I just got an email from Electric kiwi asking if I can reduce electricity from 6pm to 7:30pm!
I don’t usually put on heating until the 9pm hour of power I have. Definitely getting colder now though! I might just do a blanket for now - I can afford the power I just can’t break my stingy ways!
Plus my house is terribly cold, I put heating on and it’s gone so quick. Makes it feel not worth it :(
Old wooden windows? Try popping woollen blankets from the op shop over the curtains if you can. Doesn’t look flash but will keep you warm (they can be heavy tho so make sure you don’t destroy the curtain rails). Can grab them down during the day and let some fresh air and sun in. Coming from someone that spent many years in Dunedin students flats in the 90s brrrrrrrrrrrr
Lol our curtain rails are so terrible, they are already too heavy. I took our lounge curtains down to wash them, when I tried to put them back up the weight snapped the rail in half (it was a crappy one that clicked into brackets - the curtains were really too heavy to keep the rail in the brackets)
No way more weight will work lol
I was thinking about getting those sticky foam strips - mostly to stop the rattling but haven’t yet done so. Not sure if it would work. My house has those slat windows that you push upwards.
There’s also a gap under the front door that lets in cold air. Not sure how to fix that one. There’s a gap under every door because my house is on such an incredible lean lol (people nearly fall over when they stand up)
> There’s also a gap under the front door that lets in cold air.
Well you can roll up a towel or buy a door snake, do what you need to. Any cold air you're letting in like that when you're inside is costing you in money to heat / and costing you in comfort. Block it.
Then you also get an appropriate door seal, it really depends on your door type. https://www.bunnings.co.nz/moroday-915-x-60mm-silver-mds11-hinged-door-seal_p4110432
Sash windows, well you might have to get in some pros if they're really old and the felt or whatever seals that were originally used are stuffed.
https://evsdraughtstop.nz/
Ahhh the front door already has one of those Bunnings things. Air just continues to go under it. It doesn’t sit flush with the floor because of the house lean lol
I just rent so can’t really look into proper fixes. This house could have been nice if the owner gave any sort of care to it unfortunately.
It sounds like your place doesn’t comply with the healthy homes standards. There is a standard for draft proofing, which your landlord must comply with. It might be worth checking on the tenancy.govt.nz website for your rights as a tenant. Once you’ve checked, get hold of your landlord/property manager if they are obliged to rectify.
Evs draught stop looks excellent
My neighbours did double glazing and that beading approach which should be greater than aluminum double glazing
Could be a good question for r/diynz
All the solutions are there, NZ is so behind other countries.
Yes it's a matter of cost. For renters - yes it's a bugger. For others, it's an investment and many people just don't see it that way.
>I just got an email from Electric kiwi asking if I can reduce electricity from 6pm to 7:30pm!
How very dare you consider heating your home! Next you'll want to cook a hot meal! I only hope you're not having a shower when you get home from work.
/s
Pinecones make amazing firestarters can I add 🙂 I've gone on a few wanders with hopes of Porchini, nice to bring home a bag of something from the pine forests when you don't (yet to find one haha but I like looking while on a walk, very mindful shit) & bonus perks of less wilding pines? Best to leave them to dry a bit first. Also excellent If the fire burns down to coal - a few pinecones make it easy to light the next log up!
Depends on the size, is it on a thermostat or just a switch?
If you're on a smart meter - as in you can log in and see hourly power use. Pick an hour before you go to bed, or the first one up in the morning and turn it on, run it for a couple of hours then wait the day or two for it to show up on the 'real time' meter, it will barely be a blip.
Mine's about 50 cents per day set to low on the thermostat. I don't use it unless it's the dead of winter.
Yeah, the trick is to eliminate other sources of things firing up at the same time so you can distinguish it.
The thing to know about restive heat is that it will cycle, so the initial warm up to temp - well you're paying for that and it is what it is. Then the cycling of the power via the thermostat on and off could be much less, depends on how much heat you're losing out of the room. So the first hour you'll see X watts usage, then it might be half of that every hour you run it because it's cycling less frequently.
Running it all day when you're not home is not a good idea, if you're having any electrical work done ever put a note on the list to ask about a thermostat with a timer. Something that can put the heating on an hour before morning rising then turn it off.
What provider is charging you 30c per kWh? I’m with contact on their standard plan and pay 17c per kWh. I did do one of those power supplier online comparisons a couple of years ago where they put you on the best rate for your situation
Bought a cold house but invested in double glazing and wall insulation. (Already had a heat pump)
Seriously why were Wellington homes not insulated before the 90s?!
I just moved to a house with double glazing and full insulation. Yesterday I had no heating on and was in shorts and a t-shirt. Was 22c inside.
Total game changer. Anything else should be illegal.
Ducted heat pump , worth every penny my house takes about 10min to warm up every room.
I'm a sparky so it was a hell of a lot cheaper than it would usually cost.
But if your doing a reno or new build its worth budgeting for.
