Should your heating stay on gently all day, or is it better to turn it on only when you need warmth? For years, a piece of popular pub wisdom has claimed that continuous low-level heating costs less. Today, energy analysts, heating engineers, and efficiency specialists are pushing back on that idea, armed with data and clear guidance.
The Origins of the “Always-On” Heating Belief
At first glance, the logic seems sound. If your home never cools down too much, your boiler or heat pump should not have to work as hard to reheat it. This leads many households to keep radiators running gently day and night, maintaining a constant background temperature.
According to heating professionals, this thinking has circulated for years through outdated advice, social media tips, and inherited rules of thumb. Over time, it created the widespread assumption that “low and slow” must automatically mean cheaper.
However, experts now stress that for most traditional boilers, running the heating all day at a low level usually increases energy use rather than reducing it.
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Why Experts Say Continuous Heating Often Costs More
Heating engineer Ryan Willdig is among those openly challenging the myth. He explains that with standard boilers, the most efficient method is to heat the home only when warmth is actually needed, using proper scheduling instead of constant operation.
Energy advisers highlight a basic principle of physics. A warm house is always losing heat through walls, windows, roofs, and floors. The warmer the inside compared with the outdoors, the faster that heat escapes.
Keeping a home warm all day means continuously replacing lost heat, even when no one is home. In older or poorly insulated buildings, that loss becomes especially expensive.
How Heating Specialists Recommend Running Your System
Professionals from heating companies and smart thermostat manufacturers largely agree on one core rule: align your heating schedule with your lifestyle, not with a fixed 24-hour cycle.
Use Timers and Smart Controls Instead of Constant Heat
Smart thermostats and basic programmers allow you to set short, targeted heating periods. A common setup is warming the home 20–30 minutes before waking up and again shortly before returning home in the evening.
This approach keeps rooms comfortable when occupied, without wasting energy on an empty house. Experts usually suggest setting living areas between 18°C and 21°C during active hours, depending on health, age, and comfort needs.
Practical Guidelines Most Experts Agree On
- Heat only when someone is home
- Keep occupied rooms between 18–21°C
- Use timers or smart thermostats for morning and evening blocks
- Turn heating down, not fully off during short absences in very cold weather
The central idea is simple: your home does not need to be warm all the time, only at the times that matter to you.
The Key Exception: Low-Temperature Heat Pumps
The advice changes when the heating system itself changes. Gas and oil boilers behave very differently from modern low-temperature heat pumps.
The UK’s Energy Saving Trust draws a clear distinction. With conventional boilers, all-day heating nearly always raises consumption. With certain air-source and ground-source heat pumps, steady operation can sometimes be more efficient than frequent stop–start cycles.
Heat pumps work best when delivering lower flow temperatures and making small temperature increases. In well-insulated homes, especially those with underfloor heating, installers often recommend a slow and steady approach.
Specialists emphasise checking your system type before copying advice meant for someone else. What works for a boiler may be wrong for a heat pump, and vice versa.
Hidden Settings That Quietly Raise Heating Costs
Why Turning the Thermostat Higher Does Not Heat Faster
A common winter mistake is turning the thermostat up to 25°C in hopes of warming rooms more quickly. Heating professionals are clear: this does not speed things up.
Most systems run at full output until the set temperature is reached, whether that target is 19°C or 25°C. Raising the setpoint only increases the risk of overheating and wasted energy.
The Big Impact of a Single Degree
Research consistently shows that reducing the thermostat by just 1°C can cut heating costs by around 5–10%, depending on insulation and climate.
For many households, lowering settings from 21°C to 20°C can deliver noticeable savings with little change in comfort, especially when combined with warmer clothing or blankets.
Why Insulation Often Matters More Than Scheduling
Behind every debate about heating patterns sits a more powerful factor: how well your home retains heat. Well-insulated properties lose warmth slowly, while draughty buildings shed it quickly.
Experts often point to three cost-effective improvements that make a major difference:
- Loft or roof insulation to reduce upward heat loss
- Draught-proofing around doors, windows, and floors
- Thermostatic radiator valves for room-by-room control
Once a home holds heat better, shorter heating bursts keep it comfortable for longer, making targeted heating far more practical.
Real-Life Situations Where Continuous Heating Feels Tempting
Working From Home
If you work from home all day, it may seem logical to keep the heating on continuously. A more efficient option is to stagger heating periods, warming the space in the morning, allowing small drops during sunny hours, and topping up later if needed.
This keeps comfort high while reducing the total time the system runs at full output.
Going Away for the Weekend
For short trips, advisers usually suggest setting heating to a low background or frost-protection level. This avoids frozen pipes during cold spells without paying to heat empty rooms.
Important Heating Terms to Know
Flow temperature refers to the temperature of water leaving your boiler or heat pump for the radiators or underfloor system. Lower flow temperatures are typically more efficient.
Setpoint is the temperature you select on the thermostat. The system runs until that level is detected.
Some modern boilers use weather compensation, automatically adjusting flow temperature based on outdoor conditions. This can improve efficiency without relying on wasteful 24/7 heating.
Finding the Right Balance Between Comfort and Cost
Experts caution against letting homes become too cold. Prolonged temperatures below 16°C can increase health risks for older adults, infants, and those with heart or respiratory conditions. Cold homes can also encourage damp and mould.
The goal is targeted warmth: heat occupied rooms to healthy levels, avoid overheating, and let the building store warmth naturally. For most boiler-heated homes, that means controlled heating periods. For low-temperature heat pumps, gentle continuous operation can work, but only with good insulation and carefully tuned settings.
