Have any other sitters found that some homeowners have their heating systems turned down even when the weather is getting colder. We are surprised that some properties only have heating on a few hours a day, not enough to air the house or even dry towels in the bathroom.
To be fair, our heating is set to off during the day even in Winter, with the occasional switch on to take any chill off.
It normally comes on at around 6-7pm at this time of year, and set at 18°.
Is there no washing line to use on drier days?
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In the UK there seems that there may be 2 factors (probably far more!) driving this trend for low heating.
The first is the escalating (and uncertainty of where it’s going) cost of electricity, gas and oil, and the impact on the heating systems that use those.
The other is a sense of pride, almost stoicism, in how low someone can keep their home heated, driven by the green warrior brigade (I am trying hard to be green so I’m not having a go at them!). I have friends who proudly keep their home at 13 
(I don’t visit them - sometimes it is warmer outside!). I had a go at 18 but realise that for me 20 is low enough (but warmer is nicer).
However, if a HO is trying to force their ethics on me, I’d feel it’s not a fair exchange. Whenever I have guests, I want to make sure they are comfortable, and would hope to be in such a space.
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The World Health Organization recommends minimum indoor temps of 18C for healthy people. Higher for vulnerable groups such as children, the elderly, or those with chronic health conditions. I’ll follow those recommendations in regards to reasonable, healthy temps for housesits. If someone wants to keep their heat at 15C that’s fine for them. But, I don’t think it reasonable to expect a sitter (particularly those of us who are in the house working all day) to have to be that cold all the time. It does seem to be a UK thing. I love the UK - I’m in Scotland right now, but I wouldn’t sit here in the winter because of so many posts about HOs keeping the heat at 15-16 (or lower). I don’t want to be freezing and miserable for an entire sit.
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When I arrive at a home I ask what the temperature settings are and how to increase or decrease them. If we are cold then we override any settings or boost them for an hour. We will not be cold
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My sister in law keeps her heat off during the day, probably until Jan. Everyone complains, but she doesn’t care. I think it is not uncommon and people are just expected to wear wool socks and sweaters.
@systaran
That is the very reason why we would not apply for a Winter sit in the UK.
Happy to stay at home and have the temperature as we like it.
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I must’ve lucked out with my five U.K. sits, because no one has been stingy about heating or cooling. (Likewise with all 13 in the U.S.) My hosts were all gracious, and not just about utilities. It never occurred to me to ask, but I will going forward and will skip any sits where hosts don’t offer sitters comfortable temps. I can always stay at home and set central air to whatever I like. Why go on sits to end up roughing it.
Even at one in Glasgow during winter, my host said I should be comfortable and set the heat as I needed. 17 or 18 worked for me and I’d turn down the heat overnight and whenever I went out. She also thoughtfully left me an electric blanket, but I didn’t need it, because the bed linens were warm and the sweet little dog was a fuzzy hot water bottle at my feet. I loved her so much.
During a hot summer sit in London, my hosts said specifically that they didn’t want me or their cat to be uncomfortable. They left me a device that they called a ventilator, which kept me nicely cool, like an air conditioner would.
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In some instances it’s all related to what they are authorized to do by law in the area they live in. In the northern part of Italy my family lives in you cannot turn the heat on before October 15 and past April 15, and for a set maximum amount of hours per day.
The further south you go, the later the start date, with Sicily starting on December 1!
Heating a house is expensive, people cope by wearing layers, cozy socks and warm slippers. It’s unheard of to walk around the house in stockinged feet only.
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That’s good to know for various folks, so they can make informed decisions and skip sits if they’d like to stay comfortable.
For colder sits, I wear warm clothes, bring warm house slippers and such. I dress that way at home during cold weather as well. But I wouldn’t want to sit if heating isn’t available on demand, like at home.
Some folks are willing to put up with a lot to sit, so I’ll happily leave uncomfortable sits to them. Or the hosts can figure out alternative care for their pets and home.
So interesting to see the whole spectrum of home owners’ attitudes when it comes to heating.
At my current sit in the north of England, the HOs have been messaging me, encouraging me to put the heating on when I need to and saying they don’t want me to be cold (they can see I don’t put it on very often via the Hive app). On the other hand, I’ve had sits in the depths of winter where they’ve limited the heating to an hour in the morning and the evening. I feel like the balance is somewhere in the middle - HOs who want their sitters to be comfortably warm while trusting they won’t take advantage of this, leading to unnecessary energy usage.
I booked a sit in Turkey the beginning of January and my husband and I were thinking about spending some time in Europe prior to this once our US sits finish in November, most likely the UK since there are so many sits.
And I had actually been thinking about this issue because based on so many posts here on the forum, it seems like people in the UK are much more likely to place strict restrictions on the temperature at which the heat can be run–which is much lower than the average person seems to find comfortable-- when you can turn it on and for how long you can run it.
