Mon, 28 May 2012
| Index | Last | Var.(%) |
|---|---|---|
| BEL 20 | 2119.44 | 0.28 |
| DAX | 6339.94 | 0.38 |
| IBEX 30 | 6543 | 0.13 |
| CAC 40 | 3047.94 | 0.32 |
| FTSE 100 | 5351.53 | 0.03 |
| AEX | 292.76 | 0.23 |
| DJIA | 12454.83 | -0.60 |
| Nasdaq | 2837.53 | -0.07 |
| FTSE MIB | 13154.8 | 0.36 |
| TSX Composite | 11576.47 | 0.09 |
| ASX | 4108.3 | 0.66 |
| Hang seng | 18753.68 | 0.22 |
| Straits Times | 2773.54 | 0.03 |
| ISEQ 20 | 500.94 | 1.55 |
Text size
There is a range of heating options besides electricity that can keep your house cosy and warm, says Sandra Piddock.
I am afraid I cannot agree with Sandra Piddock. Her knowledge appears minimal. I enjoy Expatica but why do you never get information from reliable sources? If I may say so, you seem to fall into the trap of getting information from the usual bunch of ex-pats that you will find in your local bar. Here is Sandra Piddock giving advice on heating your home and she only arrived in May and now it is only December yet she rattles off about needing heating from November to March. Admittedly it can be cold in Madrid and Zaragoza but not where she lives or where the majority of expats live. I have lived in Spain for 28 years and you are only likely to be cold on intermittent days in December and January. Which way your house faces is probably relevant in Cornwall, but what is far more important is the quality and construction of your house here, and how well it is insulated and whether you understand the use of your persianas in Summer.<br /> Air conditioning, provided you take proper advice, and install the right model for the size of your room, will rarely take more than five to ten minutes to cool your room, whatever the outside temperature, and conversely when used to heat in winter, the same applies. Buy the Inverter type and you will hardly notice the difference in your electric bills. They also have fan use, high, medium, and low, as well as quiet and you would never know they were on, when operating on quiet mode!<br /> Oil filled radiators are expensive to run by comparison and personally I would not recommend paraffin heaters. The ordinary BUTANO Gas heaters on wheels which cost about the same are much cheaper to run that paraffin. 2 , 11kg Butano Gas bottles will last the whole month for less than her paraffin costs.<br /> I have NEVER heard of BOILED GAS HEATERS. Perhaps her ferreteria wanted ID in case she was a terrorist. Calor Gas sold for 15.00€ would be for Camping Gas heaters and would never heat her large room for 4 weeks. If you have a house, why not install a fixed gas fire in the living room (and wherever else) and use the tall Butano Cylinders connected through a gas pipe. Each cylinder contains 35Kg and costs just under 40.00€. One would give her all the heating for two months at least and you never run out as you always have a spare and they deliver to the house and change them for you. I do all my cooking, showers, baths,etc with these and use the small 11kg ones in the little portable heaters on the rare occasions needed.<br /> Most new buildings (houses) will have the option of an open fire place. You can then buy and fit the imported Norwegian type with the glass doors if you want. They come with thermostats and built-in fans, so you need never suffer from over heating, but again get the expert to recommend the right type and size for your room. And finally, why read the classified ads in the English press to buy your firewood; would you read Spanish language publications in England to buy firewood? Enough said...........Tim.<br />
A well worded and strong reply Tim. You're much braver than I!. I suppose any one living in the Torrevieja area permanently would not even read the article. What about the water given off by 'gas' type heaters. Would that not cause mould problems?
Think you may be thinking of another type of heater unknown to me, unless you were joking about her boiled ones. I'm referring to the ordinary portable Butano Gas heater and I've never known them give off any water. Some people I've heard put a small bowl of water in the room when using them to prevent the atmosphere drying out, but with or without that, you will never get condensation and subsequent mould. Have a happy and warm Christmas.......Tim
I am suprised nobody has mentioned geothermal and aerothermal heating systems, which are based on renewable energy sources. They are environmentally friendly (they don't burn fossil fuel) and are between 50-75% cheaper to run.
