Preparing for Winter

ktpie

aless02 wrote: »

So really my best bet to draughty windows (we live in rented so no permanent fixes available ) is to sew fleece blankets into the curtains? Are there other methods I can use? Our bedroom is significantly colder than the rest of the house, probably due to some old, single-glazed French doors. Seeing as we're going to have a baby in there from Christmastime-ish, I really want to find an MSE way of warming the room.

I swear I remember reading something last year about newspapers around the edges, too?? Am I imagining this?

Oh and can someone tell me how much the fleece blankets are in IKEA? 'Cause there's some cheap on eBay that might work out easier for me than finding a day to trek to IKEA...

Is there any sort of fabric you can get hold of fairly cheaply? Someone mentioned that proper curtain lining fabric isn't too expensive on the internet. The thicker/warmer the fabric the better I guess.

The Irma fleeces (which only come in blue) are £1.69 and the Polarvide (come in different colours) are £2.69.

katsu

Go to a fabric shop and buy fleece off the roll. Cheaper than ready made blankets (edited to add - working further back through the thread, this depends on what cheap shops you have near you - unless you can get the end of the roll with a seam sewn in it like we did). You don't need to sew the edges to stop it ravelling, just cut it and use it. We warmed up our beds by buying a length long enough to fold double along the bed so we sleep in it like an envelope, under the duvet and over the sheets.

fedupandskint

bellaquidsin wrote: »

Yes, I put the heating on for half an hour two as it felt so damp and yet it was surprisingly mild outside. Bang goes my resolution to keep it off until the end of the month.

Bella.

Same here. I am seriously thinking about putting the heating on as it is cold and damp inside yet as soon as I go outside it is warm and mild. Just about hanging on by my fingernails to my resolution on not putting the heating on yet!

andan

Heating is on in my house, i have been over ruled!! I have got it on 17 though, so it's not on much and its not currently coming on on a morning. Its just a shame that our new lodger decides to waste all that we save and use it to cook meals for several hours!!

Well done to all those holding on.

Confuzzled

aless02 wrote: »

I swear I remember reading something last year about newspapers around the edges, too?? Am I imagining this?

...

i've done this with the new flat i moved into, it has double glazing but in old wooden frames that are fairly warped. i folded strips of old packing paper (newspaper would work fine) into longish strips folded over several times then used a butter knife to push it snugly into the cracks, this has cut out 99% of any air getting through

DdraigGoch

For rented accommodation there is always the problem of leaky windows, but a good and cheap way to remedy this is to buy a pot of PVA glue and a tube of Decorator's Caulk. If you go to one of the builder's merchants or B&Q/Homebase/whatever they'll help out.

Firstly you take a newspaper or some such unwanted paper and make papier mache [tear it up into strips, soak them in a solution of 5 parts water and one part PVA - this helps with making it waterproof] then carefully scoop it out and squeeze it as dry as you can and poke it into the gaps. Fill the gaps as well as you can and leave to dry off, dab off any water regularly. Probably takes about 2 days to dry out. At this point put a tidy squirt of the Decorator's Caulk over it, then leave that to dry. After that you can touch it up with paint to match the walls or window frame. A tester tin should be enough.

This really helps with draughts. If you can get to the outside of the windows [leaning out is possibly not a good idea if your balance isn't all it should be!] you can use some Frame Sealant in a suitable colour. I wouldn't think that your landlord would notice the improvement you've made so s/he shouldn't complain!

Best of luck to anyone with this problem. Hope this helps. Stopping the wind getting through is always the most effective way, curtains are more effective once this is done. It's also a lot cheaper than new curtains/lining!

DG

BigMummaF

Don't forget that the larger stores of the bigger supermarkets also sell fleece throws cheaply, for those of us who live outside the Ikea wall
Not sure how it would work but on the theory that something is better than nothing, you can often see 'baby' &/or 'pet blanket' fleece in the 99p shops. A decent enough size to line the top half of a curtain perhaps :rolleyes:

kingshir

Hubby had our wood burning stove on when I got home from work yesterday - apparently not because it was cold but because he was fed up with the grey day:rolleyes: I had to open the windows and back door to let the heat out:p It was lovely and cheery I have to admit:D

MRSTITTLEMOUSE

It was realy cold here this morning,(north east coast),and I had to go round and wipe the condensation off the windows for the first time this year.
I've not needed heating as I like to keep busy first thing so I worked through the cold and now I've had to stop for a cuppa as I'm too hot.
I'm going to get my fleece blankets out of the loft and give them a wash ready for the sofa of an evening.
Lovely and sunny here now but still cold.

cheerfulness4

Crisp here this morning but the sun is dazzling. Washing on the line and 2nd lot half way through.

As I'm full of cold and feeling a little sorry for myself (big MOT repairs bill ) I'm going to have a lovely day knitting more of my draught excluder cover for the lounge and watching DVD's with DS2, who has now caught the cold as well.

Might even finish reading my library book 'little house in big wood.' Now they really knew how to prepare for winter in those days. Fancy having to make your own sugar, butter, clothes, furniture? Actually sounds wonderful in my idylic eyes.
Only read Little House on the Praire up until now but this first book is just a pure delight to read. I feel all warm and fuzzy thinking about it.

Edited: Hmmm thinking about it - maybe an important part of my winter preparation should be making up a reading list of all the 'feel good' books for those long winter evenings when I'm feeling low.
Now where should I start.... :think: