# Heating the house during the winter months



## dstump (Apr 26, 2010)

Hi, 
Can anyone give help and guidance on heating options? We are planning on retiring to Cyprus in a couple of years; we will be building a moderate sized bungalow. The property will be timber framed construction with an emphasis on insulation and energy efficiency. The current plan is to lay under floor electric heating, to warm the place up during the 3 - 4 months of winter.

Does anyone have any experience of UFH (electric or water)? Can anyone share their experience on different forms of heating and associated costs?


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## Veronica (Apr 5, 2008)

dstump said:


> Hi,
> Can anyone give help and guidance on heating options? We are planning on retiring to Cyprus in a couple of years; we will be building a moderate sized bungalow. The property will be timber framed construction with an emphasis on insulation and energy efficiency. The current plan is to lay under floor electric heating, to warm the place up during the 3 - 4 months of winter.
> 
> Does anyone have any experience of UFH (electric or water)? Can anyone share their experience on different forms of heating and associated costs?


If you want energy efficiency I beleive that underfloor heating is actually expensive and uses a lot of electricity unless you also have an alternative energy source such as Geothermal or Photovoltaic.
I know someone who has underfloor heating and their bills are horrendous.


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## theresoon (Apr 11, 2008)

Even if you have Geothermal you will still need to have a heating system.

I would say stay away from gas heating we are paying twice as much as people who use oil with the same size houses and have the heat on way less than they do.


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## dstump (Apr 26, 2010)

Veronica said:


> If you want energy efficiency I beleive that underfloor heating is actually expensive and uses a lot of electricity unless you also have an alternative energy source such as Geothermal or Photovoltaic.
> I know someone who has underfloor heating and their bills are horrendous.


Thanks Veronica, I'm conscious that if a house is not well insulated the heat generated by UFH will quickly be absorbed. Do you know the build type of the person you know with UFH? Is it of: concrete pour, traditional stone or a timber frame construction? Each will have an influence on how well the heat is retained. 

Also I have been informed that all new builds, from Jan 2010, will need to have an EPC (Energy Performance Certificate) type of certification, which basically shows how the home is insulated and how efficient it is in using and saving electricity and gas for heating. I think the aim is for all homes to have a 'B' rating, which seems a little high to me, but... and that a house will need to have an EPC, before it can be sold. 

It seems that Cyprus has it's first batch of assessors (100 of them so far) and the assessment is around 900 Euros, considering it cost 60 quid in the UK, the words 'rip off' come to mind.


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