Right ,,
I also don't know why no one try heat pump (airor ground ) they are really powerful and always save you more than a lot
Tim, if you have the time and inclination to write such a fulsome reply, why not contribute to Expatica yourself? I'm sure they'd be glad of your expertise. I always say that I'm not presuming to tell others what to do, merely relating my personal experiences - not, incidentally, views from expats in bars. I know what the weather is like where I live, and so do my neighbours. You don't. Incidentally, I moved here in March, not May.
And the 'boiled gas heater' is down to the Expatica editors, not me. It's a subheading typo which was not included in my original article.
Luckily for me, the hundreds of people who visit my website each month seem to think I have something to offer. Enough said ...
Hi all,
Sandra, thanks for pointing out the errors. I apologise for introducing an error in the subhead and for stirring up a storm.
To all the other readers, thanks for your feedback. I welcome all feedback as long as they are not personal attacks on the writers. Like what Sandra has said, her article is on what she thinks is best and she is by no means an expert. And even then, experts can go wrong - at times.
Regards,
Suzanne Ong
Editor Spain
is this timothy the same person that did the amhicar crossing in 1965 with my father joe minto?
I for one, am grateful to Sandra for her comparison of the heating options. Most Brits may head for the beach, but I live in an area that is hot in summer, but at a thousand metres is cold in winter. I do have a log fire, but was looking specifically for information on kerosene heaters, having used them very successfully for many years in Japan, where they are THE main form of heat for most people. So far I have only spent much time there in summer, but it was certainly cold enough that heat would have been very welcome when I was there in March. I never need air-conditioning as my house is extremely well built, and even on the hottest day cross ventilation and fans provide all the cooling power needed.
Also, I am constantly being asked for identification in Spain, and make sure I always carry photo ID as well as a debit card. The ferreteria was one place I needed it, the first time I bought bottled gas.
When I lived in England, I had a large wood burning effect stove run by natural Gas, which was very successful. I now live 2500 ft up a mountain from the sea in Andalucia and it is very cold in winter. I do not like the super ser type gas heaters as I find they give off a lot of condensation, I do not want an open fire as it is difficult to get wood here with very steep narrow roads and electricity I find expensive. I would like to know if there is a wood burning type of stove that I can run from Butano and if so, where I can purchase one. I do have an open fireplace with a flue and could have a gas pipe going through the wall to the outside and into my store shed, so no ugly Gas cylinder in the house. In UK, I can buy a stove for natural Gas but not for bottled Gas but surely these are manufactured somewhere?
yes sandra you are correct these do make mould all i want know is where can i buy flat panel radiators in torrevieja i bought some once before from a friend who was selling them out of torrevieja but he as gone bavk to belfast and have lost touch i would like to buy more as ive moved house thanks to anyone as any ides please june
We are now coming to the end of our 4th winter since moving to Spain. We live on the Costa Blanca (Benitachell). Our villa (7 years old) has gas central heating (which costs a fortune to run in the cold months), and we also have a log burner in the living area. Realistically, you do need heating from at least November to April - not all day, every day - but some form of efficient system needs to be in place. For example, this month (March), we've had a few days when we haven't had to switch on the c.h. at all, and have just used the log burner in the evening. Why are houses so cold in Spain? Many reasons I think. They are not insulated properly, so much of the heating disappears through the walls and certainly the roof, and possibly the windows if you do not have modern double glazing. The tiled floors are a major culprit. Whatever you are using to heat your house will never succeed totally if the floors remain cold. This naturally goes against all traditions in Spain. Who has carpets? However, I have heard from someone who has that it is much, much warmer (you can lose 35% of your heating through the floor). In our area, it is only uncomfortably hot from late June to very early September - a smaller period of time than when it is cold. This makes a good argument for carpets. Our log burner remains our main source of comfort in the evenings. We have the type that has a glass door, and we can safely go to bed and leave it burning - with the end result that we can get up in the morning and find that our house is still reasonably warm (18C). With regard to beating the cold, we have entirely changed the way we dress in the colder months. Layers are the key. It makes you warmer. T-shirt under sweaters during the day, and PJs, socks and thick dressing gowns for slobbing around in the evenings. Another take on this came from an old school friend (now an eminent physicist). She said that the high humidity makes 15C seem like 10C, which makes a lot of sense. Think wet jeans against your skin. Cold! There is no "ideal" solution to the heating problem per se. You just have to find what's right for you in the area in which you live and the resources available to you.
