House central heating when away

[Howard H]

what do you have your central heating set on and for how long each day when you are away . I was struggling with this one don’t want to heat the house for 3 months but I don’t want to leave unheated in winter. What does every one suggest ?

 

[MillieMoocher]

I’d suggest that you leave the heating on permenantly with the thermostat set at 15 degrees. It won’t cost anything to run unless the internal temperature drops below that number.

Leave all internal door open, so the heat can circulate.

To be extra safe, if you’ve got pipework or tanks in the loft, leave the loft hatch open. Houses are often so well insulated now that no heat leaks into the roof void which can mean literally below freezing temperatures in the loft even though you’re sat in the lounge toasty warm.

It might pay you to ask your insurance company for their recommendations- that way if you comply and you do have a burst pipe, they shouldn’t squeal about you not taking the right precautions.

Burst pipes are something I really fear, I worked in the insurance industry for many years and the devastation mains pressure water leaking into a house can cause has to be seen to be believed. I’d not wish it on my worst enemy !

 

[mike mcglynn]

My Insurance co.demanded that I set the central heating to be set at 15 c and a failure to do so would render the cover void ,Oh and they also wanted the loft door to be permanently left open which was a bit silly because there are no pipes in my loft .

 

[rod_vw]

My thermostats have a 'frost' setting which will bring the heating on if the temperature drops very low.

 

[Langtoftlad]

Hive protect is 7 degrees, even when heating is off...

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[WillH]

As per above though my default setting is 14C. We don't switch our heating off at all year round, simply rely on the thermostat to keep the house at a comfortable temperature.

 

[mikebeaches]

We've got a 'Nest' smart thermostat system with our oil boiler, which is a Google product. Seems to work well so far. We can see the internal temperature in the house at anytime on our phones, and adjust the heating remotely as necessary. It saves a fortune over leaving the heating on all the time while we're abroad. And we can get the house warmed up just prior to our return.

https://nest.com/uk/

I think it was about £250 installed, when it was fitted in April. We'd had a scare with the 'beast from the east' at the beginning of March, and so got on with the job. Makes the whole system much more efficient when we are at home too.

 

[pappajohn]

It might pay you to ask your insurance company for their recommendations- that way if you comply and you do have a burst pipe, they shouldn’t squeal about you not taking the right precautions.

It might not as well.
I would expect there's very few, if any, insurers will allow you to be away from home anywhere near that long, 3 months, and leave the house unattended.

Never been away that long so only assuming.

 

[Howard H]

Some great ideas thanks a lot ,I guess I will just leave it like it is but turn the heating down a bit . The house won’t be empty all the time my sons will stopping when it suits them so they can turn it up when they are here. Thanks again

 

[MillieMoocher]

It might not as well.
I would expect there's very few, if any, insurers will allow you to be away from home anywhere near that long, 3 months, and leave the house unattended.

Never been away that long so only assuming.

Indeed re the 3 months. I’d assumed that part had already been sorted

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[Stealaway]

This one does all including 'holiday mode' - I have it set to switch on a couple days before we are back.

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[Lenny HB]

We have a nest I switch it to Eco mode with the temp set to 12°, depending how cold it is I turn the heating on remotely a day or two befoe getting home. I installed my Nest myself paid under £150 for it.

 

[Ivory55]

I would not be able to get that many logs on the burner for it to keep alight for 3 months. Haha

 

[Sundowners]

Can I ask what happens if there is a power cut? We insure ours for the time we are away, insurers are aware. We drain down the hot and cold water system, including the tank in the roof, put anti-freeze in central heating system and turn the main stopcock of in the street, leave all taps open and turn all the power off. No freeze up for us.

 

[The Wino]

Can I ask what happens if there is a power cut? We insure ours for the time we are away, insurers are aware. We drain down the hot and cold water system, including the tank in the roof, put anti-freeze in central heating system and turn the main stopcock of in the street, leave all taps open and turn all the power off. No freeze up for us.

I think that would be there requirement if empty that long

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[Ivory55]

It’s still a surprise when we go away fora week or 2 in winter not even snow , just how much the house cools down. It takes a couple of days to start feeling warm, the walls just seem cold. The walls must hold more heat then we realise.

 

[PhilandMena]

It might not as well.
I would expect there's very few, if any, insurers will allow you to be away from home anywhere near that long, 3 months, and leave the house unattended.

