to install the Nest system. These room thermostats not only allow you to control each room but also are wireless and you can control them from your phone. So, you can set the temperature down whilst away from home and turn the heating up as you approach home so that it is warm when you walk through the door.
Heating your home to one temperature
If you are still stuck with the one thermostat, usually unhelpfully placed in the hallway, then you need to decide on an overall temperature for the whole house. Most people seem to turn this to 21-24C, way too hot for bedrooms and empty rooms. As the thermostat is in the hallway, as soon as the hallway gets to temperature it switches off the heating. If you are opening and closing doors that can influence the thermostat, meaning it is constantly turning on and off. This is how your bill rises. It is also a bit of a strain on your boiler too. So, you could find it needs fewer repairs if you change to room thermostats
The Committee for Climate change has given the new advice for an overall temperature for your house has been set at 19C. This may seem a little cold at first but will make a huge difference to your bill.
So, we highly recommend having individual thermostats in each room. This will average out the overall temperature of your house to around 19C to hit that target. You may find that the cost of installation pays for itself in the reduced bills. Do talk to us about installing a system that will work for you.
