Preparing for winter II

bluebag

If you are stuck without any form of cooking, a couple of tealights grouped together will eventually heat a cup of water, it does take ages though, but if you are desperate enough then it's better than nothing.

Don't forget an emergency box for the car! A small bottle of water, an energy bar, a small torch and a space blanket will fit in a small luchbox and could make the wait for the breakdown van a lot less uncomfortable.

sb44

tiff wrote: »

No, I'm one of those people who's a bit afraid of pressure cookers so I've never had one. Good idea though.

I never wanted one either as I remember seeing them as a kid and being scared of the noise, the new ones are a lot quieter and you don't have the risk of the lid being blown off.

stumpycat

I haven't read the whole thread, so apologies if I'm stating the obvious!

We have a 1920's house - so not the greatest insulation-wise, but we've been doing our best. Along with the usual door curtains, loft insulation etc...
We took up carpets and sanded the floors - but stapled the old underlay underneath the floors for insulation, and sealed the gaps between all the floorboards with sealant.

One of the worst 'cold' areas was out understairs cupboard, so I sealed all the gaps with a mix of acrylic sealant & newspaper/toilet roll/cotton wool, and then covered the floor with reclaimed polystyrene tiles inside an old duvet cover. We need access under the floor there, so it can be easily lifted off.

My big failure was the foam draught excluder strips around the door. Seemed like a good idea, but the door wouldn't close and they were damn difficult to take off!

saveabobortwo

When we was little my mum always use to tell us to wrap up really warm , make sure you wear your scarf. keep your head warm in winter and wear a warm hat. to make sure your hair is dry properly before you go out she got this from her mum and dad when their winters were very very cold . my mum would always be telling us to put on more warm clothes should imagine this is all coming back alot more now find myself even writing on my christmas cards i v sent to wrap up warm. and people do need reminding i was shopping in town yesterday and the amount of people without even a coat on .alright they were teenagers and probably thought it was uncool to wear a coat but they must of been absolutely frozen one girl had a short sleeved blouse on i had jumpers coats scarf gloves etc and still froze.best wrap up well in this weather keep warm;)

stumpycat

Confuzzled wrote: »

while it's sad that young people are being priced out of having a car i will say i think it's superb that some of them at least think it's perfectly ok to use public transport...

originally being from the states, i can't commend the UK highly enough on the public transport, even when i was in the highlands i could get a bus to almost anywhere and often a train. they may not have been frequent there but at least they were available, it's very rarely an option in the states unless you're in a big city.

at least the infrastructure is already here, i have a feeling more and more people will be looking at public transport with fresh eyes as insurance and petrol costs continue to rise

Thanks for such a positive post! I don't drive and find people very critical of public transport - often when they never actually use it!

Though I must mention a lovely bus driver in Seattle who refused to let me pay for my fare as the bus jerked when he set off and I lost my balance - he was so apologetic!

diddly74

saveabobortwo wrote: »

When we was little my mum always use to tell us to wrap up really warm , make sure you wear your scarf. keep your head warm in winter and wear a warm hat. to make sure your hair is dry properly before you go out she got this from her mum and dad when their winters were very very cold . my mum would always be telling us to put on more warm clothes should imagine this is all coming back alot more now find myself even writing on my christmas cards i v sent to wrap up warm. and people do need reminding i was shopping in town yesterday and the amount of people without even a coat on .alright they were teenagers and probably thought it was uncool to wear a coat but they must of been absolutely frozen one girl had a short sleeved blouse on i had jumpers coats scarf gloves etc and still froze.best wrap up well in this weather keep warm;)

To follow what Saveabob said - I have 2 daughters - one is a Tween (aged 11) and will not put a coat on unless I force her. Carries her coat home most days from school but has an awful cold! The Other is 8yrs old and is a gem when it comes to wrapping up. When we had the snow the other week she did not leave the classroom until she was fully suited and booted. Wellies, with trousers tucked in. Coat zipped up over her scarf, gloves on, hat on and all her stuff neatly in her rucksack on her back properly with 2 straps! I was so chuffed cos you see the kids flying out with no coat on or not zipped up - even her best friend is crap at doing her coat up (I always have to tell her! lol)

But from personal experience I can honestly say that I have felt more cold as I have got older. I am 36 now - but I have photos of me at a kid (aged 4ish) and I would not wear clothes - I used to play out in my pants and vest! Never wear clothes in the house if I could help it and slippers - Mom stopped buying them cos they never saw my feet!

As I have gotten older more layers have arrived (luckily for the general population! lol) and now I snuggle up in a huge cardi (knitted by my v clever MIL) and slippers, or my big fleecy robe.

I still hate having to wear a coat tho - it gets in the way when you are out shopping!!!!

diddly74

oooooooooooooo I am in a quandry.

I have an Asda delivery booked for 22 December - but don't know whether to go and do it myself before the weekend. Snow is forecast for Thursday and I have just been reading an article saying the cold weather may be set to stay for a fair while. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1338191/UK-weather-Big-freeze-returns-tomorrow-going-MONTH.html But we don't get paid till Friday - can't go too early (and if the Christmas goodies are in I am running the risk of the hubby and kids finding them early :-O)

Now I know here in the Midlands - we had no where near the same conditions as Scotland, but having fallen over once on the ice and still nursing a very bruised cocix I am not about to go running here, there and everywhere if I dont need to and I would rather not put any delivery drivers in harms way either.

Eenymeeny

stumpycat wrote: »

Thanks for such a positive post! I don't drive and find people very critical of public transport - often when they never actually use it!

Though I must mention a lovely bus driver in Seattle who refused to let me pay for my fare as the bus jerked when he set off and I lost my balance - he was so apologetic!

Can I please post a safety note about using public transport? I know a bus driver who tells me that people are standing off the pavement in deep snow thinking that they are helping the driver who is trying to negotiate into bus stops. One slip and they could be under the bus:eek: Please keep well back and let the bus driver concentrate on getting everyone there safely. Stay safe everyone:)

[Deleted User]

I met a paramedic yesterday and he says that they are run off their feet and many of the injuries due to falling on ice are terrible. People fall backwards as their feet shoot forwards and they crack their heads and spines. Remember to take smaller steps. He told of one place where people on the road had to get on all fours it was that slippy

So christmas or not, no-one should put celebration food before well being. Whats wrong with frozen broccolli and a tin of peas

[Deleted User]

re the bus: we are incredibly lucky in finding that the public bus comes through the village 6 times a day each way and the official stop is 2 minutes walk from the house. Mind you the drivers through these little villages are absolutely fantastic and will put people down wherever they want and he`ll even ask `do you want so and so, is this close enough etc` We are in a mindset of `use it or lose it` and we are trying to use it more. Other than that my dh is a cyclist so is happy to go miles for me and I have a pedelec electric bike but am waiting for better weather. We used to do all our shopping by bike but I`ll have to learn different routes now that we have moved

Roll on having fewer cars on the road, I say