Korean Job Discussion Forums

[espo]

So its that time of year when gas bills start getting painful.

I usually turn my ondol on in the morning and evening and turn it off when im out.

However a friend told me its works out to be more economic to leave it on a set temperature 24 hrs a day....can anyone confirm or deny??

Cheers

[wishfullthinkng]

ondols are useful for small studios or large apartments where groups of people are often present like a family for example.

if you don't fall into one of those two categories i suggest getting an electric heater and pair it with an electric bed pad. keep the heater on when you are milling about your room/apartment at the lowest comfortable setting and turn it off when you sleep and use the electric bed pad. ondols are great but are quite ineffective because most of them heat up areas that simply don't need to be or are unused.

[The Floating World]

Electric bed pads / blankets are ace. Got one on sale for 20k yesterday!

[weso1]

Some ondols are electric. These are the ones that run up your bill to obscene amounts. Leaving it on all day, regardless of temp, is going to destroy your paycheck.

Other ondols are gas only. These cost next to nothing to run, but wont get as hot or warm up as quickly as the electric ones.

[UknowsI]

I think it's a good idea to keep the ondol on a low level all day around and turning it up a little more when you are feeling cold. It is probably cheaper to turn it off completely, but it is much more comfortable to come home when the ondol is on.

Electrical blanket is of course the cheapest option.

[matthews_world]

I've heard it where Koreans typically keep their apartments at 20-22C to save on utilities.

Don't by those cheap Chinese heating fans with the coils. They burn a lot of electricity, often fail, and will cause a short and catch fire.

I got a portable electric radiator on wheels. It sits about 2.5 feet high and has adjustable temperature controls on the side. It even has a timer where I can set it to turn on automatically but the instructions are in Korean and I just turn it on and off when too cold. Mine cost me 150,000 at Hi-Mart as features and price vary.

I haven't got an electric bill yet since I've started using it but we'll see how that goes.

[coralreefer_1]

One thing I would add is that if you haven't already, or otherwise it wasn't already done when you moved it..you can get a roll or two of this kind of sealant tape (I forget what its called in Korean, something like "Moon something/ 문 _______" . Basically its a type of insulation tape that you attach to your door/frame to make a tighter seal. If your doors are anything like mine before I installed that stuff, you can feel the cold wind coming through or otherwise hear your door move when others in the building open or close their own doors or main hall door.

Its a bit trickier with the windows, but it can be used in window frames as well. I recommend installing (or replacing existing) each year, as it gets mashed down and provides less of a seal over time. You can get this certainly at stores like homeplus/emart, but often times you can find it in the larger neighborhood supermarkets as well.

[Swampfox10mm]

[ajuma]

If you remember, last winter was freaking cold in Korea. My husband and I managed to keep our gas bill to under 60,000 even in the coldest months...and I was home all day!!

How? I only turned the heat on for about 1 or 2 hours a day. In the morning if it was REALLY cold, I'd put the heat on for about an hour. The residual heat in the floor kept our 16 pyeong apartment bearable. Then, I'd turn it on for another hour just before my husband came home from work.

Like my Mom always said "If you're cold, put on a sweater. Move around!" A few warmer clothes to sit around in will save you lots of money in gas bills!!

[nathanrutledge]

Leaving it on all day at a comfortable setting IS the most effecient. Remember, it's big pipes of water encased in concrete. If you heat it up, then let it get cold, then heat it up again, it takes a lot more energy than if you just leave it on at a lower, yet constant temperature.

[Weigookin74]

I remember this couple I knew who never turned on their heat. They only wore their jackets with lots of sweaters and slept in them too. I thought they were rather stupid. I mean what's a few won to keep your health?

[eamo]

[Yaya]

Electric-powered heaters can lead to huge electricity bills so watch out. Shop around for stuff that won't kill your utility bill.

Oh, and the government is promoting a campaign for more people to wear thermal underwear. That's another cheap idea to keep warm.

[Adventurer]

I was thinking of buying a heater for my room. Are you saying it's very expensive? I don't want to freeze in my big apartment and can someone spell out that sealant thing? In my bathroom there is this fan thing that needs to be sealed. Air comes through.

I don't keep my heat on all day. I only do that in the morning for about an hour or so before I go out, and I may turn it on for like an hour at night. What do you like those bed pads in Korean?

[espo]

cheers for the responses....gonna leave it on low this month and see what the bill comes out at