No heating/ hot water, OS ways to cope

RachelS

We have been sleeping with 2 duvets, 2 blankets and a slanket on our bed lately...it's gorgeous and warm, but I hate getting out of bed in the morning : ).

redglass_2

In a hurry so haven't read all the posts, sorry if I'm repeating...

When you boil water for pasta or anything else, don't pour it down the sink but strain it into another pot and put a lid on to keep in the steam. The pot then functions as a heater for some time.

Keep your ankles warm! Seriously, it makes a big difference, like wearing a hat.

shinydriver

bizzylizzy wrote: »

Candles give off a surprising amount of heat, shut the door to the room as well and that really helps.

We had no heat the last 2 days and once you get a room warm then candles will keep it at temperature. I found I have used up a load that had been sitting around for years.

Obviously be careful with pets and small children and don't leave them burning at night.

lostinrates

I thought I had replied to this but can't see it!

If its going to be a while it might be worth buying some electric blankets, for bed possibly, but more importantly to get warm when sitting during day. I don't use these, but do use two hotwater bottles and a duvet on my sofa.

Having somewhere, like my sofa, that I can leave to dart outside for a while well wrapped up, or into colder bits of the house if I know I have one warmish place to relax in. Cold rooms are good for sleeping, if your bed is warm.

Wash up with the kettle, as you are finding, keep drinking warm drinks....I use the kettle not the thermos. Hot meals and friends for showers and baths. (and use a hairdryer). Also, if no tumble dryer, might be worth asking a friend/neighbour if you can use theirs for a gift/contribution to electricity. Drying clothes in this weather with no rads and lifted outside airers PLUS needing lots of clean/warm clothes can be a juggle

Things like slippers really come into their own, and I'm not to proud to wear layers including slippers and dressing gown in the evenings...under my duvet! Its fun for a bit...but roll on spring!

FWIW I had one short spell of no electricity and no boiler...and no roof...a few years ago and it was freezing. We camped with candles and ate a lot of takeaway and it was ok in the evenings with both of us home....daytimes were the grim bit!

jcr16

hubby and i's first home was an old 1733 converted house. walls about 1ft thick, celngs 10 ft high. we had no heating apart from 1 electric heater in the lounge which seemed to do nothing. the windows were single glazed sash ( grade 2 listed so couldn't change) it was freezing. woke up in winter with frost on inside of window. this was back in 2002 so not decades ago and i was 20 hubby 21. but you know what, it was the best time ever.

we wore gloves indoors, would dash to bathroom to get washed, dash back to bed to get dressed, had loads of layers on. in evenings we'd snuggled under a duvet on sofa with our dinner ( kitchen was far to cold to sit at table) . i loved it.

harryferguson

Hi, Have a look at the freecycle.org site(it won't let me post the link!) for other temporary heating appliances. Recently a friend of mine got an oil-filled electric radiator from it.....

- Washing machine will heat its own water.
- Washing-up - kettles.
- Local swimming pool showers for washing people.....or a friend's?

Good luck!

glynnder

Sassers wrote: »

Hello there - I couldnt afford heating or hot water a couple of winters ago when I was on benefits - or much else come to that - so this is what I did....I brought a large mop bucket and took the sqeegee thing off the top. It took six kettles of hot water to fill and I'd put it in the bath and wash myself that way. Wet hair first, then shampoo, work way down body with one of those squeegee net things, then with the remaining water, tip it over my head to rinse off the shampoo.
Also just a thought, could you borrow a large catering tea urn from somewhere? That would help with a supply of hot water. I also scraped together enough money for a cheap electric blanket. I also put loads of clothes on my bed - besides the two duvets to keep warm...I wore many layers of clothing and fingerless gloves to keep warm. I ate value porridge to keep warm, 9p noodles and lots of toast because it was cheap. Something else I did to avoid using hot water was cook with tinfoil making them into pockets rather than dishes. Beans wrapped in tinfoil shaped like a pot...funny enough, Jamie Oliver used to do this for his wife, put the food in a foil parcel when she got home late from work so she could just chuck it in the oven and bung the foil. I also ate off paper plates brought from the £1 shop but ditched it as it was expensive and not as cheap as washing a plate in cold water. Thinking back, I'd say having hot water was the most precious thing to me at the time...I used to wash my clothes in a bath of cold water with bio powder too.
They were tough times....but I coped with it.
Good luck to you and I hope the situation improves soon
Lots of hugs
Sassers

Hi, I'm not sure about the price of your bio powder compared to non-bio or any other cheap washing power, but just wanted to add that in cold water bio powder is no more effective than non-bio. So if you don't have hot water there isn't any point in paying any more for bio.

Suzkin

Become a family member of Ikea (If there's one local to you), and enjoy FREE hot coffee and tea weekdays. Wear socks over tights etc., to keep the extemities warm.

Est

Nothing else to add to all the useful info already given but would say, if you're not doing this already, you can also use the water from your hot water bottles the next morning for a quick wash - prob won't be much more than tepid, but better than freezing cold and will save boiling the kettle a little.

mrsr

bizzylizzy wrote: »

Candles give off a surprising amount of heat, shut the door to the room as well and that really helps.

I agree with this candles make such a differance i warm room up a bit first then light eight hr tealights and pillar candles it's amasing how it heats room up i would never have beileved it till i tried it