Never been away that long so only assuming.

There are a number of insurance company's out there who will provide this level of cover. Many do 60 days as standard and then you pay a little extra for the remaining days. There is usually a caveat added to that, some one to visit the house on a regular basis, clear the mail etc. and the central heating to have frost protection on. We find having the frost protection set to about 8 Deg, provides adequate protection and has never been activated in the last 5 years, primarily due to good insulation.

 

[thebriars]

This one does all including 'holiday mode' - I have it set to switch on a couple days before we are back.

Amazon product ASIN B003DTROQ8

Honeywell CMT907A1041 7-Day Programmable Hard Wired Room Stat

by Honeywell

We have 4 of these for different parts of the bungalow (its a big place!). The holiday feature will also keep the temperature at a set low until you return and then puts the heating back on to normal running. Ours are set to come on at 10 degrees on the holiday mode. You don't need to set it to come on a couple of days before you return as it automatically goes back to normal a day before. Its worth reading the handbook! (You can download it if you've lost it.)

 

[thebriars]

Can I ask what happens if there is a power cut? We insure ours for the time we are away, insurers are aware. We drain down the hot and cold water system, including the tank in the roof, put anti-freeze in central heating system and turn the main stopcock of in the street, leave all taps open and turn all the power off. No freeze up for us.

A regular occurrence for us. The last one was 20+ hours in the middle of winter. The house cools down but nowhere near to freezing.

 

[Xabia]

Another vote for Nest; I spend around 2 months in Spain March/April and October/November. I can check the temperature inside and outside the house from my phone or tablet and adjust from the minimum of 10C that I program in.

Proved a godsend whilst away this time as it alerted me to the fact that there had been a power failure on the circuit which controlled the heating and freezers. I was a blot get neighbour/family round to ascertain the cause of the problem, turned out to be a tube heater in the greenhouse which was faulty. Without that notification I would have returned to thawed freezers and possibly a frozen house. Also have the camera which notifies me as soon as anyone enters the house.

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[Pugsy]

I'm with Churchill ,upto 180 days no extra cost.
If away more that 60 days , heating set at 15 degrees,someone to visit at least every 7days and stopcock off in the street.

 

[Reallyretired]

Ours set at the frost setting. Neighbour comes in daily to sort post and check on things. We ring him a day or two before returning and he puts the heating back to the normal program.

 

[tonyidle]

As per above though my default setting is 14C. We don't switch our heating off at all year round, simply rely on the thermostat to keep the house at a comfortable temperature.

I do that too. I drop it to 15 degrees if we're away but it's always on. Mains water turned off at the stopcock mainly because my washing machine shut off cocks are inconveniently located.

 

[Neckender]

I turn the water off at the mains leave all taps open flush the toilet and leave the programmable room stats (2) just above frost setting 7degrees and have had no problems the last 6 years, the boiler also as a built in frost stat.
I’m a retired heating engineer.

John.

 

[gus-lopez]

I would not be able to get that many logs on the burner for it to keep alight for 3 months. Haha

Which is a good point .What if you do not have any type of 'central' heating relying on open fires /wood burners?

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[Ivory55]

Which is a good point .What if you do not have any type of 'central' heating relying on open fires /wood burners?

Would they insist on some oil filled electric radiator being on a thermostat left on ?

 

[gus-lopez]

Would they insist on some oil filled electric radiator being on a thermostat left on ?

many people state that if you do that in the motorhome they categorically state it will not be insured in the event of an accident so I can't see how they could ask.

 

[Lenny HB]

Which is a good point .What if you do not have any type of 'central' heating relying on open fires /wood burners?

Turn off the stop cock and drain down any tanks & pipes.

 

[tonyidle]

many people state that if you do that in the motorhome they categorically state it will not be insured in the event of an accident so I can't see how they could ask.

I suspect household insurance covers appropriately certified electric heating appliances.

 

[Janine]

Some advice needed from our resident heating experts, please

I have an old fashioned back boiler and radiators with no thermostat other than a knob with numbers on under the gas fire.

When I go travelling in colder months, I turn off the water and heating.

A while ago, one of the radiators sprung a leak and I am worried about leaving the heating on with the water off, the system running dry and the boiler exploding.

Am I right to worry?

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