Your tips to keep the house warm

maman

katkin wrote: »

You can't beat a hot water bottle - or electric blanket!

Depending on your lifestyle going to bed early with an electric blanket/hot water bottle is an excellent idea. Obviously it won't work for a whole family but if you are going to be 'home alone' watching TV, on the internet or reading then it's far cheaper to do it that way than heat the whole house late into the evening.

GrannyKate

Have to agree about the importance of curtains. I draw mine late afternoon before it gets completely dark. Can't understand current trend in programmes like a Grand Designs to have no curtains. We got free loft and cavity wall insulation a few years ago under one of those schemes. Has made a lot of difference particularly to bedrooms in our bungalow - do not get mould on the outside walls anymore. We have carpets in bedrooms but otherwise wooden floors with some rugs. I do not find floors cold really.

whiteguineapig

the electric blanket is one of the best things i'v bought, its an under blanket and has a separate controller for each side, i can't tell you how much i love it lol
sorry just realised, that keeps the bed warm not the house!

greenbee

If you have radiators under the windows, and long curtains, remember that radiators are actually convector heaters, so cold air travels along the ground, is pulled into the radiator, is heated and then rises up. If you have curtains on a pole (so hanging in front of the radiator rather than on top) it won't compromise the radiators much as the air can pass behind the curtains and up to the ceiling. Just make sure the curtains don't go right to the ground, as the air needs to be able to circulate properly.

It's always worth looking at air circulation patterns with radiators - frequently cold spots are because warm air can't reach them, not that you need a bigger radiator. I would have liked to move a couple that were under windows, but it would have meant that the rooms wouldn't heat properly. However, I've opened a couple of rooms up, so now can move one of them. A couple of upstairs radiators are going to be moved so that the rooms can be used more efficiently (and upstairs is warmer than downstairs anyway).

babyblooz

Brushed cotton sheets are so much more cosy than cotton or polycotton. I noticed Primarni selling them this year so don't need to be expensive.

The snuggliness of them is amazing, especially when coupled with a hot water bottle!

babyblooz

I can also recommend the thin base layer tops sold online and from sports shops. They fit quite close to the body without being bulky and stop all those pesky little draughts from giving you shivers. They are not sweaty to wear and wash and dry quickly. I have two, one to wear and one to wash.

NewShadow

Some great ideas here.

Not sure I do much differently... I used to live in a flat with awful storage heaters. I was out all day, so when I got home most of the heat was gone, even when turned right down, and it was far too hot at night while they were charging, so in the end I didn't use them.

There were two things I focused on - generating heat, and stopping it escaping when it was generated.

I invested in blackout blinds (the cheapest I found was argos), put up curtains, and safety pinned fleece blankets between the curtains and the blinds. I also made sure the curtains were bunched on the windowsill so draughts couldn't drop down.

I also put up a door curtain - it was a glass fronted upvc door, so it cut ambient light as well.

An oil filled radiator with a thermostat was great for keeping the room I was in at a constant temp (it only came on when the temp dropped), and I bought a remoska - cheaper than the oven to run and warmed the kitchen extremely well.

I bought two decent feather duvets (insulate and keep longer than synthetic - still have them both going strong 6 years later...) - put one on the mattress and one over me, and a couple of wool (army surplus types at £5 each) blankets for on top.

I bought pyjamas, a dressing gown, and slippers - bed socks were bought, but I hate hot feet in bed, and some gloves - as you may note, I tend to stay up late reading or on the internet and my hands always go cold and stiff when I sit still.

I got some [strike]hotter[/strike] hot water bottles, and a cat... not sure that one saved money in the long run, but it kept me sane (ish )

I became more aware of the importance of keeping dry and wearing sensible clothing - I bought a decent waxed winter coat (second hand barbor no less), socks, and jumpers.

I bought low cal hot chocolate and indulged in the fact it was cold

And I acknowledged that keeping warm required proper fuelling, so was more vigilant about eating balanced and regular meals - porridge and rice pudding are equally awesome! :cool:

I think that's about it... HTH

rosie383

I had old skinny blankets and throws which weren't really much use for heat any more. I sewed three of them together and honestly it is now the cosiest, snuggliest blanket for cuddling on the sofa. I have another few left so will sew those as well.
We are in the process of going carpet-free in the house so will invest in a few decent rugs and warm slippers and socks.
Does anyone else find that there is a lot more condensation on the windows when the heat has been on? This house is more damp and cold than our last house and I'm still trying to figure it out.

[Deleted User]

I have joint problems when the weather turns nippy so its essential that I keep warm as much as possible I do most of the above and also shut the doors indoors No good having a warm sitting room if the door to the hall or kitchen is left open. I also layer up when I go out as two or three thin layers keep you warm more than one thick jumper.I too wear a hat of the 'beanie' type even indoors if its nippy.I have always said this country doesn't have bad weather only badly dressed people .The amount of times I have seen folk out when its cold moaning about the weather and they have hardly anything on.

My DGD does this and runs around their house in a tee shirt complaining of being cold !.Then there are the small children in a pushchair with bright red noses looking frozen because Mum hasn't wrapped a blanket around their knees.If they are in a pushchair sitting still their blood isn't getting a chance to circulate and warm them up.

This morning I am off on my 'healthy living' local walk and will be layered up.After a briskish hobble around the local surroundings with other people to natter to we all go back to the library for a hot drink and a biscuit.Costs nothing, but inclination to get out and get some fresh air and a bit of exercise.Where I live in the Medway almost all of the libraries do these walks to encourage folk to keep healthy and chatting to someone of the way is great as you never know who will turn up.OK its usually older people that go on them but no reason why a younger person can't join in,there is no age barrier.

I had a lovely chat to one lady about her trip to Cairo in the summer, but then I love to meet new people and have a natter anyway.
Fresh air whilst wrapped up warm won't kill you,but festering indoors when you are somewhat older in years might.We have two walks the longer ones for the more energetic, and a shorter one for the less able.Depending on how my joints are I have been on both

bilbodreams

Thank you all for the replies, got lots of work to do to cosy up, and I have got British Gxs to come in and check the loft, i live in a victorian terrace house, who knows I might get it insulated for free! I love this forum.