Lodger and Heating

Emily_Joy

I really appreciate all suggestions, but somehow it feels badly wrong. I honestly cannot stop thinking why on Earth in places like Poland, Finland or Northern Canada when it is -40C you can wear just a cotton jumper indoors and get into a warm bed without hot water bottle and in the UK when it is "just" -5 outside you just cannot get the house warm. The answer probably is that the walls there are usually a foot wide in private sector, and in old apartment blocks they could be as deep as 2 feet. It is of course has nothing to do with the OP. Sorry for the rant!

FreeBear

Grumpy_chap said:

I think all the sensible suggestions have been put forward.
I would certainly offer some kind of temperature logging device.  Possibly a min-max thermometer, but what about something that gives additional data as suggested in this thread?

I have a few of these - https://buy.mi.com/uk/item/3204500023 - Available from Amazon & Ebay for just a few pounds. You can download an app that records temperature & humidity, so build up a picture of just how cold a room gets.

Shelldean

Emily_Joy said:

stuhse said:

Realistically i have never had and would never have heating on in a bedroom over night, (i hate staying in hotels where this is the case, sleep is impossible it just so stuffy)  A t-shirt/jumper over your pyjamas/ thicker duvet extra blankets is all i have ever done. 

If it stuffy, just open the window. 

Not all hotels have rooms with window that open, it's either Travelodge or premier inn or maybe both. Have some rooms were Windows don't open!

pieroabcd

Keeping the door closed makes wonders to preserve the heat. You can't heat up the universe (or cool it down in summer). I've seen it in my bedrooms now that it's winter. The difference is really like night and day.

As for duvets, I bought 2 x 13.5 Tog and 2x10 Tog. The only 2 times that I used the 13 tog ones (when it was definitely cold) I felt that I was about to die suffocated, not for the weight but for the unbearable heat. After half an hour I had to get rid of them.
I have thick memory foam toppers on every bed, so that can make a difference, but the 10 tog ones are just perfect for me.

BobT36

pieroabcd said:

Keeping the door closed makes wonders to preserve the heat. You can't heat up the universe (or cool it down in summer). I've seen it in my bedrooms now that it's winter. The difference is really like night and day.

As for duvets, I bought 2 x 13.5 Tog and 2x10 Tog. The only 2 times that I used the 13 tog ones (when it was definitely cold) I felt that I was about to die suffocated, not for the weight but for the unbearable heat. After half an hour I had to get rid of them.
I have thick memory foam toppers on every bed, so that can make a difference, but the 10 tog ones are just perfect for me.

Thick Sherpa blanket from Bedsure, plus one or two additional thinner blankets (added / removed as necessary) over the top of a flat sheet. Been using that all winter and been lovely and warm, but not too hot. 

BIG difference from using a duvet and getting that "stuffy" feeling. 
In the summer I swap to just a sheet and the thinner blankets, then just the sheet. 

SadieO

Emily_Joy said:

I really appreciate all suggestions, but somehow it feels badly wrong. I honestly cannot stop thinking why on Earth in places like Poland, Finland or Northern Canada when it is -40C you can wear just a cotton jumper indoors and get into a warm bed without hot water bottle and in the UK when it is "just" -5 outside you just cannot get the house warm. The answer probably is that the walls there are usually a foot wide in private sector, and in old apartment blocks they could be as deep as 2 feet. It is of course has nothing to do with the OP. Sorry for the rant!

My friend who lives here now is from Canada and she says she gets colder here (inside) than she ever did at home. They can have snow up to the windowsills but still be nice and toasty indoors as their home, shops etc are built for it! 

FreeBear

SadieO said:

Emily_Joy said:

I really appreciate all suggestions, but somehow it feels badly wrong. I honestly cannot stop thinking why on Earth in places like Poland, Finland or Northern Canada when it is -40C you can wear just a cotton jumper indoors and get into a warm bed without hot water bottle and in the UK when it is "just" -5 outside you just cannot get the house warm. The answer probably is that the walls there are usually a foot wide in private sector, and in old apartment blocks they could be as deep as 2 feet. It is of course has nothing to do with the OP. Sorry for the rant!

My friend who lives here now is from Canada and she says she gets colder here (inside) than she ever did at home. They can have snow up to the windowsills but still be nice and toasty indoors as their home, shops etc are built for it! 

Light fluffy snow is a surprisingly good insulator due to all the air trapped in it. Coupled with a draught free house with a decent level of insulation, you don't need a huge amount of heat to stay warm.

jennifernil

We have family in the north of Norway, houses there are also very well insulated.  

The other advantage they have is that electricity generally costs only about 7p per kWh, and wages are about double what they are here.

Heat pumps and panel heaters are widely used, and the majority of houses also have log burners.

ArbitraryRandom

BobT36 said:

pieroabcd said:

Keeping the door closed makes wonders to preserve the heat. You can't heat up the universe (or cool it down in summer). I've seen it in my bedrooms now that it's winter. The difference is really like night and day.

As for duvets, I bought 2 x 13.5 Tog and 2x10 Tog. The only 2 times that I used the 13 tog ones (when it was definitely cold) I felt that I was about to die suffocated, not for the weight but for the unbearable heat. After half an hour I had to get rid of them.
I have thick memory foam toppers on every bed, so that can make a difference, but the 10 tog ones are just perfect for me.

Thick Sherpa blanket from Bedsure, plus one or two additional thinner blankets (added / removed as necessary) over the top of a flat sheet. Been using that all winter and been lovely and warm, but not too hot. 

BIG difference from using a duvet and getting that "stuffy" feeling. 
In the summer I swap to just a sheet and the thinner blankets, then just the sheet. 

I find the synthetic sherpa style blankets horrible for getting to hot and sweaty... plus they aren't very nice after they're washed and that nice wooly texture felts into cotton balls. 

But I've got a couple of lightweight pure wool duvets that are brilliant. I only need both when it's properly freezing (used them for maybe a 6 nights so far this year) and they seem to naturally regulate my temperature at night. After getting them I could understand why sheets wool is recommended as an insulation material in houses. 

BobT36

ArbitraryRandom said:

I find the synthetic sherpa style blankets horrible for getting to hot and sweaty... plus they aren't very nice after they're washed and that nice wooly texture felts into cotton balls. 

But I've got a couple of lightweight pure wool duvets that are brilliant. I only need both when it's properly freezing (used them for maybe a 6 nights so far this year) and they seem to naturally regulate my temperature at night. After getting them I could understand why sheets wool is recommended as an insulation material in houses. 

Really? Been using mine for over 8 years now and it's been going perfectly fine. No deformation to the fluff. 
However I don't "feel" it as much anyway since I have the thin, flat sheet over me, then the sherpa on top of that, so I don't need to wash the Sherpa as often anyway. Still though it's as soft as when we bought it. The Bedsure brand have been good.

Each to their own, though. But certainly haven't been too hot under it. I have a King size bed so when I used a duvet I was always having to "flap" it as the air trapped underneath would always be hot and sweaty! Never had that with the Sherpa (and other thinner blankets on top).