Has anyone visited Ambience Fires and Solar in Cuidad Quesada they seem to have a lot of experience in heating these house and have a lot of types of stoves and fires that should be beneficial.
Hi
We had Neater Heater's convector panel heaters fitted about 2 years ago and they are very efficient, they give a good background heat and unlike the gas estufas they do not produce any condensation instead they give a dry heat, very good at combating the damp! They now have outlets all through the costa blanca and costa calida I believe so they are worth a look!
Just as a passing comment, should any of your readers like to purchase a portable parafin heater please try www.heaterking.com and we will gladly ship to your address eu wide. Full details online, apologies for the thread but i just happened across this posting.
Thank you.
This is our 8th winter in Spain. The temperature today is colder than in London and even the North of England. Admittedly we considered the latitude when we bought our home but neglected to take into account the altitude. We are 1,750 metres above sea level and there are times when it is bitterly cold and our winter heating comes at a very high cost indeed, particularly electricity. We found an open fire to be impossible as the chimney doesn't draw properly because of the very cold air above. Some neighbours have wood burning stoves but wood isn't always that cheap and they are often difficult to control temperature wise. Stoves which burn almond shells are very effective, cheap to run but not always controllable. Kerosine was found to be rather expensive and somewhat odorous. We did have a living flame gas fire run from bottled gas (positioned outside), but it was expensive to run and because of the chimney problem, we have abandoned it. Our best solution so far is a pellet burning stove which has electrical controls and is the cheapest and cleanest to run by far. We were lucky enough to benefit from a government grant towards purchase but I'm not sure that they're still available. Bottled gas stoves were tried but produced too much condensation. Roll on summer!!!
Thanks for the information posted. I have an apartment which can get very cold in the winter evenings. I am moving over in September and looking for the cheapest/warmest way to heat my place next winter.. I did see some flat panel radiators in torrevieja in Habinara (hope I spelt that correct) I don't know the name of the store but it had garden furniture and such in the window.
I am afraid I cannot agree with Sandra Piddock. Her knowledge appears minimal. I enjoy Expatica but why do you never get information from reliable sources? If I may say so, you seem to fall into the trap of getting information from the usual bunch of ex-pats that you will find in your local bar. Here is Sandra Piddock giving advice on heating your home and she only arrived in May and now it is only December yet she rattles off about needing heating from November to March. Admittedly it can be cold in Madrid and Zaragoza but not where she lives or where the majority of expats live. I have lived in Spain for 28 years and you are only likely to be cold on intermittent days in December and January. Which way your house faces is probably relevant in Cornwall, but what is far more important is the quality and construction of your house here, and how well it is insulated and whether you understand the use of your persianas in Summer.<br /> Air conditioning, provided you take proper advice, and install the right model for the size of your room, will rarely take more than five to ten minutes to cool your room, whatever the outside temperature, and conversely when used to heat in winter, the same applies. Buy the Inverter type and you will hardly notice the difference in your electric bills. They also have fan use, high, medium, and low, as well as quiet and you would never know they were on, when operating on quiet mode!<br /> Oil filled radiators are expensive to run by comparison and personally I would not recommend paraffin heaters. The ordinary BUTANO Gas heaters on wheels which cost about the same are much cheaper to run that paraffin. 2 , 11kg Butano Gas bottles will last the whole month for less than her paraffin costs.<br /> I have NEVER heard of BOILED GAS HEATERS. Perhaps her ferreteria wanted ID in case she was a terrorist. Calor Gas sold for 15.00€ would be for Camping Gas heaters and would never heat her large room for 4 weeks. If you have a house, why not install a fixed gas fire in the living room (and wherever else) and use the tall Butano Cylinders connected through a gas pipe. Each cylinder contains 35Kg and costs just under 40.00€. One would give her all the heating for two months at least and you never run out as you always have a spare and they deliver to the house and change them for you. I do all my cooking, showers, baths,etc with these and use the small 11kg ones in the little portable heaters on the rare occasions needed.<br /> Most new buildings (houses) will have the option of an open fire place. You can then buy and fit the imported Norwegian type with the glass doors if you want. They come with thermostats and built-in fans, so you need never suffer from over heating, but again get the expert to recommend the right type and size for your room. And finally, why read the classified ads in the English press to buy your firewood; would you read Spanish language publications in England to buy firewood? Enough said...........Tim.<br />
A well worded and strong reply Tim. You're much braver than I!. I suppose any one living in the Torrevieja area permanently would not even read the article. What about the water given off by 'gas' type heaters. Would that not cause mould problems?
