Preparing for Winter V

herbily

mardatha wrote: »

up when I moved in or I would have used it.
Apparently the 3rd chimney was for a boiler in the kitchen, for doing the washing, but I can't find any neighbours who remember where it was or how it worked.

Mar, if you look at the picture of a wash house copper here:
https://owlcation.com/humanities/Working-Class-life-in-the-1940s-Wash-Day it may be the kind of thing your house had originally. I have a 1940s house with an outside scullery, and I still have the chimney to it. When I moved in, my next door neighbours had been there since the houses were built and could remember there being a built-in sort of hearth arrangement to hold the copper, and you put coal in either underneath or to one side to heat it.


I really love my washing-machine! I now use the outside scullery as my wood shed.

mardatha

That's an interesting site herblily. I can remember my mum doing the washing in a gas-fired zinc boiler in the early 50s. It had a wooden worktop (bunker) on hinges above it that could be lifted up against the wall and let down when you'd finished. If we had bought this house we would have opened up the bedroom fireplace and looked into getting a wee stove for the kitchen.

Siebrie

kittie wrote: »

Bedsocks at night make a big difference to being cosy and comfortable when sleeping

I wear bedsocks, and my GP has told me to make sure they are clean socks, not the ones I wear during the day, as that may cause athlete’s foot.

Regarding duvets: I am easily cold at night, so I have an electric blanket set to hot for 2 hours before I go to bed. I also have a single down duvet underneathe the kingsize down four-season duvet I share with my husband. It really helps that I can wrap the single duvet around me and avoid any draughts in the neck area.

zeupater

Siebrie wrote: »

... I have an electric blanket set to hot for 2 hours before I go to bed. I also have a single down duvet underneathe the kingsize down four-season duvet I share with my husband. It really helps that I can wrap the single duvet around me and avoid any draughts in the neck area.

Hi

Are you sure you're not describing a moneysaving 'slow cooker' ...

Siebrie

I would love to keep it on during the night, but I don't feel safe!

[Deleted User]

There is no way I would sleep on any emf ie a field caused by electricity going through a wire (I have a physics background). The field is magnetic and reaches a distance outside the wires. Red blood cells, containing iron, are affected by magnetism. If I use my electric blanket then it is only on for 20 minutes before bed.

Re my winter socks, I use hm knitted clean woollen socks every day in winter. Obviously having athletes foot and wearing the same dirty to bed is unhygenic. All that dirt from the road!! If it is so cold that I need bedsocks then I get a clean pair from a drawer, I would have thought everyone would do this, it is just basic hygiene as is washing feet and drying between toes

mardatha

Was minus 7 up north last night - the highlands have been a different weather zone this winter. Currently 3C here and the usual dark dull boring muck...... one is definitely not amused. At all!

[Deleted User]

Dull, dreary and chilly here in the deep south too MAR, depressingly grey and depressingly damp without it actually raining, it's like living at the bottom of an empty puddle!!!

fuddle

Kittie you wouldn't believe how many ladies I cared for told me that carers don't dry in between toes!

tori.k

Mardatha or anyone who uses coal as their heating, can I please pick your brain
We moved on to coal as the wood wasn't heating the place enough, been lovely to be able to keep the fire in overnight and keeping an ambient temperature of around 20c fire is set to it's lowest setting just ticking away, we have a 9.2 kw stove using around 8-10kg of smokeless coal a day, ( £5) does this sound about right.
First time I've used coal so have no idea what I'm doing