Heating

From the moment they step through the door your bookings become guests, and their experiences determine whether they ever come back.
Sarah
Posts: 272
Joined: Thu Aug 11, 2005 1:03 pm
Location: Aquitaine, France
Contact:

Heating

Post by Sarah »

We had our third lot of guests arrive on Sunday for one weeks stay. The previous 2 bookings were in January and we had no issues whatsoever with the heating.

There is full oil fired central heating in our holiday property with a thermostat situated in the living area. With the January bookings we set the thermostat at 20oc for during the day and 15oc for overnight which has been plenty warm enough for us when we have stayed in the property ourselves. Our two lots of guests found it very comfortable.

We explained this to our latest lot of guests and asked them whether they were happy with this which they were. However, I noticed today when I was in the garden that the boiler was constantly firing, so I let myself in an found that they had turned the heating up to 23oc, left the windows open upstairs and gone out (in fact they are still out now at 7 o'clock in the evening) so if I hadn't gone in and turned it down, it would have been chugging away trying to get to 23oc all this time and burning very expensive oil needlessly.

I feel a bit cross and have left them a very polite note asking that they keep the thermostat at 20oc and if they really must have warmer to at least turn it down when they go out. Our winter price is really quite low as it is a large house and we can't afford for them to be wasting oil like this.

Am I overreacting?, these are our first low season bookings as we were not finished renovating this time last year, so it's a bit of a learning curve. I think next year we will build a little box around the thermostat to stop people fiddling, but was I right to leave the note, I will speak to them in person when I see them, but I left the note because we are coming and going at very different times and I wanted them to know what I had done and not to go out and do it again tommorow as I won't be there to turn it down.

Would be interested to hear others' experiences with heating.
la vache!
Posts: 11065
Joined: Wed Feb 16, 2005 7:22 pm

Post by la vache! »

If you include he heating in the rental (like I do) you have to accept this, I'm afraid. People (especially British people) do not appreciate the cost of heating in rental houses and as they are not paying, will turn it up as high as they like. I have had people staying who have had the heating and the woodburner on with both doors wide open.
This year we are fully booked in all 3 gites in April and half of May. As it is still cold here (I'm still scraping the ice off the car ecery morning) I don't think my profit margins are going to be very high if I het a profit at all as people will have the heating on permenently.
People also have different levels of comfort - I'm used to the cold as I can't afford for our gas heating to be on much, but my mother in law, for example, always has her house heated to 23°c even in summer. Needless to say, she brings her thermal vests when she comes to visit me!
I think you just have to bite your tongue, but you have my full sympathy on this issue. It would be easier not to live on site and witness these things.
Perhaps you shouldn't do winter lets, many people don't jus because of the expense of heating.
Our guests in the farmhouse have just been round to tell me that they have broken the glass in the woodburner, which means that the subsequent guests won't be able to use it as to order the glass will take a couple of weeks. Do I offer thenext guests a refund to them or give them a gas heater which will make me even more out of pocket?
Is it possible to ever make even a slight profit out of renting property????
User avatar
enid
Posts: 5599
Joined: Mon Dec 27, 2004 4:47 pm
Location: Labretonie France
Contact:

Post by enid »

Hi Sarah

We're very close to you in the Lot-et-Garonne - can't help you with the heating as we don't do winter lets, but I was equally fed up about use of the washing machine when we first started. The more experienced folks on this forum gave me very good advice about rolling with it and they were right - it all seems to balance itself out.

I would find 20 a little low some evenings even now I have to say. But I agree they shouldn't have left the windows open!!! -
User avatar
Alan Knighting
Posts: 4120
Joined: Mon Oct 18, 2004 7:26 am
Location: Monflanquin, Lot-et-Garonne, France

Post by Alan Knighting »

Sarah,
Am I overreacting?
No, you most certainly are not. A lot of research has gone into this question of temperatures and the conclusion is that, on balance, a day-time setting of 20°C and a night-time setting of 15°C is the optimum. That’s why systems come with those settings as standard.

The only normal people who stray from those settings are those who are not paying the bills. Those who are not paying the bills turn up the wick and open the windows.

Putting a box around the thermostat is not necessarily the answer as it might lock the thermostat into its own micro-climate. Make sure the box has lots of ventilation holes.

In addition, why not install a very prominent thermostat connected to nothing at all. Let them play with that and, as with any placebo, they will think they’re in control when they’re not, but it’ll keep them happy.

Alan
User avatar
Bellywobble
Posts: 1262
Joined: Thu Jan 19, 2006 7:40 pm

Post by Bellywobble »

What a great idea! I love it :lol:
User avatar
Alan Knighting
Posts: 4120
Joined: Mon Oct 18, 2004 7:26 am
Location: Monflanquin, Lot-et-Garonne, France

Post by Alan Knighting »

Enid,
I would find 20 a little low some evenings even now I have to say.
As you know I live in a fairly modern house and not a converted or modernised whatever. Modern building practices include heavy insulation, double glazing and draft-proofing throughout. In addition I have full gas-fired central heating and a wood burning fire in the living room which also powers a fan-assisted hot-air central heating system.

It’s all set at 20°C and 15°C and the only complaint any of my friends have is that it tends to be too hot. Mind you, they live in converted or modernised whatever’s and they wear lots of woolly jumpers to compensate.

My gites are in 200 year old buildings but are well insulated and draft-proofed. The larger one has a wood burning fire in the living room which also powers a fan-assisted hot-air central heating system and the smaller one has a wood burning stove.

There’s never a problem with heating in the winter.