I actually don’t like when the house is super-hot–and I like the heat down very low overnight–but the temperatures I am seeing on these posts would be way too cold for me. And only being able to run it one hour a day,etc…is just too restrictive.
In my decade of sitting, I can’t recall anyone giving us set rules on using the heating or air conditioning, so it was never anything I thought to ask about. But given how many experiences that have been shared about sitting in this area , I don’t think it will be a good idea to assume I will have complete control over when I use the heating, how long and at what temperature.
So I plan to inquire about this in my application message. I have done a couple of sits in colder weather where there was no central heating and we had to rely on fires, so I have experience spending time in colder houses and it is deal breaker for me.
I appreciate wanting to save on energy costs, but if hosts are keeping their homes at a temperature that the average person would find extremely uncomfortable, I don’t think they should expect guests to also adhere to such stringent use.
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BTW, some homeowners can lock their thermostats — hot or cold — via apps nowadays. I had a sit where that was the case, though the weather wasn’t notable at that time of year. The hosts said I could contact them to adjust it, but to me that would be annoying in hot or cold weather, because you might want to adjust several times a day, depending on whether you’re going to sleep, going out or whatever. If I see that in the future — where hosts control the temps — I’ll skip such sits.
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Not sure where your Turkish sit is @KC1102 but the good news is that if it’s SW beach area then January can be beautiful. March is our wettest and yuckiest month on the coast. You will still want a soba (wood burner) in the eve or the air con heat if it’s a villa sit. January in the mountains above Fethiye is ouchy freezing 
as we discovered last year. We’re here between Kalkan, Kas, Oludeniz that month so do ping us if it’s down south as it’s rare to meet a fellow sitter and we can sea swim if you’re game 
#turkeyinjanrocks
@Cuttlefish
We will be sitting in Kalkan so the weather should be pretty nice. We were there the winter of 2023 from early Feb to early March so I know it might be a bit colder when we arrive this time. I can’t wait to go back. I love Turkey and I loved that area so much . I will definitely be in touch…would love to meet!
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All of my winter sits have been in cold/snowy parts of the US. My hosts have always told me to adjust the temperature to my comfort level. In some cases that meant turning it down because they had it set warmer than I prefer. That’s why it always surprises me when I read about sitters being extremely cold due to hosts restrictions on heat use.
Brilliant! Is it for Gill & Paul by any chance? DM me as we’re now off topic 
Our own house is in KK We will be there sitting as well #kalkankapers
Funnily some of the coldest homes I’ve spent winter in in Europe were in southern Europe because they’re just not made for cold. very frequently it’s warmer outside than inside, unless you have a southern exposure. Then it can be lovely. But more than once I’ve been shivering in apartments in Spain or Greece during winter. lol. I think if you want to be actually warm in winter you need to go to non-UK northern Europe where homes are really built to withstand winter and the owners don’t compete for who can be coldest. 
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Yes! I posted about this a couple days ago too… And the first thing that comes to my mind is: How am I supposed to perform my duty as a sitter in the best way if I am not feeling comfortable and unhappy?
I’m currently sitting in the west part of England and I am getting used to the cold. When I applied for the sit it was said that there was a heating system, but the ho didn’t tell me that it doesn’t work because it’s a third part who controls it. I got really disappointed. Some ho don’t put the comfort of sitters prior or they simply can’t offer more. I asked my next ho gently if I could use the heating in her house and she was so kind not just to let me use it whenever I want, but she bought a halogen heater and send it to where I am so I can take it back to her (she called me and was really preoccupied).
Honestly, I have been sitting in so many different places, and except this one, I had the best experiences, and all the owners made me feel comfortable and let me turn on the heating when needed: they were aware that I come from a tropical climate place. I think when we apply for a sitting we need to be aware of the climate, but we should ask beforehand accepting the sitting about the amenities.
If you perceive weather is not a common ground between people: if you go to the street right now you’re going to see people in heavy jackets, light jackets and t-shirts… My ho turned on the heating because it was 12 degrees, they were feeling cold and they are BRITS! So… nothing to declare right?
Thus being said, lesson learned: I’m never agreeing sitting in autumn/winter if I am not able to turn on the heating.
Cultural differences exists and either sitters and ho should be aware of that.
Hi @Twogreys
I live in an apartment in London with electric heaters that heat my place at night when energy is cheaper but go off during the day. These types of heaters are not unusual. Some of them you can ‘boost’ the temperature if desired.
Also temperature in a property is a very personal thing. It can vary tremendously.
I did reject a London sit in an expensive penthouse where the HO stated that heating wasn’t to be used in December during my week long sit.
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