BS: Getting Ready For Winter

Subject: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: LilyFestre
Date: 20 Oct 05 - 06:24 PM

Winter is creeping up fast and we have started making some adjustments to our home in hopes of conserving some energy while saving some money too. For us, that means putting plastic up on the outside of several windows around the house as well as some inside, more rugs on the floor, electric space heaters, thermal drapes, closing rooms that are not in use (open floor plan, no heat upstairs), cleaning up the ceiling fans, getting out the warm slippers, opening curtains during sunny hours, closing them at night, adding some more insulation/skirting stuff around the base of the house (house sits on small stilts...no basement..lots of cold air comes up from under the house), planning lots of oven meals, wood being split and cut....I'm sure there are more ideas out there....what do the rest of you do to help stay warm and lower your heating bills?

Michelle

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: Peace
Date: 20 Oct 05 - 06:42 PM

I have over the years got used to the places I live being at 65 or so degrees. Extra blanket at night.

Skirting is a must.

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: Ebbie
Date: 20 Oct 05 - 06:51 PM

Not only skirting but a vapor barrier on the ground beneath the house. Makes the biggest difference.

And I agree with Peace. I keep the thermostat at 64 degrees. When I sit on the recliner in the evening I use a lap robe and a cat for coziness. I rarely turn on the actual heat. This house has an oil-fired water pipe system with radiators so there is always some hot water moving somewhere. Plus I'm on the top floor and I get a lot of the residual heat from below.

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: LilyFestre
Date: 20 Oct 05 - 06:54 PM

Yeah, the heat is set at 65 here also unless one of us has a cold, then, if we are feeling like living in the lap of luxury, we hike it up to 68 degrees! Otherwise, the standard answer around here goes something like this:

"Can we turn up the heat?"
"No, put on another pair of socks."
"I'm still cold."
"Put on another sweater"
"I did. I'm still cold. Oh the heck with it, I'm going to bed where it's WARM!!!!"

I get plenty of reading done that way...all curled up under about 4 quilts or so!!

As for the skirting...our house sits on a slope, so only part of the house has a great deal of space underneath...and that is where it gets so cold. There is wood there but it simply needs MORE insulation. It seems that each year, time slips away from us and it doesn't get done...this year by darn....it is going to HAVE to...can't afford the hike in the heating prices!

Michelle

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: artbrooks
Date: 20 Oct 05 - 07:15 PM

LilyFestre, get some fiberglass batts and tack them up under the floor joists...assuming you can get at the underside of the house. More information here.

Another must-do is pipe insulation for any hot water pipes that run outside, like if your water heater is in a garage, and an insulation blanket for the hot water heater itself (unnecessary, I think, if it is less than 10 years old). These won't keep you any warmer, but they'll save a lot of money.

We just invested in some new double-pane fiberglass windows, to replace the approximately half of our windows that don't seal. They are supposed to be installed later this month, before it starts to get cold here. We also have some good doors on the fireplace so we can enjoy the heat without all of the warm air being sucked into the great outdoors. My project for next weekend is to re-felt the edges of the outside door.

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: Liz the Squeak
Date: 20 Oct 05 - 07:22 PM

I wish I could get Limpit into the habit of putting on a jumper... she's forever complaining when it gets chilly and is now tall enough to reach the boiler switches.....

LTS

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: Bunnahabhain
Date: 20 Oct 05 - 07:27 PM

Same here. I only have a few external walls, so the heating just doesn't go on at very much at all. Just put a jumper on instead. Except when Crystal( yes, the Mudcat Crystal) is here, and as she feels the cold, the heating goes on.

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: Peace
Date: 20 Oct 05 - 07:32 PM

PS

Michelle, I know you have a decent camera. Get some black and white infrared film. (You have to adjust the focus for it--I can explain how). Anyway, get some heat going in the house. When it gets cold outside, go out and take shots of the entire house. When you get the pictures back, the pics will show you where you are losing heat.

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: Richard Bridge
Date: 20 Oct 05 - 07:39 PM

Hmmm. Before Jacqui died she always used to set the thermostats to 23 degrees (about 72 or 73). And I DO wear a thick pullover.

Everything is double glazed. Some windows get a layer of plastic (or cling film) in the winter, with sellotape to hold it on, so making triple glazed. Loft has 6 inches of fiberglass. Almost all floors have underlay and carpet (on top of screed and concrete, no void underneath)

Long range forecast this year for the southern UK is very threatening. Plans include new chain for chainsaw for wood (the woodburner is rated at 17 kilowatts), gas bottles for the (3) portable gas heaters, generator to power the electric bits in the gas central heating. I do also have some paraffin stoves, and two oil-filled portable electric radiators with time switches.

