Preparing for Winter V

greenbee

In theory there shouldn't be a TRV on the radiator in the room with the thermostat in. In practice there usually is. Ideally you leave that radiator completely open. Practice tends to work differently!

I now have separate upstairs and downstairs circuits, each with their own thermostat, so have to work out how I need to balance the radiators to get the results I want.

Lucy5781

Distinctly cooler here now too. Able to leave the hot water on now (boiler and tank in our bedroom and was far too hot in the warmer weather!) And not opening the big windows, small ones still on vent though.

Have worn long sleeve tops for a few days now (no longer being pregnant had also made a big difference!) And keeping an eye on how warm the new baby boy is (3 weeks old now).

Dog is also very confused as to why the conservatory isn't so warm now the sun's not out so much!

[Deleted User]

We had the chimney swept this morning from the woodstove and as usual there was less than 1/6 of a bin liner full of very much 'the right kind of soot' according to the sweep. No mess whatsoever and he always lays a path of old curtains/sheets etc. from the front door to the stove and bowed his way out at the end rolling them up as he went. I felt like the queen as he did the last 'bob', we've booked again for next year, he's a treasure!!!

silverwhistle

That seems like a lot! Had just over a pint on my first sweep after two seasons burning. Off to fill my car tomorrow with oak as a friend is down-sizing. I might use the GCH this year if it's a lot colder, and I suspect I'll go over my £36 for last year.

I've had the season's ceremonial first burn, but only really to check the seals and rebuild an ash bed. Lots of kindling and one very large pallet block was enough to take the chill off the other evening. Other pallets broken up, cut and denailed; wood, split and debarked. Listening out for the sound of chainsaws now the windy weather has arrived..

On the duvet front, I hardly bother changing them unless it really gets cold: I just expose more parts of my body if it's warmer. :-)

[Deleted User]

We burn most days in the colder weather from mid afternoon to when we go to bed and we don't run the central heating only use the boiler to heat the water twice a day. What we do get is apparently the right kind of soot because we get the stove up to the required range of temperature as quickly as we can and maintain the temperature through the time we have it lit. We only burn wood, not coal etc. and the ashes go on to the compost heap. Our stove is a Clearview and one of the models that does the double burn. It is definitely one of the very best investments we've ever made.

Si_Clist

MrsLurcherwalker wrote: »

Our stove is a Clearview and one of the models that does the double burn. It is definitely one of the very best investments we've ever made.

Same here! When it's cold, the Pioneer 400 in our kitchen is lit as soon as I get up, and once it's got going, two kettles full of water go on top. If we've no immediate use for the water when they boil, they stand on top of a folded WW2 army blanket on the floor, and we bury them under an old beanbag. Rinse and repeat during the day as needed for drinks and washing up.

When the kettles aren't on it, there's often either a pan of soup there instead, or the "Welsh bakestone" (which is actually a round slab of steel plate) upon which we make seriously scrummy Scotch pancakes, bread buns, scones or biscuits. Makes wonderful toast too with the door open.

In winter, it's against the law here to use the GCH to heat any water other than the bath, or to use the cooker before teatime unless we're baking a loaf of bread, in which case we always make some cakes at the same time.



But Stovax also make a very decent stove if the little Brunel 1A in the front room is anything to go by. Only small, but doesn't half belt out some heat when needed!

Ref silverwhistle's post (above) though, what's the theory of taking the bark off logs? Never heard of that before!

Tink_04

Noticeably colder tonight! We are all sitting with blankets on the sofa, no fire or CH on yet as I'm trying to hold off until as late into October as I can! We do have a fire which we use as we have 2 young children but making do with blankets at the moment! A lovely sausage casserole in the SC for tea so the house smells lovely!

nicki_2

I put the heating on up to 21c yesterday for a couple of hours to check it and take the chill off the house as I was going for a shower and didn't want to be getting out of it into a 14c room while I'm already full of cold. Only I fell asleep so it was on longer than I thought. Our hallway is still 19c this morning so I can tell the wind has dropped and its drier lol

Really jealous here of the solid fuel fires. I'd love one but being in a rented house means it's not an option. Its on my "if I ever win the lottery" list, along with a big garden so I can have a decent veg patch & orchard, the house will have a library room and a big kitchen with a big chunky kitchen table in the middle. I don't want much :rotfl::rotfl:

Thriftkitten

Maybe the pooch recognized the scent of dog hair and panicked that his coat may be alight :-)

fuddle

Me too Nicki. Private rented means no flickering embers in my home any time soon. One day eh?

The heating clicks in at 6am at 20 degrees then knocks off for the rest of the day and night. Meals are heading into the comfort direction and it's generally a nice cosy feeling.

I started the malted drinks at supper time last night, much to the girls' delight. If anything I hope I'm giving them good associations to the change of the seasons with the hope that they will have good memories and traditions to pass on. It's sad to think I have non... just the overwhelming stench of cigarette smoke on a drawn in evening. Strange how we can change things eh?

Does anyone else have emotional reasons for prepping for the cooler months?