Unidades Didácticas del módulo

4.5.5 Household dynamics and heating use

As mentioned in the sample demographics (Section 4.3.3) 67% of the sample was multi-person households, therefore the dynamics between household occupants can dictate how the heating within the household is used and controlled. Within the sample the majority of participants reported one member of the household typically taking more control over the heating, however this can be due to

differences in preferred comfort levels or due to indifference to the heating itself.

“He is usually hot and I’m cold…I am the time controller for that thing (thermostat)”

(Participant P5, Female, Aged 62)

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“My wife tends to ignore it and just hope that it stays on so I take primary responsibility” (Participant P21, Male, Aged 55)

Those participants that mentioned typically one person taking the control over the heating due to differences in personal comfort were those that felt the cold more than other household members. As such most participants in this situation reported other household members typically wearing lighter or fewer layers, with the example of shorts and t-shirts often popping up.

“I tend to turn it down more, normally we are fine but he does like to wear short sleeves and no jumper whereas I am quite happy in a jumper, but generally we

agree” (Participant P11, Female, Aged 62)

However it should also be noted that there were five participants who reported telling other household members to wear more layers or to use blankets and jumpers as a solution instead of resorting to switching the heating on for longer or to a higher temperature.

Often sole control of the heating by one occupant was due to other household members having a lack of interest in the heating controls or just a general sense of indifference towards them.

“My husband tends to sort out the controls on the boiler and I know how to switch it on but I tend not to be that interested” (Participant P15, Female, Aged 48) The participants who reported these behaviours previously described their heating controls as being difficult to understand and lacking the knowledge of the location of a thermostat therefore preferred to switch the boiler on or off instead of working out how to change the boiler settings themselves. This indicates that the usability of the controls themselves can put off certain members of the household from interacting with heating.

150 Within rented accommodation the dynamic between those sharing the property can influence the heating use with potential tension arising from disagreements surrounding temperatures and durations. Within the sample one of the

participants was living in shared accommodation and stated that they felt unsettled about wanting to change the heating as they seen it to be a shared resource within the household. To avoid any disagreement the participant took the effort to discuss the heating schedule and temperature with those other tenants to come to an agreed solution. However during the interview the participant mentioned the current heating settings not being ideal and felt a lack of control given differences in personal comfort levels.

“I have no control over the heating in the other rooms that are rented out, or the other lodgers” (Participant P20, Male, Aged 32)

However another participant admitted that they were probably quite controlling of the heating but did not see any need to change the current heating behaviour within that shared property as the other tenant had not raised any issues with how the heating was currently being used, even with the participant often switching the boiler off whilst they were still in bed.

“Embarrassingly I usually leave the house earlier and I turn off the boiler completely…so I guess I am a bit of a boiler Hitler” (Participant P13, Female, Aged

36)

The presence of children within the household creates a slightly different household dynamic especially when those children are very small. Participants reported that they wanted to ensure the child was kept in a warm environment.

“I do use the heating a lot more than what I used to with the wee one” (P29, Female, Aged 26)

However those with slightly older children reported the desire not to have the children messing with the heating controls or simply that the children themselves were not really interested in knowing how to control the heating. Therefore those

151 households with older children stated that often the children knew how to switch the heating on or off if needed however it was on rare occasions that the child would have to interact with the heating.

“I was hesitating because of my son…we don't encourage him to just going and changing the thermostat” (Participant P23, Female, Aged 46)

“Two of the three (children) know how to switch the heating off or put it on if they were cold or left on their own so they would know how to put it on if needed”

(Participant P14, Female, Aged 45)

One participant did report that their children tended to be the ones in

disagreement regarding the heating within the home, often demanding that it should be warmer yet the parents typically disagreed that it was cold. In contrast another participant stated that their children had been raised so that they put on a jumper before requesting the heating was adjusted within the household. Often those households that reported a child having a significantly different level of comfort than the rest of the household were the ones that reported the child taking control of their own room through use of radiator valves or having the availability of a secondary heating source to use if very cold.

From the participants within this sample it shows the presence of a child impacting the heating use within a household. Typically those with very young children reported longer periods of heating use. Then when the children are older and have developed their own level of comfort expectations there might be further

disagreement regarding the heating within a home. This was found more in homes where adaptive heating behaviours were not reported as having been instilled into them. Tensions within households can then become apparent when the children start interacting with the heating system but not owning up to changing the settings.

“I tweak it (thermostat) down sometimes also when I notice someone has tweaked it up” (Participant P8, Male, Aged 55)

“No one ever tends to own up to doing it” (Participant P15, Female, Aged 48)

152 A further dynamic that was mentioned by numerous participants was the

households’ reaction to having visitors. Interestingly a couple of participants within the sample mentioned having a different view on heating due to the presence of visitors to the household.

“If we do have visitors coming over we will boost it up more than normal so the house is warmer” (Participant P8, Male, Aged 55)

“If we have people round we often think we better light the fire or better put the heating on, but when it is just us we will be a bit stingy” (Participant P9, Female,

Aged 52)

This shows that often occupants will put the heating on out with their normal heating behaviour for visitors ensuring that they are welcomed by a warm environment. This could also indicate that the households which ‘boost’ the warmth within the home may believe that it is a social expectation to have a warm home or that the participants feel that their level of acceptable comfort is lower than their guests and as such make an exception to meet their visitors comfort levels.