If I knew anyone getting rid of little storage heaters that would be handy for the conservatory. My last house the conservatory got lined with bubble wrap, but the design of the conservatory in this house makes that tricky to arrange.

The dogs are a bit big to use as hot water bottles...

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: GUEST,Jon
Date: 20 Oct 05 - 08:43 PM

Heating is "on" all the while here (summer too) and I haven't "moved" our thermostat since fitting it. It's set at 18 (64) day and 15 (59) after 12 till about 6. Seems to work out OK for us. In the winter, the main living room has a woodburner which is lit during the day and if I'm up later in my room and get cold, sometimes I use an electric heater for that bit although I may also use an extra jumper instead.

I've heard the heating fire up a couple of times at night lately but it's still not that cold. Thermometer in my room is reading 19 (66) as I type.

One thing I'm convinced made a big difference here (and as Peter is disabled was done for free - Warm Front (UK)) was to have the cavity walls insulated and the roof insulation brought up to current standards.

Just checking outside temp...It's 10 (50) in the sheds.

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: Rapparee
Date: 20 Oct 05 - 09:36 PM

It's been quite pleasant here -- 74 F today, maybe 45 F at night. But it will change.

The fireplaces (with inserts) have been cleaned and are ready. I've got a little wood, nothing much, but some. The snowblower is ready and the lawnmower is put to bed.

We broke out the Raven Blanket last weekend; that, with the electric warmer and the quilt, should keep us toasty.

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: LilyFestre
Date: 20 Oct 05 - 10:13 PM

Brucie,

   That's a very interesting idea!!! Any suggestions as to where to find infra-red film? I'm sure I can find it on the web...just thought maybe you'd know somewhere off hand. Hmmm....very, very interesting. I'm going to have to think on this some...

Michelle

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: Mark Cohen
Date: 21 Oct 05 - 12:46 AM

Well, today I wore a long-sleeved shirt to work for the first time in 12 years...

Aloha,
Mark
(Ducking and covering)

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: Bev and Jerry
Date: 21 Oct 05 - 01:05 AM

Puh-lease, Mark. Where you live and where we live it's hard to tell winter from summer. These guys are talking about WINTER!! They mean things like snow and frost. You ever hear of those? We were brought up in Ohio and we have dim memories of real winter. That's why we live where we do.

Bev and Jerry

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: open mike
Date: 21 Oct 05 - 01:23 AM

bruce, i can hardly imagine you in a skirt!
is it a kilt?

i drained the solar collector...
it circulates water to a tank
when the sun shines on it,
but if the pipes are full of water
when the temp dips below freezing
or even hover just above freezing
the frozen water is strong enough
to burst the pies and they were
hard enough to solder the first
time around!!

for spring and fall I heat water
with a propane tankless H2OT
heater, and in the winter when
the wood stove is on, there is
a heat exchanger loop in the
fire box which heats water in
a storage tank. 3 systems...
3 times as many things to
break and pipes to fix...

i also got up on the roof and
blew the leaves out of the gutters
and now i have to get up there
again and dig out the stubborn'
ones that remain.

the frost sensitive plants
need to be dug up and moved
indoors and some others need
to be cut back. Although it
has rained a small amount,
the burn ban is still in
effect and i cannot light
the brush pile from trimmings
and garden wood waste for
another month or more yet.

the wind has delivered some
kindling and i gather sticks
and pine cones often.

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: Mark Cohen
Date: 21 Oct 05 - 01:27 AM

I grew up in Philadelphia, and lived my first three decades between the Susquehanna River and the Jersey shore. I also spent a very long year in Western Massachusetts. Yeah, I've done winter. You're welcome to it. When I moved to Portland, people asked me if I missed the four seasons. I'd reply that I only missed two of them, and they weren't very long.

Aloha,
Mark

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: Liz the Squeak
Date: 21 Oct 05 - 04:20 AM

Must remember to bleed the radiators this weekend... oh joy.

LTS

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: JohnInKansas
Date: 21 Oct 05 - 05:10 AM

LilyFestre and Brucie -

Almost any B/W negative film is somewhat sensitive to IR wavelengths if you can find a good IR Filter to snap over the lens. Exposure time is a bit tricky to figure, but you could probably "bracket" it to get a sufficient number of usable shots on a typical roll of film. It's probably best to take your pics on the coldest day possible, to avoid "fog" from the amazingly prominent hot spots you never realized were there.

I don't know how sensitive common digital cameras are with an IR filter, but it's an interesting notion. Maybe I can justify a new digicam with interchangeable lenses and filter mounts for the experiment ... in about 50 years or so.

