BristolUK

Maybe that's how I got used to Canadian winters...I had them in my old home.

dunroving

For me, the persistent rain is the biggest turn-off, followed by the dismal grey skies. I can handle cold and short days on days like today, where there is no rain and no clouds. It's lack of sunlight hours that gets me much more than lack of daylight hours. Give me a short, cold, sunny, dry winter day over a long, tepid, dreich, overcast rainy summer day anytime.

Lothianlad

In the UK....
If more than a dozen snowflakes fall at the same time then it is classed as a Blizzard in the media.

If the temperature falls below -2C then it is classed as a Big Freeze in the media.

If the gusts of wind exceed 50mph then it is classed as a Hurricane in the media.

If a summer's day has a temperature exceeding 28C then it is a Heat Wave in the media.

If it pours with rain from leaden grey skies all day then it is classed as.....normal.

If it doesn't rain for fourteen days in succession then it really is officially classsed as a drought...not in the media, in the Meteorologocal Office which is now located in Exeter, Devon, where, in my experience, skies are often leaden and sometimes it really does pour with rain all day...

Actually, at the present time December in the UK really has been appreciably colder than normal so far...many inland places have seen sharp frosts every night so far and daytime temperatures hovering about 5C maximum, and in some places even lower. So a parky December so far.....

Lothianlad

The weather here in EDINBURGH (Scotland) today 11/12/08:

http://weather.noaa.gov/weather/current/EGPH.html

MartynK

Anyone like to comment on UK gas/electricity costs and heating bills? My wife finds them a bit scary.

I live in Johannesburg, and winter lasts about 3 months. Very dry - no rain for months - warm days and cold nights. I have underfloor heating but run it at the lowest level, and only in the middle of winter. It gets too hot/stuffy if I turn it up. A lot of people just use a heater, and some don't bother at all, although that can get a bit uncomfortable.

Summers are usually hot, in the early 30s during the day, with heavy rain and violent thunderstorms, and mild/warm nights. A lot of us have aircon in our cars, and most offices are air conditioned, but I don't know anyone with it at home. Johannesburg is more than 5000 ft above sea level and isn't humid. Some people down in KwaZulu Natal do have home air conditioning and use it in the summer, but it's expensive to run and not very common.

bev1

My gas bills for an Average 3 bed semi with central heating were about 1000.00gbp a year and electric was 800.00. but i think the heating has been on all year round apart from the odd day, so i suppose its not too bad

winter in the uk in nice if it's dry and crisp its when it drizzling and grey it gets me down. Came to Perth for a sunnier climate and it's chucked it down for nearly 5 months !!!!!

lobby lou

I love the heat here in UAE ...but it was nice to pop over to cyprus for the last two weeks ...where it was crisp walking weather and no rain ......rained a lot here while we were away .....cleared the dust a bit .....

dunroving

My gas and leccy last year totalled 685 (3 BR end terraced). Only me here though so no hordes of showering and laundry like you'd have for a family. Plus I tend to put on extra clothes rather than crank the heating up. Plus I only bathe once a week. (That last one was a joke).

cricket1again

Hope you don't recycle teabags.

dunroving

No, but I do compost them.

cricket1again

I've actually saved a fortune on dog food recently. He's only small, terrier size but he's a good eater. I've been toasting the crusts from loaves of bread and boiling up veggie peelings then mashing it all up with left over bits of food. I swear that despite spending money on the best brand of dog food, he looks much healthier now and it costs me nothing. I reckon I've saved $15 a week.

isleofmanmike

I am asthmatic and the damp cold weather definitely makes my asthma worse and I always suffer from chest infections at this time of the year.

BristolUK

£1800 a year? And the heating on all year?

I had a 2 bedroom terraced house. I was paying £20 and £18 a month for gas/electricity. That had me in credit, so £450 a year covered it. Central heating for when I wanted a warm house, gas fire for when a warm living room was enough.

In Canada I pay about $3100 a year for a 4 bedroom house.

YankeemovingAbroad

That is the one thing that could be a issue.I don't want to get in front of my self but if I were to truly love living in the UK the concern of weather and its effect on my health could be something of a obstacle to staying there year round.My plan at this point is six months in GB and six in florida.If you have asthma(which I have a touch of it) cold wet weather can be debilitating. Cold weather is not that bad but cold and wet can make a asthmatic gasp for air on certain nights.Its not pretty

Mummy in the foothills

WOW 1800GPB a year for Electric and Gas. Your house must have been like a Sauna inside.
Our big bills are summer here. Winter I can get away with $40 a month for electric and $55 for gas(on a plan for gas) Summer we can get up to $200 a month cause of the heat. Thats with the a/c set no lower than 80, it's toasty.