Keeping warm in an old listed house with high ceilings and single glazing?

Seakay

I forgot to say; check out local facilities where you can go for free in the afternoons. eg my local library is in walking distance and has a play and singalong hour for mothers and toddlers one afternoon a week, a childrren's section, computers which are free to use for an hour at a time (more if it's quiet) book club once a month, natter and knit group once a month etc. No longer places where people go shush all the time!
Plus community centres and leisure centres often have free things as well as paid for classes.
If you are lucky they will be a brisk walk or a bus ride away.

Also, if you put a blanket, or even better an old eiderdown or summer duvet under the bottom sheet on the bed it warms up quicker and stays warmer once you are in it, and feels really soft and luxurious as well!

sophlowe45

I agree with Molly41.

I am so cold all the time, my friends can't even take coming over in the daytime when it is warmer in the evening.

Open plan just makes it worse, I would love to have doors!

single glazed, high ceilings, crappy curtains, i am so cold all the time.

I have blankets under the bottom sheet, on top of the bottom sheet, under the duvet, then the duvet and a blanket over the duvet, lots of layers, a hoodie with the hood on and thick socks to go to sleep. And I am still really cold, and if you need to go to the toilet during the night...

charlies-aunt

It sounds really lovely but check your lease details carefully - our house isn't a listed building but it is classified as a house "of historical interest" and we are very restricted with what we can and can't do.

And there is often a local busybody who will have cultivated an "interest" in the building and is very expedious in reporting any minor transgression to the relevant authority (speaking from experience :cool:)

hereigoagain22

Thanks everyone. I found the old tenant on Facebook and messaged her (the powers of technology) and she was lovely and said it is the perfect house, perfect neighbours, perfect area etc. but was REALLY cold in winter. She did say it was bearable if you really love the house but they didn't need the space so downsized into a flat with double glazing and central heating. She said that during the extreme temperature she could put as much as £70 in the meter in one week, they are a couple with a baby, a toddler and an older child.

Any more opinions? It's so mixed! I LOVE the house, I could sign the 6months (starting from end April) and if by Nov it's starting to get really cold I can get out with just a month's notice.

meritaten

Go live in it hun - at least for six months, then you can determine whether you can get it warmer for less than the former tenant or move to a warmer house! at least you wont then look back with regret and think 'I would have loved to have given it a try'.

415SanFran

The only thing with moving in six months time is the cost, if you don't stay where you are you may have the expense of new curtains and and other unforseen things.

I must admit I would love to give it a try, with window quilts and thick curtains, or even bubble wrap if worst comes to worst, as someone suggested going to libraries and mum's and tot kind of places.
Does the house have nice thick carpets or is it laminate flooring, I find laminate cold just to look at never mind live with. Can you portion one part off with nice curtains to keep the heat in one area.
Don't forget thick door curtains as well they make a huge difference!
In the summer months I would be keeping a look out for real wool blankets or as I have done look in the charity shops for 100% wool scarfs and sewed 9 together and it made a lovely blanket for the bargain price of about 12 pounds, and the cost was spread out, I was also toasty warm when sewing it all together. (100% wool will almost always have a label sewn in, don't mix and mix fabrics or it will be a problem when you come to wash them, and as you have little ones you will probably have to wash yours more often than I do mine, never put it in the drier, just line or hang over a door dry)

trulymadlydeeply_indebt!

Hi hereigoagain - here's my experience. It may come across as negative but it is factual and "real" and we do actually LOVE living here.

We live in a farmhouse with thick walls and no central heating and single glazed metal windows. Downstairs rooms are a good size - bit bigger than newish properties I'd say - and upstairs rooms are smaller.

We rent @ £475 per month whilst properties nearby are being rented for double that (we live in the Lake District). Our electricity bill is currently £271 per month.

We have had our 2 chimneys swept. We use a real fire in the lounge where me, OH and 2 kids (all into technology - MSE, facebook, kindles, Xbox) spend just about all our time - the other rooms are just too cold to spend long in.