Around a thousand years ago, we did a few shots "just for fun" using a method from an old US Navy manual (early 1940s era) that claimed you could make your own IR film by soaking "any" B/W film in a bicarbonate of soda solution before exposure. Of course you have to do the soaking, rinsing, drying, and the rewinding into the cannister (assuming you use 35mm) all in the dark and preferably in a cold dark room. Altogether not a pleasant process. I won't comment on how successful we were...

For practical IR photography, you're pretty much dependent on what the suppliers will provide for you, so consulting with a good shop - and following their advice - is recommended.

In my area, there are probably more people equipped with "Military Surplus Night Vision Goggles" than with IR photo stuff. If you can find a real "survivalist" you might persuade one to come over and let you peek through his sniper-eyes.

Also in my area, there are a few "heating consultants" who can be hired to come out to take IR photos with their digital infrared cameras, to show where the heat leaks are. I don't believe it's terribly expensive, but don't have any idea what actual charges might be. (The same guys can also be hired to do a "thermal solution to all your problems," but that does tend to be expensive.)

A side note is that not too long ago the common method of shooting the "night scenes" for movies was to use IR film/filters in broad daylight. I don't know if it's still done that way, but it seemed to work pretty well back before we got used to all the modern special effects.

John

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: Crystal
Date: 21 Oct 05 - 05:36 AM

I've got a thick quilt and a hot water bottle!
My flatmates are from Portugal and India and are already complaining that it is cold and have the heating cranked up every evening. I wouldn't mind except that we are totally electric and currently I'm paying £5 every 2 1/2 weeks on the meatre. So there goes my chbance of having the heating on in my room!

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: LilyFestre
Date: 21 Oct 05 - 07:29 AM

I actually LIKE many parts of the winter season....love the snow, the silence of it, the howling wind at night, the cold air on my face...stuff like that.

I don't like driving when it's icy (in fact, I don't...I just stay home), the fact that the trees are so bare, the lack of color, and my heat bill. I can't do much about any of these things except the heat bill....so keep those ideas coming.....it's 36 degrees here this morning.....winter is definately on the way!!!

Michelle

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: Rapparee
Date: 21 Oct 05 - 08:54 AM

At work we're doing other things. I've ordered the thermostats be set no higher than 68 during the day and 62 when we're closed (staff who need to can use small electric heaters -- all purchased just last year -- if they take good sense precautions). They're already getting out fingerless gloves, sweaters, and so on. We're having ceiling fans installed in the administration area, which has 14 foot ceilings with heating vents in the ceiling -- why not circulate the hot (and cool) air? The snowblower is ready to go, and we've laid in a supply of ice melt.

My office is another story. I had one with two windows facing west, but the staff moved me into one with 3 western windows (one "wall sized") and one south-facing. We don't have experience of the way it's arranged, so we'll have to see. In the meantime, I've broken out the ol' sweaters.

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: Bunnahabhain
Date: 21 Oct 05 - 09:34 AM

More on IR film....

As noted above most, BW has some sensitivity to IR. If you can't get hold of an IR filter, a deep red one does not a bad job. Of course, the easiest way to filter out the visible light is to wait until it gets dark.

Ahh, the joy of photography at night! lugging a tripod about, and setting up gear in the dark, nad normally the cold as well.

Johninkansas, I've got a Nikon DSLR, so will try and borrow an IR filter. It should give a reasonable idea of how sensitive they can be to IR.

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: Rapparee
Date: 21 Oct 05 - 09:39 AM

Some electric/gas companies will do thermal imaging for free or at a nominal cost. Some cities do this, too. Call and ask -- if they don't do it, they might well know who does.

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: wysiwyg
Date: 21 Oct 05 - 11:24 AM

Plexiglass panels cut and fitted tightly in window openings (indoors) where more heat goes out than warmth from sunlight comes in; especially in the wondows essential for preventing SAD. Over time, these are cheaper than a new plastic-fim window kit every year. I used tiny nails (brads) to hold them in tight like yo would use on the back of a picture frame to hold the mat and glass and picturte. They pull out easily in the spring, and I re-use the same hole the next year. A strip of stick-on rubber door insulation, on the side where they meet the window frame, helps make a good seal.

Home-made rollup shades to lower over the worst windows at night-- you know our house, LF, and these would be the giant LR and kitchen picture windows that are only a single layer of glass. The kitchen one is VERY effective-- it's a double bed quilt but it rolls up and down. Ask Hardi for details.

Under-door cracks-- stuffed with foam from old cushions, for rooms generally closed for the season.

Playroom-- we're planning plywood screw-on panels for the outside, lined with Celotex, painted white for the inside view.

Pine bedroom-- Same plywood panels as above, but from the inside. These panels get a strip of rubber all around the perimeter to ensure a good seal against wind.

Watch the cheap blankets going on sale-- they make great rollup shades or an additional layer under drapes, using clip-on hooks to both adjust length and put onto a cheap rod.

