Your tips to keep the house warm

missyrichards

I put a pair of old leggings along the bottom of the front door to use as a draught excluder and it has made an amazing difference.:)

Slipper boots are also very cosy and much warmer than slippers.

Out,_Vile_Jelly

I'm too tight to turn the heating on for long, so wear a wooly hat indoors. Whilst not perhaps the most stylish look, it is really effective.

Hoovering the stairs seems to be the most arduous of all domestic chores and certainly warms me up.

CathA

I leave the airing cupboard door open so the heat from the tank warms the upstairs a bit.

jackyann

Insulate, insulate, insulate, with all the above ideas. Go round checking windows and cupboards and anywhere a gap might be letting warmth out.

Make use of "solar gain" by making sure that the curtains are open when the sun is shining in (even on a cold day it can make a huge difference)

Also check the air currents around your home and make use of them - cutting off areas that sap heat, but encouraging the flow in rooms you want to heat.

You don't say what heating you've got, and if it can be controlled by thermostats. You really need to get to know your thermostat - depending on position you may need to tweak it up or down from the "official" temperature you want. If it seems sensible, consider individual room thermostats.

bilbodreams

We have got gas central heating and in February we fitted in a thermostater, which cost about 40 pouds, it it was money well spent!
We have the original victorian windows and even though I know they are not very efficient, I really want to keep them. I need to check for those little gaps where the heat is escaping though

[Deleted User]

I keep warm in winter by closing the curtains as soon as it starts going dark or straightaway when I get in after work, using the slow cooker (nothing more warming than coming in to a hot meal) and plenty of fleece blankets(these are cheap and so adaptable - lining curtains, extra blanket on bed, for snuggling up on the sofa). Finally the main item i could not live without is a hot water bottle, I have two on the go, one for the bed and one for the sofa.

CathA

Look forward to the menopause!! I get so hot, especially in the evenings after my bath and in bed at night. That's one of the main reasons we don't have the heating on. My daughter thought it very unfair, as I used to be the coldest person on earth and she feels the cold. She's moved out now (nothing to do with the heating issue, honestly!) but it's amazing how much we're saving on the heating. I'm £100 in credit so far.

Mistral001

jackyann wrote: »

Make use of "solar gain" by making sure that the curtains are open when the sun is shining in (even on a cold day it can make a huge difference)

Also check the air currents around your home and make use of them - cutting off areas that sap heat, but encouraging the flow in rooms you want to heat.

.

I agree with solar gain it can heat up the house by several degrees if you make sure curtains are open when the sun is shining. When the weather forecast is sunny for the next day, I open the curtains in rooms which catch the morning sun before going to bed. There is a little heat lost during the night but that is more than compensated for by the heat gain in the morning.


BTW, when my dog was alive he would move around the house according to which room was catching the sun so he certainly believed in solar gain.

Eenymeeny

I just realised during a very cold spell that it was pointless to open thick, lined curtains in north facing bedrooms letting the saved heat escape. Especially since we didn't often revisit during the day! I now leave the doors open for a while after we get up, make the beds etc just to air them, and the heat goes through the house instead.;)
Lots of tips on the 'Preparing for winter' threads as linked earlier.

missbiggles1

CathA wrote: »

I leave the airing cupboard door open so the heat from the tank warms the upstairs a bit.

A decently insulated tank should have very little heat coming off it - certainly not enough to warm the upstairs!