Does turning the heating on lead to conflict in your house?
Has the battle of the thermostat begun in your home yet?
It’s the time of year when most people are thinking of turning their heating on or have already done it – and not without a little domestic strife.
Research has found more than a fifth of Brits admit that when to turn the heating on causes arguments in their house, and a further 23% say deciding which times to have the heating on also leads to conflict. However, more than half of householders (54%) questioned by Samsung try to wait as long as they can before turning the heating on as they believe it’s the biggest drain of energy in the home throughout autumn and winter.
And it’s not just the penny-pinchers who delay the switch-on for as long as possible – over a quarter of householders, and a third of the eco-conscious Gen Z age group (18-24), insist the environmental impact of using heating also makes them leave it switched off for as long as possible.
Whatever the reason behind their heating hesitation, both money-saving and eco-friendly householders admit they try several winter warmer tricks to delay the switch on, ranging from simple solutions like wearing extra layers around the house (65%), drinking hot drinks (40%), exercising indoors (13%), and wearing socks to bed (40%), to warming methods that use energy anyway, including using an electric blanket (14%), heating up the bed with a hairdryer (8%), or leaving the oven on longer than needed (8%) to generate more heat.
Teg Dosanjh of Samsung Electronics UK and Ireland, which did the research for its SmartThings Energy Control service, says: “In a bid to cut down on energy bills, people are going to some interesting measures to delay switching on the heating, and the energy debate causes arguments in over a fifth of homes – but it shouldn’t. It’s not about when to turn on the heating, it’s about how you can control your energy when you do.”
What happens in your home? Is your heating on regularly already? Is there a conflict about heating and a thermostat battle in your home? Do you live alone and please yourself? Or is there harmony over home heating?