Drape across hallways that carry heat away from thermostat and people-- tension rod holding cheap blankets weighted at the bottom.

Speaking of thermostats, programmable ones are great so you can go as cool at night as possible but be a few degrees warmer for wakeup time. Also, protect stats from sunlight falsely telling them the room is too warm, and from drafts telling them it's too cold.

Electric blankets are WAY less efficient than electric mattress pads. Use them the hour before bedtime to pre-warm the bed and blankets, then shut them off for the night. Used that way they last forever.

Adjust food consumption to provide fuel and body heat at the most-needed times.

Area rugs on key cold-spots.

Portieres for drafty interior doors-- a curtain hung over the door opening (spit down the center) and tied back to allow passage, blocks a lot of draft through the frame of a loose door.

Hold a lit candle near each window, running it around the frame. Cheap construction often fails to caulk/insulate inside the gap between the window and the opening where the window is installed. The candle will show you where to caulk, exactly. Moretite is a removable caulk applied without a caulk gun, that does not damage wood surfaces. I have some-- come see, if you don't know this product.

Caulk or Moretite the gap between top and bottom sash of a window-- a lot of heat pours out there and a lot of cold, damp wind pours in. There are also stuffed tubes like those for blocking under-door drafts, that can be used on top of that window-sash gap.

Removeable plywood panels to block wind at entry doors-- make an airlock where you have an open porch right now. Even a partial block of the wind is a help-- we will be enclosing the dog porch on two sides this year, leaving the less windy side fully or partially open for them to come up on it to come into the house.

If you add one measure, all over the house, each year, you can have the house tighter and tighter the longer you live in it. (And you can do it more efficiently each year for the temporary stuff.) Each year, the question is, "Are you still cold when you sit here, or here, or here?"

At your house, I'd focus on that tension-rod thing for adding layers over the windows, so there's no concern about that lovely woodwork.

~S~

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 21 Oct 05 - 02:26 PM

Exactly--before going to the trouble or expense of finding the film and filters, check to see what your local power company will do for you. You might be surprised.

Here in North Texas we have to prepare for winter. Not all of Texas is about the balmy Gulf Coast or Rio Grande Valley. Some winters we have very cold weather for many days in a row. A couple of times a year it gets below 20^oF and occasionally it will get much lower, like into the teens or single digit temperatures. Cold enough that we have to be sure to winterize faucets (and both of mine are dripping and need new washers--I can't get them apart myself so may have to call a plumber to do it. Darn!)

Our houses are built on slabs, no basements so there is an averaging that happens temperature-wise. As with caves and a year-round temperature, we tend to experience a slow shift of the soil temperatures. The house stays warm for a while once the outside temperature drops, and it stays cool for a while once the outside temperatures rise. This is over the course of a few weeks, but if you understand this phenomena, you can "coast" on the power usage for a little while.

Our rates have gone up considerably this year, and I expect the cost to continue to rise. Our home is all electric. I need to buy an insulating curtain to go over the sliding glass back door, I need to build an insulated dog house, and I need to figure out where the dogs will stay when they're in the house during the coldest weather. This will be our first winter with the dogs.

I have a fireplace that is a pain in the butt. It doesn't draw well, and the old heat-a-lator was rotted through, so the doors that have been adjusted to cover the space let a lot of cold air through. I'd like to get a fireplace insert and a blower. Every year people have their trees trimmed in this neighborhood and I think one of these days I'll get myself a nice-sized chainsaw and go ask permission to take some of the wood that is usually left for bulky waste. There's a lot of good oak out there.

SRS

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: Peace
Date: 21 Oct 05 - 02:39 PM

Michelle,

Black and white infrared is available at many photo stores. Kodak makes it, and it is not a special developing process. (Colour infrared is, and I understand that very few places in North America develop it anymore. BUT, you're interested in black and white. I will look for a user-friendly site that explains the process to ya.

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: Peace
Date: 21 Oct 05 - 02:42 PM

Bingo. First site I looked at.

http://www.vividlight.com/articles/2915.htm

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: LilyFestre
Date: 21 Oct 05 - 05:23 PM

Ok..just back from a day out spent exclusively getting things to help us get ready for winter....on my way to a musical evening at
10 West....c'mon and join us WYSIWYG!!! North Fork is playing....we're going to see Tom Hoover...the rest of them...well...we're going to see Tom Hoover! We'll be there around 6:30 so as to get a seat with a table....hope to see you there!

More about the cold improvements when we get home!
Thanks for the link Brucie, you still rock old man...you still rock!

*Ducking so I don't get hit*

Buh bye!

Michelle

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: wysiwyg
Date: 21 Oct 05 - 05:27 PM

Day Spent = Me too, same way

Ten West = Day spent, me too!