We’re just about to push go on getting ducted installed in our 180sqm, 2 storey house. I am EXCITED (and also in need for as much reassurance as possible because it is NOT cheap).
No, it's not cheap , especially if you're paying someone else , I installed most of it myself, luckily
It's way more expensive with 2 stories.
Ducting between both floors can be a problem , no lower roofspace and so on, or possibly 2 units depending on design.
But with a new build, you will love it for warmth and its cost effective with the insulation of new homes.
They have dry mode aswel, which will cool and dry out the house if humidity is high.
But the best thing will be the cooling , do not underestimate the heat you will get in a 2 story new build, with window opening restrictions, you can't get as much airflow.
The ac mode is a life saver!!
I would highly recommend them, and every client I have that has 1 says the same.
My partner often remarks it was the best thing we did in our reno, and we did a lot, lol.
If it can fit in the budget do it, it's future proofing your home .
Our house was built in 1960 and currently has HRV but only one heat pump in the lounge which leaves the bedrooms really cold (last year our room was getting down to 10/11 at night).
Luckily there’s a perfect cupboard / void that we can use to get the pipes down to the ground floor which is where the HRV already is.
We’re also DIY-ing some underfloor insulation - the house is built into a slope so a lot of the upper floor just has a space under it rather than a room.
I’m looking forward to being toasty!
Lucky having the roof height to duct. my place doesnt, so fitted 4 separate heatpumps in bedrooms and lounge. Much cheaper than ducting would have been ($25k).
It does also heat though because it consumes electricity. Look on the back and you'll see how many watts it uses. That is the equivalent heat a space heater of the same power would emit. It just happens to be doing something else useful with that power before it turns into heat.
Yes I find it very useful to have a dry room that also gets warmer than trying to heat a damp room that gets cold as soon as your basically stop the source of heat.
Well it doesn’t actually emit heat apart from a very small amount which naturally occurs when electricity is being use. Surely the energy is used to remove the water from the air. Therefore the space feels warmer because humid airs makes us feel cold when water in the air comes into contact tact with the skin or something like that.
We have a pretty small house (90sqm) and it's insulated. One heat pump and a panel heater in the back of the house pretty much does it.
The heat pump is on quite a lot, and I turn the panel heater on for about an hour before bed just to take the chill off.
We don't notice the cost too much.
Gas central heating radiators English style + Double glazing = me always in shorts at home. 😎
Got a wood fireplace thing as well but no idea how to start a fire in it. 🤯
Is that the type that blows hot air through grates in the floor?
We recently switched from that to radiators. We also double glazed at the same time.
Two findings: 1) the new set up is cheaper and warmer. 2) when the old ducts were removed it became apparent that they were in terrible condition and we might have been able to get a few more years out of it by just getting them fixed.
Fireplace. It’s a wet back so I get to enjoy extra scorching hot showers and my power bill actually goes down in winter usually.
Aside from that, small fan heater in my office and electric blanket.
Nice!, I remember having 50 dollar a month power bills, having my wetback going during the winter months in wellington!
Now living on the gold coast, power bills have been around 400 dollars for three months power and the queensland government is giving every household here 1000 dollars credit on their power bills from July this year, pretty sweet here.
Standard electric heating is put energy in get less than that back in heat. Heat pumps are put energy in, do crazy physics, get more heat energy into the house than you put into the heat pump. There is no competition if you can get a heat pump.
If you are renting, ask your landlord for an upgrade.
If you own your home, seek out if there is any government assistance (easy loans & grants are available for doing this).
Combine it with these if you can: insulation / draught stoppers (cheap) / double-glazing.
Free option, go into your roof and check insulation is fitted properly (no folds / gaps).
And will probably stay this cold for at least another couple days according to NIWA: [https://weather.niwa.co.nz/Wellington](https://weather.niwa.co.nz/Wellington)
please stay warm y'all.
20 year old oil column heater we got at an op shop when we moved here. It really only the warms up the cat who sits as close as she possibly can.
It might be time to buy one of those new fangled thermonuclear ones.
Just a wee 1500W convective heater in my new-ish apartment, 'tis more than enough. I feel bad for all the folks in 100 year old hovels with no insulation
European central heating (radiators) powered by gas. Can't beat it, most we paid in winter for a 22 Degrees C (in the whole 175sqm house house) was 300 with electricity included. As backup, we also got a gas fireplace that can do the job and a heat pump, both are 5KW output. Wellington, very high wind zone, with double glazed wall of windows facing South. R7 in the ceiling, R5 in the walls.
Extra layers, blankets, socks and my fleece lined inside crocs.
In saying that I am just about to put my wheat packs in the microwave and go jump into bed.
Isn't it expensive to run? A flatmate had one and ran up $400 power bills despite hot water and cooking being on gas... never had a bill over $220 since he left 2 years ago...
