Preparing for Winter V

PipneyJane

nannygladys said:

I think I have all the usual stuff now in preparation and theres not much I need but I think I could be better organised with where stuff like candles,matches etc are, perhaps a box to keep in the hall, what does everyone do?

@nannygladys, thanks for the prompt.  Perhaps I should be more organised.  We keep ours in multiple places.  Matches live in a cupboard in the kitchen, while the tea lights live on a shelf in the lounge and other candles are scattered around the house.  Also in the kitchen, on the window sill, are three solar powered lanterns which we bought from L!dl one summer.  They were cheap, give out several hours of reasonable light and contain an AM/FM radio.  (Keep an eye out for them.  L!dl usually sell them in their annual summer camping campaign.)

Less successful are the solar powered “power banks” we bought at the same time, but that’s only because they are designed to be suction padded to a window and, eventually, they fall off.  I must go and test them for charge...

- Pip

annieb64

I keep candles and matches on the bottom shelf of a kitchen cupboard and also on a shelf in the bedroom. That way I can find them in the dark. I get very cross with DH if he moves them.

Primrose

We try and keep a small torch of some kind handy in all regularly used rooms - don't forget bathroom & Toilet and have a couple of useful wind up camping lanterns whixh are very useful as you don,t ever have to worry about batteries going dead. A key thing to check every October is the state of rubber hot water bottles to ensure the rubber isn,t perishing, and to replace in good time.
Also before good summer weather comes to an end , try to have washed and dried all the heavy duty items which need good  drying weather like duvets,etc 

MingVase

Do some practice runs in the dark, learn your way around your house in the pitch dark, you'd be surprised how handy that is. Also of course yes keep candles & matches all together in the same place! And don't forget saucers to put the candles in..

Laura_Elsewhere

My Intended built a shelf over the front door, which was dead space - it's got the hatch into the loft-space, but he added a square of board, supported on three sides (ie each hall-wall and the wall above the front door) by battens. It takes a small box with some winter hats, a stack of broad-brimmed summer hats, and still has space at the side for a plastic case containing our emergency gas-ring and butane-can, a small kettle for same, and a battery-operated camping-lantern. Checking the batteries and making sure we both remember how to use the gas safely is in the calendar for September. 

We also keep a seriously bright multi-led battery-op torch under the kitchen sink, the sort of flat narrow thing used in garages for looking at undersides of cars, very useful and with a folding hook to hang it on anything handy as well. 

Laura_Elsewhere

Primrose said:

Also before good summer weather comes to an end , try to have washed and dried all the heavy duty items which need good  drying weather like duvets,etc 

Thanks for the reminder - I could usefully start working my way through all our woollens, mending and reinforcing, and then popping them through that handy cold-water 19-minute "rinse" cycle with its convenient 1400rpm spin, so they only need hanging on the curtain-rail for a little while to dry. Meanwhile I can be cleaning the shelves they go on, and spraying the contact-killer moth-spray down the back to prevent any marauders crawling up the wall behind the shelving... I am normally as eco as can be, but having lived in a house with a complete infestation of clothes-moths, under the floorboards, in the wall-spaces, everywhere, I am firmly now of the opinion that, to quote Kenny Everett, we should "round 'em up, put 'em in a field and BOMB the 'barstewards'!!!"  

I tend to need my jumpers reinforced at the back of the armhole, as I am a bit big for most of them so my back pulls them widely there, whereas My Intended tends to wear out the neckband, cuffs and waist-welts as he is seemingly made from sandpaper... 

Greenglockenspiel

We have decorative candles in various places but I keep our matches and spare candles as well as a torch and my Swiss Army knife (what every girl needs 😉) in a drawer in the sideboard which is in our living/dining room. I also have another torch in my bedside table. We have spare batteries and light bulbs in the cupboard where our meters are which is also where we keep the toolbox etc. I admit that both of us are glued to our phones too much of the time but at least that means that we also have the torches on them to hand all the time!
Weather looks good tomorrow. Hopefully will be able to wash and dry our sofa blankets and maybe the winter duvet but not sure if that will fit in our washing machine!

Laura_Elsewhere

My Swiss Army Knife lives by my bedside - and yes, every girl should have one! Mine is a classic Huntsman, and has ben all over the world with me, having been bought one as a present at 18, lost it, and been bought another one in my late 20s - that one I've hung onto!

rufydoofyM2

Hi All,
I don't normally post, but just coming out of lurkdom to say thank you for all the chat, tips and reminders. Events this year have meant adapting and having to plan ahead more than ever and it's easy to forget the things I usually remember. So checking in here has helped. We have plenty of candles, lighters and matches, but made the mistake of storing a big box of candles in the shed during that hot summer. Result some very strange shapes and those not in cellophane fused together.
This year I'm growing veg in pots fearing a veg shortage later in the year and have several types of kale on the go. My favourite and most bought veg. Stocking up is a bit tricky as we don't have much storage space and I can't go into a supermarket and take advantage of reduced sticker bargains. Budgeting is becoming a real challenge.

I keep prepping for a harsh winter and have most necessities covered, I think. Our investment last year was a thicker wool duvet. Actually it was so warm we only slept under it for one night. If the power was off though and we had no heating it would be a life saver. They are amazing, after years of being too hot or too cold and arguing over the right tog duvet we bought  a very light weight wool duvet. It is perfect for both of us, no more arguments, a good nights sleep and no having to struggle to wash it. Anyone else got one ?
We also have an electric blanket bought years ago, a mega bargain, but never been brave enough to use it and now don't need too.

dreaming

I keep 2 or 3 boxes of matches around the house (out of the way of any visiting children) and have too many candles really as I am of the difficult age that nieces and nephews will buy them as presents and I don't really burn them as I don't like strong smells (i don't think I'm hard to buy for at all - book tokens and chocolate are always welcome). A few years ago I bought a pack of 3 small wind up torches from Wilkos and they are in the bedside table, hanging on the door of the boiler cupboard and one in the living room. I haven't seen them since but will look for something similar to keep in the car as well. One thing I have added to my list is some jars of vaseline (or own brand types) as I find that useful for dry skin/chapped lips in the winter, although I do have a stash of lipsalve; and also thought I should make sure I have enough mending stuff. It's no good having a warm coat if the button pops off and you can't find needle and thread. Stick on rubber soles might also be useful - plus glue as well.