Hardi doing a wedding rehearsal, I'm going back to bed!

~S~

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: Ebbie
Date: 21 Oct 05 - 05:44 PM

" curtain hung over the door opening (spit down the center)" Wyzzy

I prefer not to have spit on my curtains. LOL

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: wysiwyg
Date: 21 Oct 05 - 06:06 PM

Ah but it's the spit that makes it work, Eb!

:~)

~S~

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: Morticia
Date: 21 Oct 05 - 06:58 PM

NO!!!! There is NO winter.......I will be in denial ( not the one in Egypt) until I have to scrape the windscreen......there is NO winter!!

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: Peace
Date: 21 Oct 05 - 07:50 PM

I agree with YOU, Morticia. All's I gotta do is explain this friggin' white stuff on the ground. However, there IS no winter. There is no winter. There is no . . . .

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: Bobert
Date: 21 Oct 05 - 08:02 PM

Whew, I have been avoidin' this thread 'cause, fir the first tinme in a long, long time, I am ill-prepared fir winter... The P-Vine and I are livin' in a construction site... We don't have heat right now other than a couple small electric heaters but we hope to have a heat pump and duct work installed within a couple of weeks... Meanwhile, it's colder every day and the night time temps are soon to be in the 30's...

Our goal is to, at the very least, have the additions framed in before the first snow and have a coal stove hooked up in on of the additions...

This is gonna be a tough winter on us and we aren't even anywhere the fine tunin' stage...

But we're both tough and have lots of sweaters, coats and blankets...

Bobert

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: mouldy
Date: 22 Oct 05 - 07:34 AM

Sod's law - I yet again didn't get round to replacing my old boiler, and the forecast winter for the UK, as LTS said, is a more than even chance of BRRRR! An old lad from a neighbouring village, who was never wrong, so it's said, predicted a big freeze starting around New Year and lasting until April. He died a few weeks ago. Did he really know something we don't? At least the boiler's going for the moment!

Just ordered sheepskin gloves and steering wheel cover. I have poor circulation in my hands, and my job won't let me wimp out if the weather does get bad. Got the goosedown jacket lined up too.

The problem with my house is that it is old and doesn't have cavity walls. At least I can stoke up a roaring fire if I need to.

Andrea

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: Rapparee
Date: 22 Oct 05 - 09:30 AM

We've also got the expedition weight longies, silk long johns, sweaters, coats, and I have a parka that good down to about -35 F. The usual sorts of cold weather clothes.

Good gloves and mittens are a must, as are good warm socks. And while it might be offensive to some, I've never found a substitute for leather or real fur.

(Not that I have real fur. I don't, except for one VERY warm rabbit hat. But coyote fur as a ruff around the hood of a parka keeps out snow while permitting you to see out because of the structure of the "guard hairs" -- dog or wolf would work as well. Wolverine doesn't frost up from your breath, which is why Arctic peoples use it to line parka hoods. However, I have neither the need for nor the money to afford such things!)

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: Seiri Omaar
Date: 22 Oct 05 - 09:40 AM

Still warm enough here. But then again, I live on the 14th floor of a university residence. But the weather's not bad.

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: Rapparee
Date: 22 Oct 05 - 09:46 AM

Actually, it's supposed to be only partly cloudy with highs in the upper 60s (F.) here this coming week. But we are ready (or preparing).

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: wysiwyg
Date: 22 Oct 05 - 09:50 AM

Waking up and coming downstairs this morning, now that we are back to cold, gray, damp weather, I was immediately reminded of the most important things of all-- the loose, soft wool cap and the lightweight silk throat scarf. With those on, even my feet warm up. My head and neck don't FEEL cold, but that's where the infrared would show the loss of heats that's needed by the feets!

~Susan

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: bobad
Date: 22 Oct 05 - 10:50 AM

For those who suffer from cold feet or would simply like to keep their feet toasty-warm in winter I heartily recommend mohair socks. These are locally produced and very popular with the local populace. We have given them out as gifts to dozens of our friends and family and everyone of them, without exception, can't praise them highly enough. Do yourself a favour, your feet will love you for it.

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 22 Oct 05 - 10:54 AM

We have almost all tile floors in this house, so it's time to be sure the little rugs are in place at the side of everyone's bed. We find those are helpful in the transistion between barefoot in bed to sitting up and putting on ones slippers.

I have "regular" thermostats in the house because the guys from York said they hadn't had good luck with the programmable ones. But it is time once again to look into replacing those. I have the house in two zones, and at night I don't heat the office and kitchen area, just the bedrooms and the living area. But I always have to remember to switch that around once we're up and if I'm working at home. There's the rub--the house often is heated all day when it isn't needed.