We have convection heaters in all 3 bedrooms, study, and even one in the lounge whilst the fire kicks in. They are put on about 7.30 am for about an hour whilst we get ready for work/school. They are on again about 8.30 pm to warm the bedrooms up for an hour.

Beds have fleece blankets under the sheet, 15tog duvets and throws on, plus a hot water bottle to take the chill off before we turn in.

Lounge curtains have been replaced with thicker ones and I've stitched in fleece blankets - definitely made a difference.

As another poster said, do make sure you open the windows for as long as you can bear each day, even when cold. Cold, DRY air is much healthier than cold, WET air which is really cold and just downright depressing.

Talking of depressing - the kitchen is like an icebox! This is no fun for me as I am a keen cook, and I really have to motivate myself to produce a meal some nights, but I do with the help of yet another convection heater.

Towels/hoodies etc., take an age to dry, but we've installed an electric wall heater in the bathroom to help with this. It doesn't really warm the room, but it does take the chill off. Going to the loo at 4am will only be done if you are in danger of having an accident!

Since moving here, we've ditched PJ's, slippers and dressing gowns and a typical outfit most evenings is thermal tops and bottoms, with either fleece trousers and tops on top or a onesie on top, topped with a woolly hat. Ugg style boots to keep the ankles warm and then if really cold, we wear aztec-style ponchos with hoods which we bought at a music festival stall a couple of years ago. We are always toasty thanks to layering.

In Summer it's cool - very cool - you end up doing loads of outdoor jobs as you will chill indoors.

In Winter - very cold! We are into our 2nd winter here now and have learned to adapt from a centrally heated house.

We pay about £55 for a ton bag of chopped wood per month, on top of approx £55 for coal (2 bags of nuggets to get the fire going and 2 bags of trebles once it's established). These costs will come down this year as we've going a contraption for making our own paper briquettes which burn for up to 1hr once dry. These are our Spring jobs so they dry out in the barn by winter time.

We love living here! Just spent the last 30 hours with a power cut due to a tree coming down and knocking out the power line, however, spent the time this morning watching lambs being born on the working farm which is attached.

The only other thing I think I should mention is that my DS is almost 11 and HATES living here since moving from a cul-de-sac where there was an open door policy and loads of kids to play with. We are in an isolated rural area and don't think he is old enough to be hanging around in town, and nor do we want him doing this TBH, although with advancements in technology, his Xbox is on "Live Membership" so he can put his headphones on, then play and chat with his friends online. We have to negotiate TV time so that we all get a go, but we usually all get what we want.

Sorry for the ramble, but I wanted to give you a proper picture of what it is like, and the likely costs you will face.

I would say, go for it. You'll probably be in a honeymoon period throughout the Summer and not mind the challenge, but Winter will be completely different and I do think perhaps taking on a 12 month contract will give you a proper feel for the place and you'll either decide to commit to another 12 months, or you won't. If you are currently living with your Mum, then there isn't really much to lose if I am honest with you, as you can either move back in with her perhaps, or put yourself on a Housing List with the reason being that the house is unsuitable for your 2 little ones.

I'm usually quite cautious by nature, but this house felt right and I didn't want to not apply for it, then someone else get it, and then spend the rest of my life with "what ifs".

I think you have more to gain than lose .......

I hope this helps.

TMD xx

monnagran

I'm with pigpen on this. I well remember that we used to get out of the car and put our coats on to go IN to the house.
One plus side was that we were all incredibly healthy. The children never had throat and ear infections and I think my eldest was 12 before he ever had a cold.
This is something that you will only decide by trying it. If you don't you will always regret not having a go and wonder if it would have been the right thing to do. What's that saying about coming to the end of life and only regretting the things you DID'NT do.
You have heard both sides of the argument anyway.

x

trulymadlydeeply_indebt!

That's so true - I drive home from work and then layer-up to go indoors lol.

tori.k

If having your own space is important to you just budget a bit over the summer months to help your thru the winter, I would block off the cellar during the colder months get a curtain up over the door and just heat the rooms your in despite what it feels like at the moment winter wont last forever,