Think you may be thinking of another type of heater unknown to me, unless you were joking about her boiled ones. I'm referring to the ordinary portable Butano Gas heater and I've never known them give off any water. Some people I've heard put a small bowl of water in the room when using them to prevent the atmosphere drying out, but with or without that, you will never get condensation and subsequent mould. Have a happy and warm Christmas.......Tim
I am suprised nobody has mentioned geothermal and aerothermal heating systems, which are based on renewable energy sources. They are environmentally friendly (they don't burn fossil fuel) and are between 50-75% cheaper to run.
Right ,,
I also don't know why no one try heat pump (airor ground ) they are really powerful and always save you more than a lot
Tim, if you have the time and inclination to write such a fulsome reply, why not contribute to Expatica yourself? I'm sure they'd be glad of your expertise. I always say that I'm not presuming to tell others what to do, merely relating my personal experiences - not, incidentally, views from expats in bars. I know what the weather is like where I live, and so do my neighbours. You don't. Incidentally, I moved here in March, not May.
And the 'boiled gas heater' is down to the Expatica editors, not me. It's a subheading typo which was not included in my original article.
Luckily for me, the hundreds of people who visit my website each month seem to think I have something to offer. Enough said ...
Hi all,
Sandra, thanks for pointing out the errors. I apologise for introducing an error in the subhead and for stirring up a storm.
To all the other readers, thanks for your feedback. I welcome all feedback as long as they are not personal attacks on the writers. Like what Sandra has said, her article is on what she thinks is best and she is by no means an expert. And even then, experts can go wrong - at times.
Regards,
Suzanne Ong
Editor Spain
is this timothy the same person that did the amhicar crossing in 1965 with my father joe minto?
I for one, am grateful to Sandra for her comparison of the heating options. Most Brits may head for the beach, but I live in an area that is hot in summer, but at a thousand metres is cold in winter. I do have a log fire, but was looking specifically for information on kerosene heaters, having used them very successfully for many years in Japan, where they are THE main form of heat for most people. So far I have only spent much time there in summer, but it was certainly cold enough that heat would have been very welcome when I was there in March. I never need air-conditioning as my house is extremely well built, and even on the hottest day cross ventilation and fans provide all the cooling power needed.
Also, I am constantly being asked for identification in Spain, and make sure I always carry photo ID as well as a debit card. The ferreteria was one place I needed it, the first time I bought bottled gas.
When I lived in England, I had a large wood burning effect stove run by natural Gas, which was very successful. I now live 2500 ft up a mountain from the sea in Andalucia and it is very cold in winter. I do not like the super ser type gas heaters as I find they give off a lot of condensation, I do not want an open fire as it is difficult to get wood here with very steep narrow roads and electricity I find expensive. I would like to know if there is a wood burning type of stove that I can run from Butano and if so, where I can purchase one. I do have an open fireplace with a flue and could have a gas pipe going through the wall to the outside and into my store shed, so no ugly Gas cylinder in the house. In UK, I can buy a stove for natural Gas but not for bottled Gas but surely these are manufactured somewhere?