We love sweaters and dressing in layers, and have tons of that kind of stuff around. I have heavier bedding for everyone, no matter what their preference. Some like a down comforter, others like layers of heavier blankets.

SRS

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: Charmion
Date: 22 Oct 05 - 02:51 PM

bobad, I heartily endorse those mohair socks, too.

We are having a late fall this year in Ottawa; our first killing frost will probably be tonight. I can remember many years when we already had some snow by now.

If your house is chronically cold, you mind it less if you concentrate on keeping your hands, feet and back warm. Polyester fleece or sheepskin slippers can't be beat, and I also recommend an undershirt or camisole made of silk or that artificial stuff they use for both skiing longjohns and rope ... polypropylene, that's it. Wool is also good, but bulkier and sometimes unacceptably itchy. If your fingers tend to be stiff, acquire a pair of light gloves made without fingertips.

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: LilyFestre
Date: 22 Oct 05 - 03:06 PM

OK...here's what we have gathered:

11 panels of sheet style insulation to take care of the underdrafts.

Plenty of material (flannel material, extra thick batting) to make quilted custom fit shades for each window on the northwest side of the house where the majority of the blustery wind comes from (more later for the rest of the house)

A new rug for the music room with the bare floor.

Sand to make draft dodgers for unused doors and window sills.

Another portable heater.

Plastic for all windows (outside plastic and extra staples for the staple gun).

There will be more, but that was enough for now.

At the moment, there is a fire in the woodstove, the furnace was on for about 10 minutes to kill the chill just a tad (NO NO NO furnace....leave it OFF...put MORE clothes on!), slippers have been washed, dried and are oh so cozy, apple crisp is baking in the crock pot and the apple skins are simmering on the stove with cloves....sometimes that kind of smell helps to warm me up...candles lit for a "warm" atmosphere....and I'm kinda hating to go out later this evening.....

One last thing that really helps...sounds silly..but using a blow dryer for about 3 minutes warms up my head, neck and back...and I'm good to go. I absolutely refuse to wear a hat and gloves in my own home!!!!!

Michelle

PS. Tom Hoover was great, as was Rick Dale....very, very good music in a packed coffeehouse. Sad news...Tom is moving away for 5 months!!!! *POUT*

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: Metchosin
Date: 22 Oct 05 - 04:24 PM

Michelle, you might also consider stapling sauna foil to the area as well. Its craft paper backed and way cheaper than the aluminum coated poly vapour barrier material.

A huge amount of heat loss is radiant and neither fibreglass nor rigid foam insulation has any effect on radiant heat loss and gain. However, I wouldn't recommend it, if you cant' place it directly against the subfloor, as it will also act as a vapour barrier as well, which you don't want on the wrong side, ie. exterior of your insulation.

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: number 6
Date: 01 Nov 05 - 11:57 AM

Finally decided on a snow thrower and bought one this morning. At my age I certainly don't want the risk of a heart seisure whilst shovelling the cursed snow.

sIx

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 01 Nov 05 - 12:23 PM

I need to make some of those clever little cloth "snake" things that are filled with sand and are pushed along the bottom of the doors to keep a breeze from coming underneath.

I also need to put an aluminum door (screen and glass type) on my garage, and modify the bottom of it to install a dog flap. This way the inner door can stand open when needed and the screen door will keep out some of the weather and other critters. It will also help keep the rain from coming under the existing door and pooling in front of the door.

SRS

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: Sorcha
Date: 01 Nov 05 - 12:27 PM

We hung the new front storm door Sunday, and Maggie, it won't keep out the coons! LOL

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 01 Nov 05 - 11:33 PM

If any coon is idiotic enough to get past the fences and into the garage with two dogs, then I suppose he deserves what he gets. Before the dogs arrived we used to have a path across the yard (one end was open where there is now a gate) and it was a huge old possum who made a trek across the yard to the creek every morning. I saw him in the driveway a time or two. He was killed in the street last winter (boo hoo) and no one has come to replace him. Just as well.

I've seen discussions about the damage a coon can do to dogs, and there are some big coons here. But there isn't dog food out to attract other animals, and these two big pups would give anything a run for it's money at the age they're at. The pit bull is becoming quite a solid tank, and the catahoula is a busy herding animal. I went in to "tuck them in" in the garage tonight and they were happy to have me sit on their bed so they could roll around and get petted. I don't think they'd greet a racoon so graciously.

SRS

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: Sorcha
Date: 01 Nov 05 - 11:49 PM

LOL...and you have a catahoula? I'm envious! I have nothing for a 'cat' to do....he'd be bored and cause trouble.

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 02 Nov 05 - 12:27 AM

She's a mix so won't get as large as the breed normally does, and it's a guess on the part of the vet that that's what she is. She came from the humane society. Her coat sure looks like it ("leopard dog"). She herds us around the yard enough (and you should see her moving the pit bull along when they get started running--it's very funny to watch!).