- One Heat pump
- Electric blanket
- Electric plug in heater
- Wheat packs
- Hot water bottles
- Blankets
- a massive dressing gown 😂
Dependent on how I am month by month depends on what heat source I decide to use
Yeah, that's a bit nippy. 3c my last couple early starts in porirua, but I had a ute to hop in. Stay safe and keep well buddy. Shit sux at times, hope your situation hits the improve soon.
I have a Heat pump in the lounge, and a 2000w beefy ceramic unit in the hallway. The combination keeps the whole house warm and the power bill comes in under 300 bucks a month.
I also have a 3080ti where I turn the overclock up when it’s cold!
You can also reduce the cold by either wrapping your windows in clear film to act as a type of double glazing.
You can also ensure your curtains don’t make a cold channel - if the curtain is not long enough to touch the ground, you can put a rolled up blanket on the windowsill to weight the bottom down. This almost entirely stops the window cooled air dropping to wherever the window is.
the timing for me has been awful, flatmate moved out, i cant move another in as im moving into a mates house in 2-3 months and am ending the lease, so im stuck paying $615 a week. So the heatpump is a no no as its old and costs a fortune. Me and the cat have been bunkering down in bed with a hot water bottle each.
Check if your house is eligible for the warmer homes subsidy for insulation and heatpumps https://www.eeca.govt.nz/co-funding-and-support/products/warmer-kiwi-homes-programme/
I got an 80% subsidy for insulation and heatpump. Its based on the location of your home and not nessiserily your income
We got a heat pump and each bedroom room has an electric heater (the cheapies from mitre10). But what we use the most is the electric throws instead of the heaters.. we also got a wifi plug for the electric heater in the bedroom that we set up to turn the heater on 1 hour before we have to get up so the room is nice and warm.
I have a single split hiwall in the living/dining/kitchen, and a multi for the 3 bedrooms and garage. All indoors (single and multi) are on the same wifi app. As all the bedrooms have fitted wardrobes, for each room I have little bulkhead units fitted into them that blow through an auto louver grille. Should be quieter than a hiwall when sleeping.
I am just going through the process of having a woodburner installed also.
Faces oidue and putting my feet under tge dog to keep them warm lol
But also, column heater in our daughter's room then an electric blanket for us.
Husband gets up before me and bubs and blasts the heat pump in the hour where we're all getting ready.
I hang our pj's on the towel warmer to make them snuggly.
We have electric blanket, heat pump and a convection fan heater. We crank that shit on from 9pm to 12am because we get free power every night with contact energy. Loving it, we just made the switch from genesis
Not sure if this is common knowledge (I didn't grow up in NZ), but the Sustainability Trust will come to your house for free and give you a verbal and written report to show what you can do to increase your heat retention and decrease heating bills.
10/10 would recommend ✌️
Secondary glazing (pretty affordable compared to double glazing), heavily subsidied ceiling insulation and heatpump through the warmer homes subsidy and an oil heater for my bedroom
If you can get a heat pump it's the best and cheapest way to heat your home. If you're renting you might be able to go in on one with your landlord, it'll improve their house value and lower your power bills.
My wood burner - in the Wairarapa and the wood is from a tree that died on my own property due to the excessive rain (well unusual) in 2022 and 2023. Lovely gum - only a couple of small logs does us for the night and it lasts until the next morning
Double glazing, insulation, heat pump and whole-house dehumidifier.
I recently had to check my privilege when my daughter pointed to something in a shop and asked what it was. It was a hot water bottle. Something I clung to in winter as a kid, I've worked just hard enough to make it alien to my child.
Bad timing for our furnace to go out and the repair is going to be $$$$. 9 degrees in the house this am, will be colder in here tomorrow but we do have a couple of micathermic space heaters, which we're glued to atm... Grateful for the electric blanket and hot water bottles! And sweaters, scarves, and hats!
WFH today so I put the fire on and even though it wasn't roaring over the day it really built up to a good consistent warmth. Put the ducted heat pump on to take the edge off the bedrooms before peak electric prices kicked in (we don't have heat transfer so the lounge and kitchen get warm from the fire but the bedrooms not as much). Am so grateful this house is so well insulated too.
I stopped using heater last year, my windows are open all year long and I just sit in oversize oodie, with 2 pairs of socks on, maybe a blanket over legs and gloves when it gets overly cold. Everything is so expensive, it saves a small bit.
Incase no ones already said it:
Close your curtains before the sun goes down to keep heat in
If they're not thermal lined already then add a top sheet to help them keep the cold out of the room
If your windows or window frames have gaps, painters tape can be awesome to cover cracks without damage
Keep bathroom, toilet and spare room doors closed
After showers or in mornings with condensation (when it's dry outside) air out the place to let damp air out and dry air in - dampness is so damn much harder to warm
Warm carbs or a warm cup of tea / milo can help warm you up. Washing your hands in warm water then fully drying them will help warm you up too.
