indoor wintertime temperature in Europe

[Dan Schultz]

I keep my house at 63 at night and 65 when we're awake. I still got a $439 gas and electric bill for January!

[finnbogi]

I would say that typical indoor temperature in Iceland is around 18-20°C in schools, shops and such, 21-23°C in people's homes and 27°C or above at my grandmother's. This is about the same in winter and summer, since outdoor temperatures here rarely go above 25°C or below -10°C.

During my visits to Iceland and Norway I was always surprised at how hot your houses, schools and shops are.
One time when I was in Norway in the winter it was -25 outside and +25 inside... Cold enough to freeze your toes of and hot enough to strip down to a T-shirt and still break out in a sweat.

Yes, the indoor temperature has a tendency to rise when the outdoor temperature drops. I'm not sure how the Norwegians heat up their houses (I would guess electricity) but ca. 90% of Icelandic houses are heated up by geothermal water. Most of the remainder uses electricity and only a few hundred houses use oil or coal - mainly very remote lighthouses and summer cottages. Nearly all houses have double glass window panes and insulation in both walls and roof.

The good thing is that heating by water is quite cheap, I don't think my combined water and electricity bills have ever gone above $100 for one month.

[corbasse]

Yes, the indoor temperature has a tendency to rise when the outdoor temperature drops. I'm not sure how the Norwegians heat up their houses (I would guess electricity) but ca. 90% of Icelandic houses are heated up by geothermal water. Most of the remainder uses electricity and only a few hundred houses use oil or coal - mainly very remote lighthouses and summer cottages. Nearly all houses have double glass window panes and insulation in both walls and roof.

The good thing is that heating by water is quite cheap, I don't think my combined water and electricity bills have ever gone above $100 for one month.

We're allways told here that although we're in a much warmer part of Europe than Sweden and Norway, we actually spend a lot more on heating because of the cr+& way our houses are built.
Most people here build their own house, unlike in Holland (where I'm from originally) where almost all houses are buit in whole blocks by a single contractor, mostly one appointed by the local government.
Belgians are seemingly only concerned that their new house is bigger and more splendid (or kitsch in 90% of cases) than their neighbours' and will save on every other aspect of the building to achieve this, and putting stuff into their walls and roof which nobody can see is considered a waste of money.
Only last month some rules came into effect here to guarantee new houses have at least a minimum standard of insulation. The 1950's house we're renting now is of a pretty standard type, and we're throwing heat through the roof and windows by the bucket...