SRS

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: Sorcha
Date: 02 Nov 05 - 12:47 AM

Yup. Looks like a cat/blue heeler (Aus cattle dog) cross to me. Tail isn't fluffy enough for full heeler nor flat and bulky enough for a full cat.....

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: Liz the Squeak
Date: 02 Nov 05 - 12:50 AM

Mouldy - I've been trying to get rid of my old boiler for ages, but he won't eat the mushrooms...

I hope that people are remembering to leave some ventilation whilst they're busy packing filler and sandbags into every crack, cranny and crevice. There have been too many cases of folk suffocating or dying of Carbon Monoxide poisoning because they wrapped the house up so tight there wasn't adequate fresh air. Please leave one window accessible, you may need the air or the escape route.

If you are going to seal up all your windows, please get a CO monitor, they can be got quite cheaply from hardware stores and local councils.

LTS

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: Liz the Squeak
Date: 02 Nov 05 - 12:53 AM

Oh, and cats make a good indicator of where the 'hot spots' are... if they're on your bed, stay there!

LTS

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: Rt Revd Sir jOhn from Hull
Date: 02 Nov 05 - 02:16 PM

winter is rubbish, it should be banned.

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 02 Nov 05 - 03:44 PM

The Humane Society guessed blue heeler, the vet guessed catahoula, so you're in good company! She's a sweet and goofy little dog (about 30 pounds now, probably reaching 40 at maturity).

I need to prepare my winter garden, and make it dog proof. That may be the project for this next weekend. I'll plant onions and broccoli and some chard. Transplant some garlic.

SRS

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: Bill D
Date: 02 Nov 05 - 03:56 PM

we got a heated waterbed, some oil-filled heater/radiators, and JUST lit the gas burner last week...thermostat set to mid-60s.. (we have cast concrete floors with heated water circulating thru them....slow to heat OR cool, but nice to have warm bathroom floors)

Plus, I have several of those bags of corn, rice, etc..that you microwave when local warmth is needed temporarily. Great inventions!

Winter is getting slow start here (Maryland/DC)-- Nov., and most leaves are still on trees! They are beginning to pile up, but I worry that wet & snow will hinder the collecting.

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: Sorcha
Date: 02 Nov 05 - 04:35 PM

Weird weather here today....almost 75F/24C.....overcast and NO WIND!! Got some outside work done. Lopping stuff off, moving leaves, etc..

And Maggie, trust me on this one, a Catahoula's tail is a lethal weapon!

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 03 Nov 05 - 11:10 AM

You should see the dents the pit's tail has put in us already. When that dog wags hard it's like a bull whip.

I visited the local garden center to scout around their selection of trees. I have a couple of non-starters, planted 2 or 3 years ago, not dead but failing to thrive. So I'll try a couple of different species in new locations. Leave the old ones in place, continue to treat them well, and see what happens. Fall is the best time to plant these. I'm also putting in a patch of groundcover (Asian jasmine) and a hardy shrub (Silverado sage). They'll establish themselves over the next six months before it gets hot and dry again.

SRS

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: JohnInKansas
Date: 03 Nov 05 - 01:33 PM

Since we're "citified" and the house isn't too old (mid 1940s), and since we need air conditioning in summer, there isn't a whole lot to do to get ready for winter. Insulation and air leaks are just as important when it's 105 F (41 C) outside and the reefer is running as when it's -20F (-29 C) and the furnace is on.

About the only winter prep I have to absolutely sure to get done is to make sure there isn't a stray garden hose left connected to an outside faucet. The faucets are "freeze proof" with the actual valve about a foot inside, but if water isn't allowed to drain out of them freely they will freeze.

(The camper, of course, is another matter, as the fresh water, grey water, and black water tanks have to thoroughly drained, antifreeze added in the waste tanks and sink traps, all the water lines blown out thoroughly, and provisions made for the battery. About a 3 day job.)

I'll second the suggestion made by a couple of people that the heating mattress pads are much superior to an electric blanket, particularly if you sleep with a "thrasher" like mine who rolls all the blankets into a knot at about hourly intervals. Aparently they're one of those "newfangled 19th century" things that people in Kansas don't know about yet, because it took me nearly 3 years of searching before I finally found a couple (at Sears) and they told me I bought the only two they'd stocked that year.

The ones I found do have a timer, so they shut themselves off after about an hour. They indicate a 180 W rating, but I think that must be to account for "warm up" current. I suspect, but haven't measured, that once warm they "maintain" at 100 W or less, so leaving them on wouldn't be a large drain on the system, althought the automatic shutoff is nice. Older ones (back to late 1950s) that some of the family had were intended to run continuously and my recollection is that one in particular was rated at only 80 W - remembered because it surprised me that it was enough to help as much as it did.

