Preparing for Winter V

Caterina

I used to have a tumble drier, but when the kids became teens and started doing their own laundry, DS used to put his one favourite shirt in the tumble drier to dry on demand, for an hour plus at max temperature.

I repeatedly asked him not to, told him that is was really expensive, we might as well get a bunch of tenners, set fire to them and use the heat to dry the shirt! But you know how teen are, do they listen? In the end I got so fed up of policing him, I put the damn machine on freecycle (very rarely used it myself as I prefer air-drying) and Bang! Problem solved. Much to DS's disgust LOL

[Deleted User]

I'm lucky enough to still have a functioning (but increasingly ancient) Potterton Kingfisher floor standing boiler in the utility room. We put a hanging rail in there when we first moved in here and I hang tops, trousers on hangers in there, I have an 'octopus' hanger for socks, pants etc. and a big folding wrack for towels, bedding etc. I find things dry overnight in there but when we run the wood stove in the lounge later in the year I put things on the big wrack and pop them in front of the stove as we go to bed and that also dries things overnight. I also still have an airing cupboard which means things stay dry in storage. We had a tumble drier when the girls were tiny but I didn't replace it when it broke, before we came here and that's 23 years plus.

FairyPrincessk

We do a combination of things to dry clothes, combat damp and keep the bills down but it is a constant struggle. I only do washes that end with the fastest spin on my machine (and we chose a machine with 1200rpms) I try to put washing out during the day as long as it isn't raining. It usually dries somewhere between 30 and 70% in the colder months, depending on the humidity. I bring it in early evening, and it gets hung up to finish off overnight. We're most likely to want the heating on in the evening anyway and it is usually almost dry by bedtime when the rads go off. If it isn't completely dry in the morning then I'll put the heating on anyway to finish it off, but this is rarely necessary. In the mornings I open several windows for a couple of hours, particularly in bedrooms. The bathroom window stays open all day and is only shut at night (it has to be locked for security reasons). We still get mold, but I spread small damp traps around areas that are particularly prone and that helps with the worst of it. On rainy days the clothes go straight on the rads which are turned on and the windows in that room opened. I 'flip' the clothes every hour or so and they're usually dry in a few hours. This is costly, takes time (I work from home most days but it is still a pain) and of course produces more damp in the house, but I find it easier to manage it this way than trying to get several loads dry/day the following week when it is still raining and hasn't let up. I suspect this is less of an issue for those who live in drier parts of the country.

I find it easier to get smaller loads dry, so generally do a load every day even for just two of us. We do use a lot of sport kit, so if we were less active I could probably take a day or two off per week.

I'd be lying if I didn't admit that washing is the one chore where I worry about getting behind. It takes up more time than most of the other chores we do just to keep on top of it without spending the earth on heating/buying a tumble dryer (which we have no space for).

juliettet

I use a combination of a clothes airier and my spiral staircase. It is a warm house and they dry quickly. If it is a nice day they go out no matter how short a while. I am an October baby and favourite months are May & June?. I am reading through the thread and realise if the power goes off I am stuffed. Has anyone any experience with the small calor gas heaters?

[Deleted User]

We have a large DeLonghi gas heater that has 3 bars of heating area and is adjustable to use 1, 2 or all 3. It's a free standing fire 27" high and runs from a big gas cylinder that sits inside it's casing. Wonderful thing and worth it's cost in comfort before we had the woodstove installed. It heated our lounge which is 32' x 16' to toasty warmth on 3 bars for about 10 minutes and then down to 1 bar to maintain it. We've kept it because it's useful in the shed in the winter if he Who Knows needs to work out there. We also have one of the old fashioned Valour Stoves, round cylinder that tips back off the fuel container and it runs on paraffin and we use it in the greenhouse in the very early spring if it's likely to be frosty overnight, cost 50p at a boot fair and I've seen them around at boot fairs this year, that might be another option?

Pooky

We have a calor gas heater, just a basic one but it's essential here if the power goes out (which it does frequently). We use it to take the chill off the kitchen in the colder months (big room with flat roof - fully insulated but just catches the cold) before the central heating goes on. We had to buy a new gas bottle last year but the first one did us 3 years of occasional use. Well worth it but can be a bit fumey and they do create a bit of condensation.

[Deleted User]

I`m just back from a big round trip, costco, screwfix, petrol and sainsbury. Not bad between 10.15 and 3 pm since costco is 50 minutes away. I am thoroughly stocked up now, including some christmas nibbles. Just had an all in one pan lunch, amazing what you can add to a hm soup for that full feeling. Finished with my temptation, a sainsbury cream scone, new from the bakery counter. Yum yum, very delicious. I have got to stash everything away yet, haha that word `stash` meaning to hide by stuffing into cupboards and drawers. Costco is amazing but I always spend loads

I put my pellet stove on, which means that the utility will be hot, the master radiator is in there. It has a humidity sensor fan, so it draws damp air up through the mechanical ventilation system but I do prefer drying outdoors and I have a good old fashioned spin dryer, which helps a lot with flannel bedding

Grey manky day today and I might put the elctric blanket on the bed to pre-warm it

Pooky

For those without a spin dryer, you can reaping the washing in your machine and you'll be amazed just how much drier it comes out. I always double spin things that need to be dried inside or are going in the tumble dryer as it cuts drying time considerably.

I didn't have a tumble dryer for years but we gave in last year when I was having really bad arthritis and tendon issues with my arms. Trying to load washing on to airers and move around as required was hellishly painful. Sometimes health has to come before wealth (although we do have solar panels so it offsets the cost a lot).

Autumn seemed to happen over night here, temperature has dropped significantly and so many leaves are down. It was lovely to get out and get some crisp fresh air this morning.

carbry

im new to this site and just havinga quick read through for ideas for winter . im a capricorn and am amazed at the amount of capricorns on here. There are some great tips for curtain lining which i will try to do

mardatha

Maybe because Caps are organised and logical