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I'm cold...
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Popperwell - this is one of the questions asked on the Argos Q&A about this electric blanket in Jan 12.
55 watts is the maximum setting but what is the overall power consumption in Kwh.....?
And the Argos answer
Hi, thank you for your question.
Having spoken to our supplier, I can confirm the following information in regards to the energy consumption:
The blanket will consume 0.048 watts / hour on preheat and 0.024 / hour on all night, this converts to 0.048 of a unit / hour of electricity on pre-heat and 0.024/ hour when it is on all night.
Based on the unit cost of electricity being 0.16pence / unit.
For one hour on pre heat setting it will cost 0.76 pence and for eight hours on the all night setting, 3.072 pence for eight hour period.
Would you be able to work out from this if it's the blanket or something else? I have to say, I love my leccy blanket and don't notice any real increase in electricity consumption0 -
Hi,
A tip for if you have a concrete kitchen floor with lino... Get 2 cardboard boxes, flatten and put one in front of the sink, and one in front of the cooker, it really makes a difference on a cold day to not be standing on a very cold floor.
My grandparents had a thick cork mat in their bathroom, and it had a bath mat under it, so you got out of the bath and didnt get cold feet!
wik x
I'd not thought of this to suggest to the OP, but I do something similar, using freebie carpet square samples from my local carpet shop. You're right, it does make a difference0 -
Popperwell wrote: »Not going to hijack this thread but...
This is the blanket...just started to use it...unless the electric bill increased because of the electric pump that pushes the water around the gas central heating.
http://www.argos.co.uk/static/Product/partNumber/4500496.htm#pdpFullProductInformation
I tried to pm you so we didn't take over the thread but your inbox is full so i'll pop it here.
I found a few links for you to read (i couldn't see the wattage on the argos page to tell you how much yours uses) i know my very first one 7 years ago acually said on the box it cost 10p to run all night, i have ashma and being warm helps so def worth 10p imo
https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/2064219
http://uk.answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20071018180429AAAcniDDEC GC £463.67/£450
EF- £110/COLOR]/£10000 -
Go outside for a walk it is so much colder outside the house will feel warmer.
Cats are furry for a reason! ... you can always wrap them about yourself to keep warm and share heat.. a tuna sandwich is always a good reason to sit with you.
Hot drinks/hot soup to warm you up.
Lots of cleaning/tidying/exercise dvd's .. sitting still will make you freeze. I recommend bleaching the mould and opening windows as much as possible to dry the house. the mould is caused by condensation so airing the house as much as possible is vital.. My first home was the same.
Try to go to other peoples houses for a couple of hours and thaw out there. Community centres often have various groups and coffee mornings running, you might find something that appeals.
Swimming a couple of times a week? hotness and a shower in one
Baking... cheap treats and warms the house and make it smell nice too..LB moment 10/06 Debt Free date 6/6/14Hope to be debt free until the day I dieMortgage-free Wannabee (05/08/30)6/6/14 £72,454.65 (5.65% int.)08/12/2023 £33602.00 (4.81% int.)0 -
That's very kind of you Booter...that looks reasonable...I think there is the standing charge anyhow...then I think there are a certain amount of units that cost more and then after a certain amount the electric gets cheaper.
Will try and work that out...it must be cheaper than the CH...if I understand it to be 3p an hour it could be around 75p for 24 hours and over the month that might be about right...so I suppose you could turn it off or go onto a lower setting and if used say for 8 hours per night would be approx 30p per night, that would still be around £9-£10 over the month.
Thanks QT...ok I'll stop for now...sorry about the PM problem...it may help others you never know..."A government afraid of its citizens is a Democracy. Citizens afraid of government is tyranny!" ~Thomas Jefferson
"Your assumptions are your windows on the world. Scrub them off every once in a while, or the light won't come in" ~ Alan Alda0 -
Just read Ilona's post about her skirt: I check out charity shops for real wool stuff. Only yesterday I got a 100% Merino wool M&S jumper for £2.50. Mostly I wear a wool jumper with a thermal vest underneath and a scarf at the neck. That's a good start.0
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Hi there, I must agree with all the suggestions and really feel for you. my DD has open foundations and single brick walls in her very old house and I know how cold it can be in her front room, even with thick underlay, carpets and rugs.