Most of the light fixtures where they'll fit have the "fluorescent replacement bulbs" installed. They use a bit less power, and last a little longer than the incandescent ones, although the "long life" claims made for them seem overblown. In a couple of workspace areas that are infrequently used, I've found that just putting a moderately sized incandescent bulb back in the socket provides sufficient "spot heat" to avoid the necessity of dragging an electric heater out. It's not enough to warm a really cold nook, but may be sufficient for a cranny where there's just a bit of a chill. It seems, in my house, that it's also much more likely that the lights will get turned off when the work is done than that the space heater will get shut off.

For those who only want a bit of heat in a fairly tight space, I'll note that many of the farmers in the area keep the "pump house" from freezing with a 100W light bulb or two. If there's a window in the space you're heating, you can tell from a distance if the light bulb burned out, where you'd have to walk out and poke your head in to tell if another kind of "heater" was still working. Use two bulbs for safety margin, since it's unlikely they'll both burn out at the same time.

Especially with lamps used for heat (since you might use larger capacity bulbs) those with pets should remember to NEVER leave any "tippable" heat/light device turned on when you're out. Any such device has the potential to start a fire, and "the cat did it" doesn't carry a whole lot of weight with a claims adjuster who's reluctant to pay off. If you must leave a "portable" heat source, make sure it's a "certified safe" device with a working tip-switch, and that it's located so your babes can't shove a pillow in front of it.

John

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: leftydee
Date: 03 Nov 05 - 10:50 PM

Be sure to make arrangements to humidify your instruments. The in-sound-hole type works OK but I try and keep the humidity up in the whole house. For starters, you'll be more comfortable with higher humidity ( no evaporation off your body to cool you) and, also, your instruments won't dry out. A humidifier is a small investment and well worth it.

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: wysiwyg
Date: 06 Dec 05 - 11:16 AM

Our first gas bill of the season has arrived. It reflects both the new pricing AND the results of this year's enhanced battle against heat loss. We've significantly reduced our gas usage.

No, it hasn't made the house warmer in actual practice-- it merely allows us to set the thermostat even lower to be just as chilly as we were last year!

How's everyone else doing?

~Susan

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: number 6
Date: 06 Dec 05 - 11:29 AM

The temperature is droppin' ... grey and cold .... just sitting here waiting for it and certainly not looking forward to it.

But I'm prepared .. New fireplace installed ... new snow blower ... new winter sub arctic coat ... new fur hat.

It's going to be a long 4 months.

sIx

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: Peace
Date: 06 Dec 05 - 11:34 AM

Got to about -27 C last night. Chilly. Vehicle roll-over at 1:00 AM (ish). Wind was bad but the folks were OK. Some dislocated bones and a few scrapes, but we didn't have to do any cutting on the vehicle. Now, if there was only a way to get passers-by to SLOW THE HECK DOWN . . . . Yep, winter IS here.

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: autolycus
Date: 06 Dec 05 - 06:10 PM

As I'm getting chronologically well-off, I'm going to enjoy wearing headgear indoors.

Eating more is also good for warmth, just as not heating nurtures coldness.

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: autolycus
Date: 06 Dec 05 - 06:11 PM

I mean 'not eating', tho' 'not heating ' works.

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: LilyFestre
Date: 07 Dec 05 - 05:39 PM

Well, it seems winter is upon us. Today has been bitterly cold.

We have been heating the house primarily with the woodstove. The furnace has been used only on days like today when the house is just downright COLD. The plastic that we put on the outside of the windows is a tremendous help. There were also some air leaks that have been plugged full of canned foam stuff....two cans to be precise.

The furnace has just kicked on, there is a kick ass fire going in the woodstove and I have a radiant heat heater aimed in my general direction as I sit here and type...maybe it's me....I just can't get warm today.

We had the propane tank filled in July and currently it is still over 60%....hopefully that will see us through until at least February.

Michelle

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: bobad
Date: 08 Dec 05 - 04:44 PM

"Got to about -27 C last night"

Jaysus Peace for someone who seems to dislike winter you certainly ended up in an inhospitable part of the country.

Subject: RE: BS: Getting Ready For Winter
From: open mike
Date: 08 Dec 05 - 10:57 PM

i re-routed the wire to the t.v. through a hole in the wall
instead of thru a cracked-open window.

the hole was drilled by the technician who installed the
satelite internet dish.

i also stapled "visqueen" type plastic over the window
that the cats have their door in...so now there is a
storm window.

also i acquired several cords of wood which i have
been warming myself by stacking and splitting...
and burning.

also tonight i am baking bread--which is a great
winter activity