Metodología didáctica

During the interviews participants were asked to describe how they typically adjusted their heating as well as being asked about their use of each of the

individual control methods they had available to them in their home. As mentioned previously not all participants reported using all the methods of controlling their heating available to them. The majority of the sample reported using one key control method regularly and perhaps one or two additional methods occasionally or rarely.

Factors which related to how householders controlled their heating included the location and accessibility of controls. Many participants stated that their choice of control for adjusting their heating was related to the convenience of one control option over another, with some stating that often the other method(s) of control was inaccessible to them or that it was ‘hidden away’, such that they typically forgot all about being able to control the heating using that method.

“The thermostat is just a lot easier for me to get to” (Participant P12, Female, Aged 47)

Surprisingly 30% of the sample stated they typically adjusted their heating by simply switching their heating on and off as needed. This was either due to it being the

138 only option the householders had to control their heating or it was down to the participants’ desire not to change any of their heating settings. Typically with these participants they had reached their ideal timing schedules and set-point

temperature through previous experimentation and felt their home was warm and comfortable so did not see the point with messing with those settings. Therefore these participants either switched the boiler on, leaving their timer to turn the heating on and off as needed or they switched the boiler on so the heating is always on and cycles on and off depending on whenever the temperature drops below the desired set-point.

“Adjusting it is just going to be switching it on or off more than changing the set-point” (Participant P20, Male, Aged 32)

“I would say we tend to switch on or off because all the radiators I would say are set to about three, we don't turn them up or down now because there doesn't seem to

be any need” (Participant P14, Female, Aged 45)

There was a definite split between participants reported use of their radiator valves (TRVs or manual radiator valves) within homes as a means of controlling their heating. A number of participants did mention typically leaving their heating settings alone and simply adjusting the radiator valves as needed in their individual rooms. However other participants stated that they preferred to leave the radiator settings as they were after numerous adjustments to get them on the right setting for each room in the past. There were a couple of participants who stated they rarely used them due to the valves being stiff or difficult to get to.

“We interact a lot with the radiator valves” (Participant P23, Female, Aged 46)

“We tend to fiddle around with the radiator valves if we are in a room and it feels a bit chilly…yeah we do tend to control the environment through them frequently”

(Participant P6, Female, Aged 59)

139 Many participants reported only adjusting certain controls depending on the season, for example turning radiators on or off, turning the boiler on or off and adjusting the set-point temperature or heating schedule in relation to the season. This seasonal change is something which the Phase 2 study of this doctoral research explores in more detail through measurements of heating use in a different sample.

Although the majority of the participants noted changing their heating schedules and set-point temperatures seasonally, most said that they preferred to use boost or advance functions on their heating controls instead of constantly changing their heating settings during the winter months. This demand interaction by participants, where they only interact with the heating system when additional heat is needed may be down to the participants’ lifestyles being varied and day to day use of the home constantly changing. In fact one participant reported not using the

programmable functions on their heating for that exact reason:

“We override it if we are in all day and the heating has gone off at say 8am and the house cools down by around 9am then we will override it” (Participant P11, Female,

Aged 62)

“If it is cold I will tend to put it on for like, you know there is a manual button where you can press it and have an extra hour, well that is what I do to heat it for an extra

hour” (Participant P16, Female, Aged 48)

“Never set any schedule for the programmer thermostat because I think my lifestyle is very flexible so I don’t know when I am home or when I am out so I don’t think there is much use for me setting a profile for my room thermostat” (Participant P25,

Male, Aged 27)

Numerous participants did however state that their main frustration with their heating system was feeling that they couldn't control or adjust their heating in a way that they would like, often stating the controls they did have were difficult to use. Usability of controls was reported by many participants when discussing thermostats. Participants mentioned either not being able to work them without

140 the help of the user manual, or mentioned giving up on trying to set them due to time consuming processes or overly complicated programmer functions. One participant mentioned that their system allowed for two time periods to be

programmed daily, however reported that it had a minimum duration which it could be set for. This minimum setting was two hours therefore the participant did not see the point in programming the heating to be on twice daily. This was due to the participant feeling that two hours of additional heating was not what they need, therefore just switched it on/off instead.

“We had a problem with that time clock and that is when they gave us this really super-duper digital thing that neither of us could work…we couldn’t even make sense of that (manual)…ended up asking for the old controls back…all I want was a

button that I could press and it comes on!” (Participant P5, Female, Aged 62)

Numerous participants also reported that they felt the system did not heat their home to the same level throughout or that in comparison to a heating system they had previously the one they had now just didn’t match up to their expectations.

However, those interviewed that had fairly modern heating systems installed reported a much higher satisfaction level, often stating that it was a vast

improvement to their previous older boilers. Those with older systems were more likely to report using secondary heating as a way of adjusting the warmth within their home instead of changing the settings on the central heating system.