Preparing for winter II

SIRENS

Hi Confuzzled, yep my Aunt freezes them first so as my Mum brings them home they slowly defrost, have been doing it for years and am still here!!

SuziQ

I have just read 'The Long winter' that I read about on here. Thank heavens we don't live such primitive lives, in such flimsy houses! I had to hug a hot water bottle whilst reading it! Great motivation to get my prep finished though!


ETA if anyone would like to read it, drop me a pm and I will pop it in the post-it's a battered ex-library copy but has all it's pages.

Rainy-Days

Tesco have the four pack of Branston beans on 3 for £2.55. Or Buy one get two free!

Edited to add that these are the four pack cans of beans! So good buy!

tessasmum

Yes - I have 9 of these four packs squirreled away in my storecupboard!

ifonlyitwaseasier

ok i've just gotten back from lidls and bought 4 more of the packs of cushelle to add to the 2 i bought yesterday, and to add to the 18 other loo rolls in the house....... but there are 4-5 of us in the house.... ok no excuse i got carried away and so did the loo roll

kidcat

Wow this thread moves quickly, if only I could move as quickly I would be so much better prepared.

Like many this thread has proved a lifeline for me as the last two years we carefully prepared and when the harsh winter came and we were unable to get out for a week, it didnt hurt a bit. I still remember my mum and dad phoning us panicking that we would starve if we didnt get out and they really didnt believe we were truly ok and that I had been so well prepared. This year we are in a smaller newer house and I am hoping that the heating bills will be considerably less - bearing in mind that the house is currently 8c warmer than the last place and that is without heating on. My problem is we no longer have a double garage to store things and I am quickly running out of space - I really need to have at least four packets of 18 toilet rolls in store as we use one 18 roll pkt per week, and they really take up huge amounts of space.
Dad has promised to make the curtain rails a priority but my DS who is 7 and has ASD keeps damaging stuff so the curtains go down the list again!!

I saw the post for the blinds from amazon and they look great but can anyone advise if they will sit on a net rail - I am thinking if I buy the tension sprung net rails from wilkinson I will be able to fit myself rather than relying on my dad again.

rachbc

chill in the air today and hubby and I have decided our priorities to get the house ready for winter - no 1 is to get ouo kitchen window sorted- been nailed in since we stripped and repainted it 2 years ago as needs all the sash cords and weights redoing. Then a blind or it, curtain or back door, chop a load of logs and get into dry storage - should do us as we have thermal curtians everywhere else, coal in all other windows draught proofed.

sparrer

Have reflected on my wee (;)) stash and come to the conclusion that 24 loo rolls is cutting it fine. There's only me and I use approx 1 a week. 24 weeks = less that 6 months, it's not quite 1st Sept yet so that barely takes me to end Feb. Looks like I need make room for a few more!

annie123

Jolaaled wrote: »

Gosh...a bubble wrap blind...now that is novel! I'm off a-googling...!!

I made one for my brother when he went to uni.
Roll of bubble wrap the length and width of the window, added some string that feel down front and back. blue tacked it to the window frame and used blue tack to hold it down at the bottom, to hold it up, roll up and tie with string:) he wasn't allowed to put any pins or tape on the draughty sash windows. Worked well for the years he was there.

tugrin wrote: »

sparrer - I am older and the interesting thing is that when I was younger - a student in fact I really got into the self sufficiency thing convinced there was going to be a societal breakdown due to the cold war edginess of the time. This self sufficiency went as far as keeping a couple of sheep, shearing them by hand with old fashioned shears and learning to spin!!!! Growing veg was second nature and I was an expert on preserving and wine and beer making (used to drink then - lol). Lots of foraging (Richard Maybe Food for Free) Did the foil behind rads and had thick curtians everywhere - remember this was all pre internet so I spent hours in libraries and old book shops. Has a fried who had a jerset cow and she made cheese, sister had (still does) hens and I was on the point of keeping bees!!!
BUT THEN children arrived, marriage ended and I had to work all hours just to keep things together for kids and self and have to say over the years it all seeped away and I was the lego cook (just heat up and assemble food on plate) permanently exhausted and depressed to boot. Now I find I am middle aged and deeply depresse about the last 20 years of my life and not looking forward to the next 20. This board had been a real shot in the arm and although I still cry a lot - I actually feel as if I am DOING SOMETHING REAL FOR A CHANGE! For example Im going to make the plum jam this pm and I feel great about it.
You guys have ignited a long dead fire inside me and I am so gratefull to you all - big hugs from Norfolk!!!

I want to listen to you talk for hours about what you did when you were younger, you were way ahead of most of us.
You did what you had to do to support your family so don't feel bad.
The next 20 years will be fine, after all we all have each other now for help and support and the odd crazy idea along the way

Confuzzled wrote: »

hmm if i wanted to try that i'd first get some bubble wrap, small section then cut out a small bit of a space blanket and try various types of glue to see if i could make my own... i'm certain it could be done for far less than £18 with a bit of ingenuity and patience.

I would make my own too, I love bubble wrap and foil blankets but don't have the money to pay £18 a roll.

I've got bubble wrap on my cast iron bath....underneath it that is, really does help to retain the heat, and next year when we re deck the bathroom I will be adding a foil blanket to it.

Now, if I stop reading about winter preps and get off my ar*e and do some instead, I just might be ready by time it comes.
Can you all stop posting please for a few hours:D

herbily

About 20 pages or more ago, someone was worried about pulling a buggy through the snow - I don't know if this is an idea:
http://www.skibuggy.com/

BY the time you've finished building one of these, it'll be spring again!