Guest stereotypes - the "Stoker"

[Christine Kenyon]

Two comments:

1. We have a sauna in one cottage so we charge for electricity by meter reading on departure. Wood and coal for the stove in the lounge is free, but interestingly people don't seem to abuse it. We give at least 10 units of electric free. The biggest bill we've had is £50.00 for a week's stay.

2. Another cottage it's all inclusive. One family stayed for two weeks. Mum was in her sailing "phase" ... which meant using our tumbler drier every day to dry soaking wet clothes. Didn't even bother spinning them first. Got a bit worried when hubby said that the drier had been on for 3 hours and nothing was dry ... . Summer bill for electric was over £700.00 !!!!!!! We normally only pay £300.00 in the winter. This was more than they paid for their two week stay. Not much we could do in retrospect and fortunately it's a rare example.

Some cottages in the UK do state first £10.00/£20.00 (or whatever) of electricity is free and you pay after that. With wood supplies, can you not make a reasonable amount available, and after that they have to pay? For our coal fires, we provide coal, paper, sticks, matches and firelighters. I put out enough sticks for a week's firelighting and then add a good bundle. After that, you're on your own!

[Vera]

We have our central heatimg timers in a locked room and give guests heating for 8 hours a day and then charge extra if they want more hours. We can't control how high they set the radiator thermostatic valves. No one has ever asked for more hours.

It is crazy that we have our highest costs in winter and then people ask for discounts as it's out of season!

Vera

[la vache!]

I think that there is so much accommodation in France that people would just go elsewhere if there was an extra charge for electricity. Sometimes it is expensive, but then last April it was so warm that the bills were very low. I know it is annoying when people abuse the heating, but it isn't the fault of my guests here this week that it is so cold. I couldn't expect them to sit in the gites and freeze unless they pay extra to have the radiators on full blast. The sun is due to shine next week though

[cottageguru]

When our guests finally left on Sunday and we did the changeover, I couldn't believe the blast of heat that hit us as we opened the door...and they had turned the thermostat down, so it must have been on super-heat for a long time.

However, the place was spotless; all the linen had been laundered and the beds were made up again! It's all a matter of balance.

When I look back over the winter season, we've had plenty of guests who barely used any wood so it does all balance out in the end. It's easy to have a rant at the time and a bit of a whinge about how much it's all costing, and forget the times when the systems are used more economically.

[tansy]

that is a very good point - the balance... for every 50 lets I get a guest from hell...

[Stephen]

We also get guests burning too much wood, we leave the operating instructions next to the fire with a sign on "Please Read Before Lighting Fire as you could cause damage " I think just because the wood is included in the price they think they might
as well burn the lot !! we have a log shed full of wood so they can help themselves, but sometimes they use an awful lot.

There is an art to using a log burner .

Luckily we have not had to buy wood yet, I usually get trees given by friends who are in the Landscape Gardening business,
in fact today I have just been given a 200-300 year old Ash tree which was blown over last week , Ash as most log burner owners should know is the very best of wood and you can burn it even when green "Fit for Kings" is what they used to say about it.

Mid you I have to cut the trees into logs which is very very hard work but helps my waistline, 5 hours I spent today chain sawing and more to do tomorrow...I have really earned this bottle of beer today