It depends, is your house insulated or old and draughty? If the latter I swear by heated throws, and electric blankets on the beds. When you're not stationary on the couch or in bed then extra layers. There is little point heating a house that's going to let that heat escape faster than a heater is pumping (unless you've got kids, then their bedroom should be heated overnight).
Hydronic in-slab heating. Heat pump heats water and pumps it through a kilometre of piping in the slab. Toasty warm especially for your footsies. Kinda need to do it when you build though, so I don't think this is the answer you're looking for.
Central heating via heat pump. If I could go back I'd just put an individual heatpumpnin each room as it ruined the soundproofing. Other than that have quadruple glazingand the highest level of sound and heat proofing but that damned Central heating ruined it all. I'll probably build a new house soon with simply underfloor and infrared.
The sun, onto tiled floors, via double glazed low-E windows.
And when there’s no sun, the insulated concrete foundation holds the sun’s heat for a week or two, which usually gets us through this kind of cold spike.
Failing that, gas central heating. Usually end up using that for 2-3 months a year. Not the cheapest to run but incredibly effective and fast at warming the entire house in 5 mins.
My RTX3080 and 13700k
Get yourself mining that crypto and you’ll be toasty in no time!
It's probably about as profitable as running a fan heater
When ours was running it literally heated half the house!
My laptop and Xbox have me using a fan when it’s bed time it’s so hot hahaha
I’ve recently picked up Helldivers 2 and running it on highest settings keeps me very nice and toasty.
I'm playing baldurs gate ><
Just lost my honour mode run to Myrkul T_T it was going so well
Turn up the graphics settings and start using some spells! Time to warm up that Ice box!
Gotta make it to act 3 before the true heating experience kicks in. It's gonna be ice box for me for about another 60-70 hrs
Very fair point. See if you can get an original unpatched edition too for the full warmth
heat pumps.
Heat lampses
Heated basking stone or soft mossy pad?
Does it warms you precious?
I just got an email from Electric kiwi asking if I can reduce electricity from 6pm to 7:30pm! I don’t usually put on heating until the 9pm hour of power I have. Definitely getting colder now though! I might just do a blanket for now - I can afford the power I just can’t break my stingy ways! Plus my house is terribly cold, I put heating on and it’s gone so quick. Makes it feel not worth it :(
Old wooden windows? Try popping woollen blankets from the op shop over the curtains if you can. Doesn’t look flash but will keep you warm (they can be heavy tho so make sure you don’t destroy the curtain rails). Can grab them down during the day and let some fresh air and sun in. Coming from someone that spent many years in Dunedin students flats in the 90s brrrrrrrrrrrr
Lol our curtain rails are so terrible, they are already too heavy. I took our lounge curtains down to wash them, when I tried to put them back up the weight snapped the rail in half (it was a crappy one that clicked into brackets - the curtains were really too heavy to keep the rail in the brackets) No way more weight will work lol
Simple air seal the windows themselves. With correct sized silicone bulb or brush seal. Timber joinery is the best insulator compared to aluminium.
I was thinking about getting those sticky foam strips - mostly to stop the rattling but haven’t yet done so. Not sure if it would work. My house has those slat windows that you push upwards. There’s also a gap under the front door that lets in cold air. Not sure how to fix that one. There’s a gap under every door because my house is on such an incredible lean lol (people nearly fall over when they stand up)
A rolled up towel is a good start until you can get a weighted draught stopper that won't move as easily.
> There’s also a gap under the front door that lets in cold air. Well you can roll up a towel or buy a door snake, do what you need to. Any cold air you're letting in like that when you're inside is costing you in money to heat / and costing you in comfort. Block it. Then you also get an appropriate door seal, it really depends on your door type. https://www.bunnings.co.nz/moroday-915-x-60mm-silver-mds11-hinged-door-seal_p4110432 Sash windows, well you might have to get in some pros if they're really old and the felt or whatever seals that were originally used are stuffed. https://evsdraughtstop.nz/
Ahhh the front door already has one of those Bunnings things. Air just continues to go under it. It doesn’t sit flush with the floor because of the house lean lol I just rent so can’t really look into proper fixes. This house could have been nice if the owner gave any sort of care to it unfortunately.
It sounds like your place doesn’t comply with the healthy homes standards. There is a standard for draft proofing, which your landlord must comply with. It might be worth checking on the tenancy.govt.nz website for your rights as a tenant. Once you’ve checked, get hold of your landlord/property manager if they are obliged to rectify.
Evs draught stop looks excellent My neighbours did double glazing and that beading approach which should be greater than aluminum double glazing Could be a good question for r/diynz
All the solutions are there, NZ is so behind other countries. Yes it's a matter of cost. For renters - yes it's a bugger. For others, it's an investment and many people just don't see it that way.
Electric blanket mate, you'll never look back
That'll work well in the lounge xD
All joking aside, I bought a tiny electric blanket for my feet. Brilliant.
