Anyone planning ahead?

LadyHarriet

annieb64 said:

In the days when people had brick or stone floors in their kitchens women would often have a small rug to stand on in front of the sink. My grandma once gave me a half finished one along with one of Grandad's old cut throat razors which she used to cut the rug wool.

I volunteer at a National Trust Victorian property - the kitchens are vast, have high ceilings and stone floors. We used to have wooden 'duckboards' to stand on when demonstrating how to make butter balls/cut out gingerbread men/make pastry at Christmas. The kitchens were cold at the best of times and decidedly parky in December - those duckboards really made a difference to how cold one's feet got! 

Grabs39

We’re usually happy with keeping the heating low (16 or 17) in mornings and evenings and off at night and during the day.  Slippers and a dressing gown over normal clothes keep the cold off when WFH (the sitting at the desk all day makes it feel colder).  I don’t think we can do more than we did anyway, as I’ve always tried to keep gas use low for environmental reasons, but now suddenly cost is a factor too.

We’re expecting our first baby in October and are alarmed that it’s suggested/recommended to heat the house to 18C 24/7!  Our bedroom normally drops to 14C on normal winter nights, and a bit lower when it’s really cold out.  Luckily a couple of weeks ago Aldi had a stack of electric heaters in the car park for £25 down from £60.  It has a digital thermostat so I’m thinking that setting that to 17 or 18 to maintain the bedroom temp overnight will be far better than heating the whole house with the central heating, even taking into account the difference in cost between gas and electric.

JinJinBlue

I'm rejigging the use of my rooms to keep warm during the autumn and winter. My dining room is the warmest in the house because it's surrounded on all four sides by other rooms. It has access to the conservatory so I can open the windows if needed. I have a sofa bed in there and can move my telly. It should be nice and cosy later this year. I have a space heater and thanks to the tips on the forum, blankets, slippers, thermals etc. Thanks for all the tips and advice everyone. 

fionaandphil

Grabs39 said:

We’re expecting our first baby in October and are alarmed that it’s suggested/recommended to heat the house to 18C 24/7!  

Worth keeping a lookout for baby sleeping bags to keep them warm without overheating. They do different tog ratings for different times of year and it also means they don't kick off their bedding. We were lucky to also get a gift of hand knitted cardigans from a family friend which gave a nice extra layer for baby during the day. Also made good use of pram suits when out and about. It may be a good time of year to look out for these things in the sales to prep for winter. Ours was a September baby on a really harsh winter and we found that if he was warm he was happy and slept well. Good luck!

London_1

When my two DDs were babies many years ago now (1967-69) I was pretty brassic as we were saving to get a deposit for our own first house, and living in two rented rooms.

I bought from an Oxfam shop (first charity shop buy ever, as I'd never seen a charity shop before then ),  cost me 5/- (25p) a single flanellette sheet. I took it home and cut it into four quarters, and hand sewed four little sleeping bags with buttons on, to button onto loops of tape I had sewn onto their babygrows/nighties when I put the baby down to sleep
 It was button the bag to the front and side of the nightclothes, and if baby kicked off her blankets it didn't matter as their feet and legs were kept warm

My eldest DD was two when her sister was born so out came the 'baby bags ' again ,and I buttoned her into them as well
Both babies were December born so were very young in their first winter, and we had no heating in their bedroom.

My late husband and I slept on the Put-U-Up sofe in the sitting room as the bedroom was too small for a cot  ,single bed and double bed But we managed, I actually had my second daughter at home on the sofa bed with the midwife in attendance

Back then London was overcrowded even then, and housing was at a premium We shared a loo with two other families and had no bathroom until we managed to finally buy a place after almost 5 years of saving for a deposit. But my little 'babybags worked a treat and were easy to make and kept them warm. I had no sewing machine so it was a case of sitting and hand sewing them but it worked and cost very little 

JackieO xx

ariarnia

not so much planning ahead as trying to avoid a short term fix. anyone know where you can get a good old fashioned line prop? one with a metal cap at the bottom to stop the rot? 

i've bought a couple of thin metal adjustable ones from the market but they've both bent/snapped within a couple of months. we can buy a long length of wood, but its untreated pine so i think it'll just warp and bend even if we give it a couple of coats of preservative. 

fionaandphil

@ariarnia have you tried Argos or wilko? 

ariarnia

yes, they sell the same thin metal extendable poles as i've tried before. don't even last 6 months in our garden. the first time the kids step on it while running around and it buckles. 

EssexHebridean

@Grabs39 I’d think again about using electric heaters if you have gas central heating installed - electric plug ins are the single most expensive way of heating your home, and even more so if you leave them ticking over on a thermostat like that. It might be worth popping over to the energy board for advice as they will be able to confirm the likely best ways of ensuring that the temperature is right.

bupster

@EssexHebridean and @Grabs39 - EH is right that CH is a much better bet. If you have a mobile thermostat for your CH could you move that into the bedroom overnight and turn the rest of the radiators off?

If not, then an oil-filled plug-in is the best bet - not sure what you managed to snaffle from Aldi. They're cheaper than any other electric radiator and because the oil retains heat, the thermostat is a really good way of running them. 

I'm sort of jealous - I much prefer a freezing cold bedroom but have never managed to live in a house where the bedroom's not like a furnace!