Keeping your home warm / heating / energy crisis / insulation etc

Corner lockshield valves are a thing

a la

https://www.screwfix.ie/p/cassellie-chrome-angled-thermostatic-trv-lockshield-15mm-x-1-2-/892GX

Except, not necessarily from Ireland, I'm just on an Irish VPN

I was hoping there might be some clever solution out there that I hadn't thought of that uses less power.

There’s some genius high school kid that appears at the start of various YouTube videos who may be able to help. He’s got the energy industry pulling their hair out or something. Didn’t watch the full advert but it seems a couple of flower pots and a few tea lights should do the trick.

Damn those laws of physics, surely there must be some device somewhere to output more heat than the energy put in.

Cheers all, I hadn't seen the corner valves before, they certainly do seem to be an option to neaten up TRVs. Trouble is that smart TRVs and corner valves for 7 radiators is probably getting up to £400 or something and it seems pretty unclear whether ongoing costs would be any cheaper than just running an electric heater.

Going to have to ponder this.

We more than halved our energy bill when we added the Tado setup. Plus there's the value of convenience to think about.

General question, boiler hasn't had a service in a few years, are you obliged/recommended to use plumbers associated with the brand of your boiler or can you use anyone gas-safe?

Anyone gas safe, that you can get hold of. They'll likely tell you if they don't want to work on your make/model.

Fantastic, thanks mate

You could start with just putting normal TRVs on in the least used rooms and keep them at a low temperature.

As said anyone GS registered.

That's only one room though (or all rooms bar one during the day) and even that room gets used for drying washing on a very regular basis.

We more than halved our energy bill when we added the Tado setup

That's impressive, the Tado website only claims up to 31%

5 bed, 3 floor end of terrace. Granular control has been massively helpful.

5 bed, 3 floor

Don't make me golf club you, stevo ;)

I'll bet it was helpful. Considering it tbh, but it's fairly low down the long list of shit I really need to get sorted in our house.

golf club

I'll temper your thoughts with "Thornton Heath"

Golf club thread is no place for context.

5 bed, 5 bath is more GC territory

It’s just a three bed with a shitty loft convo

Oh wait that’s my gaff

No, no, you're totally correct

What PIV did you install out of interest. Having some condensation and mould issues at my house, and had envirovent around yesterday to quote. Would be interested to know your take.

Edit - just seen your post - NUADRI-ECO-HC. I have a flat roof so will need a big hole in the wall, probably not one for my DIY skills

It improved our condensation issues dramatically. We occasionally get a very light misting still in the bedroom but we used to have pretty much massive dripping beads across all of the windows that would last all day. Our windows are really cheap shit, old double glazed, I am sure when I upgrade them I will eliminate the misting.

Proper lol
#bringbackrep

fan vs oil rad

Isn't it about application? In say a living room where you spend the evening it stays warm for longer.

Whereas if you want to quickly heat your shed when you're working in there for a couple of hours a quick blast with a fan heater is probably the right call.

Big disadvantages of fan heater are the noise & blowing stuff around the room. Latency of oil heater is not a benefit, I think.

surely there must be some device somewhere to output more heat than the energy put in.

A heat pump.

They are massive though (and would require tens of thousands of spend on insulation and shit).

Really do wonder how they'll roll out to a huge proportion of UK properties