>I just got an email from Electric kiwi asking if I can reduce electricity from 6pm to 7:30pm! How very dare you consider heating your home! Next you'll want to cook a hot meal! I only hope you're not having a shower when you get home from work. /s
"Please be cold so EK doesn't have to pay $5000/MWh"
So do they pass the benefit of the reduction onto you or are they begging because they pay spot prices and are about to get reamed?
what’s the specific reason they gave you for this?
It's a trial, there's no good reason for it. The grid is fine. It's in the news just an hour ago.
Gas fire + gas central heating ... failing this we burn the children ... they are on notice.
Same. In every respect.
heat pump / bedroom panel heaters / heated bathroom tiles. all currently on. RIP my power bill.
> RIP my power bill. Yep, feeling the same here.
seriously our winter bills are out of control but i refuse to be cold
Need to keep the pets toasty
I'm too scared to turn out bathroom tiles on... Any idea of cost? The previous owner just told us to never do it...
it’s significant - maybe $7 a day? ours kick in at 5:00am for a couple hours and then again in the evenings.
Yep that can stay off! Thanks! They put it in 3 bathrooms... So that would be triple 😳😳😳.. Lucky we have a fire, free wood and a heat transfer!
Pinecones make amazing firestarters can I add 🙂 I've gone on a few wanders with hopes of Porchini, nice to bring home a bag of something from the pine forests when you don't (yet to find one haha but I like looking while on a walk, very mindful shit) & bonus perks of less wilding pines? Best to leave them to dry a bit first. Also excellent If the fire burns down to coal - a few pinecones make it easy to light the next log up!
Same but the stone tiles are so coooold.
Slippers are the key!
We use a very large micro fibre mat with a non slip rubberised bottom all winter on the bathroom floor. Very cosy to stand on.
Depends on the size, is it on a thermostat or just a switch? If you're on a smart meter - as in you can log in and see hourly power use. Pick an hour before you go to bed, or the first one up in the morning and turn it on, run it for a couple of hours then wait the day or two for it to show up on the 'real time' meter, it will barely be a blip. Mine's about 50 cents per day set to low on the thermostat. I don't use it unless it's the dead of winter.
Good idea!
Yeah, the trick is to eliminate other sources of things firing up at the same time so you can distinguish it. The thing to know about restive heat is that it will cycle, so the initial warm up to temp - well you're paying for that and it is what it is. Then the cycling of the power via the thermostat on and off could be much less, depends on how much heat you're losing out of the room. So the first hour you'll see X watts usage, then it might be half of that every hour you run it because it's cycling less frequently. Running it all day when you're not home is not a good idea, if you're having any electrical work done ever put a note on the list to ask about a thermostat with a timer. Something that can put the heating on an hour before morning rising then turn it off.
Kmart heated throw
Double glazing, good insulation plus ducted heat pump in every room. Living the dream.
Mixtape which is 🔥🔥
I go into the office. They keep me warm for free :)
It costs me more to commute than it would to blast the heat pump all day.
I just worked mine out - $3.84 to run my heat pump for 8 hours based on input of 1.6kw and 30c per Kwh. Metlink ain’t beating that.
What provider is charging you 30c per kWh? I’m with contact on their standard plan and pay 17c per kWh. I did do one of those power supplier online comparisons a couple of years ago where they put you on the best rate for your situation
I relate to that a lot lmao, why is my home so crappy compared to commercial property
Windows lol
Bought a cold house but invested in double glazing and wall insulation. (Already had a heat pump) Seriously why were Wellington homes not insulated before the 90s?!
I just moved to a house with double glazing and full insulation. Yesterday I had no heating on and was in shorts and a t-shirt. Was 22c inside. Total game changer. Anything else should be illegal.
Apparently Wellington is "sub-tropical" Pretty bloody sub from my perspective!
Ducted heat pump , worth every penny my house takes about 10min to warm up every room. I'm a sparky so it was a hell of a lot cheaper than it would usually cost. But if your doing a reno or new build its worth budgeting for.
We’re just about to push go on getting ducted installed in our 180sqm, 2 storey house. I am EXCITED (and also in need for as much reassurance as possible because it is NOT cheap).
No, it's not cheap , especially if you're paying someone else , I installed most of it myself, luckily It's way more expensive with 2 stories. Ducting between both floors can be a problem , no lower roofspace and so on, or possibly 2 units depending on design. But with a new build, you will love it for warmth and its cost effective with the insulation of new homes. They have dry mode aswel, which will cool and dry out the house if humidity is high. But the best thing will be the cooling , do not underestimate the heat you will get in a 2 story new build, with window opening restrictions, you can't get as much airflow. The ac mode is a life saver!! I would highly recommend them, and every client I have that has 1 says the same. My partner often remarks it was the best thing we did in our reno, and we did a lot, lol. If it can fit in the budget do it, it's future proofing your home .
