Turn the Heat up

I feel the cold. My metabolism is more suited to warmer climes. This is why, unlike some, I prefer the summer months. It isn’t just about the sight of green foliage and wildlife, it is also to do with being able to feel my fingers and not shivering all day. Sure you can wrap up warm –  but that never works for me. I still feel cold pretty much continuously from late October until early April. You can be certain, therefore, that I will be taking any advice about turning the heat down with a pinch of the proverbial.

What is driving this advice? Oh, naturally, it is the war on carbon. We must all freeze to save Gaia. We must reduce our carbon emissions –  I presume they mean CO₂ rather than carbon itself –  an element essential for life. Well, carbon based life anyway. So, what should we be setting our thermostats at?

And, most immediate to personal comfort, should the average indoor temperature of British houses continue to rise, stay roughly the same at 17.5C (63.5F), or fall?

Dropping it to 16C – the lowest setting in this virtual world – only shaves 7% off carbon emissions. Even if we all get in the habit of wearing woollies inside, this will still feel chillier than usual to most people.

I’m sorry, but my thermostat won’t go below 20^oC and for the most part will be around 25^oC.

I’m distinctly uncomfortable when temperatures drop into the teens. It’s only when we get into the twenties that my extremities start to come up to a semblance of  a decent body temperature and I can undo the zip on my fleece. As for wearing more clothing, if I wear any more, I won’t be able to move.

David MacKay, the DECC’s chief scientific adviser, practises what he preaches in his once draughty semi-detached 1940s house. As well as adding double glazing and insulation, he has turned the heating right down.

“When I’m at home, my normal thermostat settings are roughly 13C, but lower when I am out, and 15C, briefly, at getting-up time in the morning. One important additional rule is that whenever I feel cold, I turn the thermostat up as high as I like. The automatic thermostat control then turns it back to the normal settings a few hours later.”

Good grief! My teeth would be chattering. That, or I’d be reaching for the thermostat as soon as the temperature starts to drop to keep some semblance of warmth in the place.

I really don’t care about this reducing carbon emissions by 80% or whatever, because, frankly, I am not taken in by the great warble gloaming scam. Keeping warm during the winter months is rather more important to me. And, no, I don’t sleep with the window open and, yes, I do like a warm room in which to sleep. I’m a tropical animal at heart.

That said, I’ve no problem with the idea of smart thermostats –  just so long as I can bump it up to 30⁰C.