On the Preparing for Winter thread it suggested making fleece linings for curtains which I did and it does really help, I have only used safety pins to attach so they will be coming off in the summer, I also made curtains out of fleece for my bathroom and kitchen windows as they dont normally have any and used cheap net curtain rods from Wilk*s to hang them, and what a big big difference that has made. I know someone else has suggested this but it has made a BIG difference in my house. Also I bought bubblewrap from a poundshop and covered my french windows and it makes a difference but looks unsightly, it is attached to the window just using water and the bubble side facing the window it does stick down but needs redoing every few weeks, so Im not using anything sticky on the frames.
And lastly I do layer up whilst inside and wear two pairs of socks, gloves when hands are cold and cover myself with more fleece blankets and an old quilt if I get cold whilst sitting. I also wear fluffy bedsocks and have hot water bottles in bed and I must admit the showers I have are very quick as its sooo cold.
I also read my meters every week and submit the readings online, so I can keep track of how much Im using and spending, and it really makes you think about switching lights off, gas CH off etc.
I hope things improve for you soon, its miserable being cold
nannyg£1 a day 2025: £90.00/365 Xmas fund0 -
How old is your daughter? On really cold nights, would it be worth sharing a bed with her and just warming your/her room, or is one of you a restless sleeper who would keep the other awake? Or perhaps she is of an age where sharing a bed with a parent just isn't 'cool'. I know that on nights when my OH is working away I really struggle to warm up when I get into bed, but if there are 2 people in a bed it warms up quicker. In the past, whole families used to share one bed for precisely this reason - sleeping individually is a fairly recent concept I believe.
Think about insulating under yourself not just putting more layers on top - as others have suggested put cardboard where you are standing and a blanket/duvet under your sheet in bed, and even something warm under your bum when you're sitting. Newspaper is indeed a surprisingly good insulator, partly because it has lots of layers. Good for keeping warm things warm, and cold things cold. We used to wrap fridge and freezer food in newspaper when packing for a self catering holiday a few hours drive away in summer, and often frozen items were still frozen!
Pound shops often have little hand warmers with a clicky metal bit to activate the reaction (sometimes in kiddy shapes & colours), and they are re-useable (not indefinitely but should last a good few uses) if you boil them for a few minutes - I would boil them in the water I was going to use to make a hot water bottle for youself and use the hand warmer for the kitty. While they won't give a lot of heat for very long, one wrapped in a fleecy blanket in a snuggly cardboard box would probably be enough extra warmth for your older kitty overnight or during a cold day - about the same as a sock full of rice microwaved for a couple of minutes. I buy fleecy pet blankets from pound shops too, they are nice and warm as well as being easy to wash and quick to dry.
If you aren't already a member of your local freecycle / freegle group, I suggest you join it. I have had all sorts of things for free over the years, and given away lots of things I didn't need any more that weren't worth the effort of selling on fleabay for 99p, but would have cost someone a fair bit to buy new. You could ask for things like a dehumidifier, microwave (for warming up hot drinks, soups and socks full of rice!), electric blanket, duvets/blankets for under the sheet, extra curtains, pet beds and blankets etc. Of course, there is no guarantee that you will get anything you ask for, but if you ask politely (don't give a long stob story, just a couple of basic facts) and collect when you say you will, you will find that a lot of the things you ask for are available, sitting in a cupboard somewhere simply taking up space!Trust me - I'm NOT a doctor!0 -
i would agree with the above, join every freecycle group in your area
wear a scarf indoors
if the hot drinks are still a problem , i thought of hot lemonade, bovril or oxo, or even fruit tea?0 -
Be careful of exercising and then allowing a sweaty body to get cold.
Try and keep your feet off the floor when relaxing, surprising how many drafts there are at floor level, a bean bag is what I use, as it has insulating properties too, but you could use a pile of cushions or a box.Please forgive me if my comments seem abrupt or my questions have obvious answers, I have a mental health condition which affects my ability to see things as others might.0
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