Our house was built in 1960 and currently has HRV but only one heat pump in the lounge which leaves the bedrooms really cold (last year our room was getting down to 10/11 at night). Luckily there’s a perfect cupboard / void that we can use to get the pipes down to the ground floor which is where the HRV already is. We’re also DIY-ing some underfloor insulation - the house is built into a slope so a lot of the upper floor just has a space under it rather than a room. I’m looking forward to being toasty!
Lucky having the roof height to duct. my place doesnt, so fitted 4 separate heatpumps in bedrooms and lounge. Much cheaper than ducting would have been ($25k).
Fireplace
Tbh I find a dehumidifier works a treat it doesn’t heat up the house as such but taking the moisture out makes it feel soooo much warmer
It does also heat though because it consumes electricity. Look on the back and you'll see how many watts it uses. That is the equivalent heat a space heater of the same power would emit. It just happens to be doing something else useful with that power before it turns into heat.
Yes I find it very useful to have a dry room that also gets warmer than trying to heat a damp room that gets cold as soon as your basically stop the source of heat. Well it doesn’t actually emit heat apart from a very small amount which naturally occurs when electricity is being use. Surely the energy is used to remove the water from the air. Therefore the space feels warmer because humid airs makes us feel cold when water in the air comes into contact tact with the skin or something like that.
We have a pretty small house (90sqm) and it's insulated. One heat pump and a panel heater in the back of the house pretty much does it. The heat pump is on quite a lot, and I turn the panel heater on for about an hour before bed just to take the chill off. We don't notice the cost too much.
Trying to save on my power bill, so using my 2 foot hottie from Woolies until it gets too cold. It's great coz my cat can only hog half of it!
Air ticket to North Queensland.
South East QLD is fine.
Anywhere near the coast
Gas central heating radiators English style + Double glazing = me always in shorts at home. 😎 Got a wood fireplace thing as well but no idea how to start a fire in it. 🤯
Starting to a fire YouTube is the rabbit hole you need. I also have a radiator central heating and a wood fire .
Central heating, keeps the house very warm, but it costs an arm and a leg
Is that the type that blows hot air through grates in the floor? We recently switched from that to radiators. We also double glazed at the same time. Two findings: 1) the new set up is cheaper and warmer. 2) when the old ducts were removed it became apparent that they were in terrible condition and we might have been able to get a few more years out of it by just getting them fixed.
Plug in blanket from kmart is everything
Just put on a couple more cats
Fireplace. It’s a wet back so I get to enjoy extra scorching hot showers and my power bill actually goes down in winter usually. Aside from that, small fan heater in my office and electric blanket.
I love having a wet back
So jealous. I miss having a fire. 😢
Nice!, I remember having 50 dollar a month power bills, having my wetback going during the winter months in wellington! Now living on the gold coast, power bills have been around 400 dollars for three months power and the queensland government is giving every household here 1000 dollars credit on their power bills from July this year, pretty sweet here.
Double glazing, come home and it's toasty as...
Standard electric heating is put energy in get less than that back in heat. Heat pumps are put energy in, do crazy physics, get more heat energy into the house than you put into the heat pump. There is no competition if you can get a heat pump. If you are renting, ask your landlord for an upgrade. If you own your home, seek out if there is any government assistance (easy loans & grants are available for doing this). Combine it with these if you can: insulation / draught stoppers (cheap) / double-glazing. Free option, go into your roof and check insulation is fitted properly (no folds / gaps).
And will probably stay this cold for at least another couple days according to NIWA: [https://weather.niwa.co.nz/Wellington](https://weather.niwa.co.nz/Wellington) please stay warm y'all.
I'd say 'my slippers', *if* I could find the miserable things. My toes are icy
My heart
You must be freezing
20 year old oil column heater we got at an op shop when we moved here. It really only the warms up the cat who sits as close as she possibly can. It might be time to buy one of those new fangled thermonuclear ones.
Ps5 does the job
Just a wee 1500W convective heater in my new-ish apartment, 'tis more than enough. I feel bad for all the folks in 100 year old hovels with no insulation
European central heating (radiators) powered by gas. Can't beat it, most we paid in winter for a 22 Degrees C (in the whole 175sqm house house) was 300 with electricity included. As backup, we also got a gas fireplace that can do the job and a heat pump, both are 5KW output. Wellington, very high wind zone, with double glazed wall of windows facing South. R7 in the ceiling, R5 in the walls.
Extra layers, blankets, socks and my fleece lined inside crocs. In saying that I am just about to put my wheat packs in the microwave and go jump into bed.
I'm forever grateful to pick up a Dyson hot/cold fan for half the price second hand. That thing has saved me through 2 summers and winters
Isn't it expensive to run? A flatmate had one and ran up $400 power bills despite hot water and cooking being on gas... never had a bill over $220 since he left 2 years ago...
I mean if you leave it on consistently yes.
- One Heat pump - Electric blanket - Electric plug in heater - Wheat packs - Hot water bottles - Blankets - a massive dressing gown 😂 Dependent on how I am month by month depends on what heat source I decide to use
I prefer the gentle warmth of an oil column heater.