Underlying all of this is the fact that some guests will take advantage of you if you let them get away with it. I don’t know why because I don’t understand their mentality.

Alan
Sarah
Posts: 272
Joined: Thu Aug 11, 2005 1:03 pm
Location: Aquitaine, France
Contact:

Post by Sarah »

Thanks for the replies.

Susan, you're right about living on site, we were warned..... Having said that, we have been very understanding about most things - table tennis bats and crushed conkers ending up in the swimming pool, 300w security lights being left on all night and literally lighting up the valley, people arriving with their dirty washing and doing a weeks worth of washing at the beginnning and end of their holidays, the dishwasher being on 3 times a day with 2 cups and a spoon in it, people pyrolysing the oven with stuff in it, the list goes on. I just couldn't believe the wanton disregard for us and the environment from a group of seemingly intelligent and likeable people.

Anyway, I've calmed down a bit now, but I have left the note, it's very very polite, so I'll just have to see if it has any effect.

Alan, your suggestion is brilliant, I may well give it a try. I also thought, as the living room ceiling is 7 metres high at it's highest point, I can perhaps get the real thermostat moved to behind a beam somewhere high up - bit awkward for us but may well save lots of irritation in the long run.
jess
Posts: 27
Joined: Tue Dec 13, 2005 5:57 am
Location: Adirondacks, NY

Post by jess »

Our area has bitter winters (30 F below not unusual) and what people tend to do is include heat *to a certain point* and anything burned in oil/gas over that is a surcharge to the guest.

If it's a 'seasonal' rental (all winter) the guest is often then in charge of the whole heating bill.
jess
cromercrabholiday
Posts: 797
Joined: Sun Oct 17, 2004 10:24 am
Location: North Norfolk
Contact:

Post by cromercrabholiday »

enid wrote:Hi Sarah

I would find 20 a little low some evenings even now I have to say. But I agree they shouldn't have left the windows open!!! -
Our home has an ongoing battle. I and my daughter like 22, my wife 20 (although she doesn't understand the function of a thermostat - she put the car heating to 27 today when we started!).

Fortunately, our cottage seems to heat up quite quickly and not use a lot of gas - being semi-detached helps, I guess. As we are not on site, we are saved finding open doors and windows. I feel that an old property needs to be lived in, so profit is only part of the equation.

John
User avatar
enid
Posts: 5599
Joined: Mon Dec 27, 2004 4:47 pm
Location: Labretonie France
Contact:

Post by enid »

Alan

I'm sure you're right that 20 is an ideal temperature - but I seem to feel the cold more these days. The heating thermostat is not back on yet - the plumber has got the heating going again and we have to regulate it by turning radiators off until he comes back to finish!? - so I don't know what temp we are set at at the moment. Next winter I can check it out as now that we have a new floor we won't be losing heat into the cellar through the cracks in the floor.

We are a couple who strive to find an agreed temp - but if I stayed at Sarah's place I would accept the temp that was included in the price - and put onmore jumpers!!
Sarah
Posts: 272
Joined: Thu Aug 11, 2005 1:03 pm
Location: Aquitaine, France
Contact:

Post by Sarah »

I should point out that we do also have a wood burner with plentiful supply of wood and the place although old and large is exceptionally well insulated, it was one of the things we spared no expense on when we renovated. It is a lot warmer in there at 20oc than our house is at the same temp, probably because there are no draughts.

I should also mention that the guests, on the couple of occasions we have called and they have been in have been sitting round in t-shirts, shorts and bare feet.

Our Australian guests in January who had come from a very hot summer in Sydney actually turned the temperature down (bless them!!) as they felt it was too warm, particularly at night.

I have calmed down hugely now and have come to terms with the fact that they have bought shorts and are obviously determined to wear them. It's not warm enough outside so they're going to wear them where they can. As long as they turn it down when they go out, I can handle it.

Roll on summer!!
la vache!
Posts: 11065
Joined: Wed Feb 16, 2005 7:22 pm

Post by la vache! »

I had some guests last August who used the woodburner. It does seem to be a mentality with some people that as it is a holiday they have to wear T shirts and shorts, no matter what the weather. It drives me mad, too, to see them in these clothes, with all the heating on and the doors wide open.
User avatar
debk
Posts: 1053
Joined: Sat Sep 25, 2004 12:01 pm
Location: Lisbon, Portugal
Contact:

Post by debk »

We had a 7 week let this Jan/Feb and they kept the large front window wide open most every day, with the gas heater below it burning brightly. After about a week of this, my husband nearly crawled through the window and throttled them. Fortunately, quoting postings here, I convinced him to roll with it. Thanks to LMH, the hubby is not in jail on assault and battery charges. :)
debk
ps-We don't drop prices at all in winter, mostly because of heating costs.
Clexane
Posts: 330
Joined: Fri Apr 22, 2005 3:42 pm
Location: Provence France
Contact:

Post by Clexane »

In winter we do drop our prices but set a reasonable limit on heating - about 30 Euro per week. We also offer a wood fireplace and provide wood free - I figure it adds character, is relatively cheap and requires on going effort and maintenance to keep it going so people wont waste this too much.

This seems to work well though we do have some who manage to get through the wood, though my electric bill is usually right around the limit - any extra and we charge.
So you wanted a holiday home in france ...

www.villaemmanuelle.com
la vache!
Posts: 11065
Joined: Wed Feb 16, 2005 7:22 pm

Post by la vache! »

any extra and we charge
Clexane, do you check the meter before they arrive and when they leave?
Post Reply