yes sandra you are correct these do make mould all i want know is where can i buy flat panel radiators in torrevieja i bought some once before from a friend who was selling them out of torrevieja but he as gone bavk to belfast and have lost touch i would like to buy more as ive moved house thanks to anyone as any ides please june
We are now coming to the end of our 4th winter since moving to Spain. We live on the Costa Blanca (Benitachell). Our villa (7 years old) has gas central heating (which costs a fortune to run in the cold months), and we also have a log burner in the living area. Realistically, you do need heating from at least November to April - not all day, every day - but some form of efficient system needs to be in place. For example, this month (March), we've had a few days when we haven't had to switch on the c.h. at all, and have just used the log burner in the evening. Why are houses so cold in Spain? Many reasons I think. They are not insulated properly, so much of the heating disappears through the walls and certainly the roof, and possibly the windows if you do not have modern double glazing. The tiled floors are a major culprit. Whatever you are using to heat your house will never succeed totally if the floors remain cold. This naturally goes against all traditions in Spain. Who has carpets? However, I have heard from someone who has that it is much, much warmer (you can lose 35% of your heating through the floor). In our area, it is only uncomfortably hot from late June to very early September - a smaller period of time than when it is cold. This makes a good argument for carpets. Our log burner remains our main source of comfort in the evenings. We have the type that has a glass door, and we can safely go to bed and leave it burning - with the end result that we can get up in the morning and find that our house is still reasonably warm (18C). With regard to beating the cold, we have entirely changed the way we dress in the colder months. Layers are the key. It makes you warmer. T-shirt under sweaters during the day, and PJs, socks and thick dressing gowns for slobbing around in the evenings. Another take on this came from an old school friend (now an eminent physicist). She said that the high humidity makes 15C seem like 10C, which makes a lot of sense. Think wet jeans against your skin. Cold! There is no "ideal" solution to the heating problem per se. You just have to find what's right for you in the area in which you live and the resources available to you.
Has anyone visited Ambience Fires and Solar in Cuidad Quesada they seem to have a lot of experience in heating these house and have a lot of types of stoves and fires that should be beneficial.
Hi
We had Neater Heater's convector panel heaters fitted about 2 years ago and they are very efficient, they give a good background heat and unlike the gas estufas they do not produce any condensation instead they give a dry heat, very good at combating the damp! They now have outlets all through the costa blanca and costa calida I believe so they are worth a look!
Just as a passing comment, should any of your readers like to purchase a portable parafin heater please try www.heaterking.com and we will gladly ship to your address eu wide. Full details online, apologies for the thread but i just happened across this posting.
Thank you.
This is our 8th winter in Spain. The temperature today is colder than in London and even the North of England. Admittedly we considered the latitude when we bought our home but neglected to take into account the altitude. We are 1,750 metres above sea level and there are times when it is bitterly cold and our winter heating comes at a very high cost indeed, particularly electricity. We found an open fire to be impossible as the chimney doesn't draw properly because of the very cold air above. Some neighbours have wood burning stoves but wood isn't always that cheap and they are often difficult to control temperature wise. Stoves which burn almond shells are very effective, cheap to run but not always controllable. Kerosine was found to be rather expensive and somewhat odorous. We did have a living flame gas fire run from bottled gas (positioned outside), but it was expensive to run and because of the chimney problem, we have abandoned it. Our best solution so far is a pellet burning stove which has electrical controls and is the cheapest and cleanest to run by far. We were lucky enough to benefit from a government grant towards purchase but I'm not sure that they're still available. Bottled gas stoves were tried but produced too much condensation. Roll on summer!!!
Thanks for the information posted. I have an apartment which can get very cold in the winter evenings. I am moving over in September and looking for the cheapest/warmest way to heat my place next winter.. I did see some flat panel radiators in torrevieja in Habinara (hope I spelt that correct) I don't know the name of the store but it had garden furniture and such in the window.
Expatica's Getting Started section will provide practical information on how you can open a bank account, exchange your driving licence, improve your Spanish, and more.
Here's a guide to an extensive list of groups and clubs in Madrid for expats, from sports groups to social and family gatherings.
A brief introduction to our Tax section for Spain, from help with inheritance tax to accounting advice.
Here's a short introduction to our Banking section for those living in Spain, from what to ask the experts to opening a Spanish bank account.
Twitter
LinkedIn
Facebook
Google+
17