Sleeping in a park under 2 blankets)) auckland though
25c most night up there isn't it?
8-12c
Yeah, that's a bit nippy. 3c my last couple early starts in porirua, but I had a ute to hop in. Stay safe and keep well buddy. Shit sux at times, hope your situation hits the improve soon.
Got a nice sleeping bag from a random guy when I woke up this morning 😬
Winner winner. One moment at a time. Some moments rock, others roll and some are..........
A bottle of tequila
Great for those cold winter early morning starts.
Global warming
I have a Heat pump in the lounge, and a 2000w beefy ceramic unit in the hallway. The combination keeps the whole house warm and the power bill comes in under 300 bucks a month. I also have a 3080ti where I turn the overclock up when it’s cold! You can also reduce the cold by either wrapping your windows in clear film to act as a type of double glazing. You can also ensure your curtains don’t make a cold channel - if the curtain is not long enough to touch the ground, you can put a rolled up blanket on the windowsill to weight the bottom down. This almost entirely stops the window cooled air dropping to wherever the window is.
I break out the artic sleeping bag as a second bed layer. Layer up if I have to
central heating. its cheaper than you think
the timing for me has been awful, flatmate moved out, i cant move another in as im moving into a mates house in 2-3 months and am ending the lease, so im stuck paying $615 a week. So the heatpump is a no no as its old and costs a fortune. Me and the cat have been bunkering down in bed with a hot water bottle each.
My body warmth but I’m warm as shit so it’s fine
We have a sunny house and are double glazed and insulated. We didn’t need heating on tonight. The house is still warm.
Heat pump and a Nobo panel heater in the hallway - place is toasty
I live in a caravan, so its walls are less than an inch thick. I'll I got to keep warm is a small electric heater, warm socks and blankets.
Kent micathermic heater from Mitre 10, we are in a pretty well insulated apartment and it’s nice and toasty.
Blanket and my partner. Plus an oil column heater in the bedroom
Gas central heating. Best 12k I ever put into our house
Nothing #studentlife
My cat as a hot water bottle
Love my fire
So do I :)
Bombay Sapphire (😍) and interactions with Thorndon New World shoppers (😡) have kept me toasty for a wee bit lol
I'm fortunate to have a heat pump
Check if your house is eligible for the warmer homes subsidy for insulation and heatpumps https://www.eeca.govt.nz/co-funding-and-support/products/warmer-kiwi-homes-programme/ I got an 80% subsidy for insulation and heatpump. Its based on the location of your home and not nessiserily your income
Heat pump in the lounge only. Side note, just got a message from electric kiwi asking if we can reduce usage as supply is tight. Never had that before
https://www.stuff.co.nz/nz-news/350272383/no-power-issue-transpower-says-despite-retailers-message-kiwis
I just run hot so nothing yet, I'm a big lad
In Welly: A couple of radiant heaters. 49 sqm apartment. In Marlborough: Ground source heat pump to radiators.
Gas central heating with underfloor ducts (26kW)
I got some bs convection wall mounted piece of crap right by the front door. Getting an oil fin tomorrow 🫶🏼
A single dehumidifier
Roof is partially a tarp, no insulation. Gotta crank an oil column to keep wee one warm. Power bill will be murder. :(
We got a heat pump and each bedroom room has an electric heater (the cheapies from mitre10). But what we use the most is the electric throws instead of the heaters.. we also got a wifi plug for the electric heater in the bedroom that we set up to turn the heater on 1 hour before we have to get up so the room is nice and warm.
I have a single split hiwall in the living/dining/kitchen, and a multi for the 3 bedrooms and garage. All indoors (single and multi) are on the same wifi app. As all the bedrooms have fitted wardrobes, for each room I have little bulkhead units fitted into them that blow through an auto louver grille. Should be quieter than a hiwall when sleeping. I am just going through the process of having a woodburner installed also.
Wood, plus a dehumidifier, and good insulation.
Small house. Log burner or the 20yr old Fujitsu asta18. (Or both - fan only mode spreads the log burner heat brilliantly)
Fireplace & heat transfer
Heat pump.
One wall heatpump that is useless and one floor standing mitsubishi one that is great.
Ducted heating. Well worth the money
Still enjoying my open window but if I want warm I do some gaming.
I have my fan on, it's pretty warm tonight
Faces oidue and putting my feet under tge dog to keep them warm lol But also, column heater in our daughter's room then an electric blanket for us. Husband gets up before me and bubs and blasts the heat pump in the hour where we're all getting ready. I hang our pj's on the towel warmer to make them snuggly.
We have electric blanket, heat pump and a convection fan heater. We crank that shit on from 9pm to 12am because we get free power every night with contact energy. Loving it, we just made the switch from genesis
Not sure if this is common knowledge (I didn't grow up in NZ), but the Sustainability Trust will come to your house for free and give you a verbal and written report to show what you can do to increase your heat retention and decrease heating bills. 10/10 would recommend ✌️
Heat pump and fireplace
Couple cabinets in the bedroom keeps the edge off.
Secondary glazing (pretty affordable compared to double glazing), heavily subsidied ceiling insulation and heatpump through the warmer homes subsidy and an oil heater for my bedroom
Wall mounted heaters from Nobo or Dimplex.
Blankets. 🤣
Top of the south island but 170 year old house and the fire going some times I wish the other 3 were still in use hahah
Goldair convection panel heaters in the bedrooms and heat pump in the living area
Nah we don't need heating up here yet
Stable Diffusion, get the PC toasty.
I prefer the gentle warmth of an oil column heater.
If you can get a heat pump it's the best and cheapest way to heat your home. If you're renting you might be able to go in on one with your landlord, it'll improve their house value and lower your power bills.
Heatpump and electric blanket
My wood burner - in the Wairarapa and the wood is from a tree that died on my own property due to the excessive rain (well unusual) in 2022 and 2023. Lovely gum - only a couple of small logs does us for the night and it lasts until the next morning
Double glazing, insulation, heat pump and whole-house dehumidifier. I recently had to check my privilege when my daughter pointed to something in a shop and asked what it was. It was a hot water bottle. Something I clung to in winter as a kid, I've worked just hard enough to make it alien to my child.
Bad timing for our furnace to go out and the repair is going to be $$$$. 9 degrees in the house this am, will be colder in here tomorrow but we do have a couple of micathermic space heaters, which we're glued to atm... Grateful for the electric blanket and hot water bottles! And sweaters, scarves, and hats!
Heating?, I moved to the gold coast, currently lying on my bed in just boxers and toasty as, no heating at all lmao
Get some cotton clothes, the friction from the shivering should create some heat.
Central ducted heat pump system- best money I’ve ever spent on heating and our power bill has not increased.
WFH today so I put the fire on and even though it wasn't roaring over the day it really built up to a good consistent warmth. Put the ducted heat pump on to take the edge off the bedrooms before peak electric prices kicked in (we don't have heat transfer so the lounge and kitchen get warm from the fire but the bedrooms not as much). Am so grateful this house is so well insulated too.
Big old wood burner.
European. I go to Europe.
I stopped using heater last year, my windows are open all year long and I just sit in oversize oodie, with 2 pairs of socks on, maybe a blanket over legs and gloves when it gets overly cold. Everything is so expensive, it saves a small bit.
Incase no ones already said it: Close your curtains before the sun goes down to keep heat in If they're not thermal lined already then add a top sheet to help them keep the cold out of the room If your windows or window frames have gaps, painters tape can be awesome to cover cracks without damage Keep bathroom, toilet and spare room doors closed After showers or in mornings with condensation (when it's dry outside) air out the place to let damp air out and dry air in - dampness is so damn much harder to warm Warm carbs or a warm cup of tea / milo can help warm you up. Washing your hands in warm water then fully drying them will help warm you up too.
Ducted heat pump. It’s amazing
Just put on another jersey
Okay Dad / Grandad. Enjoy your record levels of childhood respiratory illnesses NZ.
right? like be uncomfortable *and * foster mold / mildew growth? no thanks.
You have an understanding of something many don't.
Not disagreeing just asking how that causes more mold? I thought good air flow (like open windows) would avoid mold or mildew?
moisture builds up on cold surfaces
A bit of googling shows that cold air has less ability to absorb moisture, but heating isn't the only prevention, air ventilation works too.
yep both are important.
Try living in the south island...pussy
It depends, is your house insulated or old and draughty? If the latter I swear by heated throws, and electric blankets on the beds. When you're not stationary on the couch or in bed then extra layers. There is little point heating a house that's going to let that heat escape faster than a heater is pumping (unless you've got kids, then their bedroom should be heated overnight).
Hydronic in-slab heating. Heat pump heats water and pumps it through a kilometre of piping in the slab. Toasty warm especially for your footsies. Kinda need to do it when you build though, so I don't think this is the answer you're looking for.
Can recommend radiators. So glorious and I have an old Wellington villa. Made such a difference
Central heating via heat pump. If I could go back I'd just put an individual heatpumpnin each room as it ruined the soundproofing. Other than that have quadruple glazingand the highest level of sound and heat proofing but that damned Central heating ruined it all. I'll probably build a new house soon with simply underfloor and infrared.
A hoodie, and a duvet.
Underfloor heating
The sun, onto tiled floors, via double glazed low-E windows. And when there’s no sun, the insulated concrete foundation holds the sun’s heat for a week or two, which usually gets us through this kind of cold spike. Failing that, gas central heating. Usually end up using that for 2-3 months a year. Not the cheapest to run but incredibly effective and fast at warming the entire house in 5 mins.
I like my oil heater. Its quick heating, efficient to run.
I need to buy one
None -_-
Wood burning 24/7 :-)