The last time we had ice on the inside of the windows I was in nylon flares and shirts with big eff off collars.
Proven survival clothing.
I love the look oh McNair shirts, but I’d rather not sell my house to buy one.
Does anyone know of anything similar but cheaper?
You can pick up second hand Woolrich Alaskan wool over-shirts on eBay that are a similar thick wool shirt. Lee made a zip up wool one recently that you might find cheaper. They're a nice thing in that classic US carhartt old workwear kind of way but in uk conditions not really very many occasions that they're the right thing to wear - most of the time its too warm or to wet or too cold for it to be the right thing to wear. Nice though on that day when the conditions suit it and you remember you own it.
I find any old quilted shirt is lighter, warmer, more wind proof, faster drying and more flexibly wearable then thick wool ones. Most of the workwear brands make one - I've a Snickers one that I've pretty much worn winter and summer somewhere in the layers for that last two years.
Sherpa - lined flannel or denim shirts or hoodies - if you find a nice one (there are lots of ones online that look like flannel but are actually cheap fleece on the outside - are a really nice warm layer for indoors without feeling like you're wearing your coat. I was given a hooded one from Primark that was a brilliant flexible indoor and outdoor warm layer but i doubt its something they still - Wrangler seem to make something along those lines for a reasonable price
My logic would be that the energy of a bath at a set volume and temp is the same whether you add that energy as 40 degree water or a smaller amount of hotter water mixed with cold.
The only way filling at 40 would save energy is if it stops you overfilling by adding too much hot before the cold. As rather than a 50l bath you end up at 60l by the time the temp is correct.
Clothes? I'm thinking my bothy setup will be getting used at home. Fleece lined trousers. Long sleeved thermal base layer top with a fleece or cashmere jumper over it.
Im thinking at these prices there will be a fair reduction in gas demand. Not many people can afford to heat their house at 22c with these prices. Just a question of whether it kicks in tight away or after the first eye watering bill in January.
Am I the only one who is happy with 16-17 degrees c in the house?
21 is shorts and t-shirt surely!
We've not had the thermostat over 18°C for years. Wondering how low you can go for how long before it actually starts causing problems with the fabric of the building.
Do some exercise to get the blood flowing and the body temp up.
I’ve worked from home for the last 10 years and we never have the heating on during the day. 20 press-ups and run up and down the stairs a couple of times, or a run or a bike ride before work - anything that gets the furnace going. (A good hard sh@g before getting up would also work)
It was really noticeable on office days - all the people who’d come in by train or driven would be wrapped up in blankets and clutching hot water bottles and complaining about the cold. I had a hour on the bike and would be quite comfortable in a base layer.
Am I the only one who is happy with 16-17 degrees c in the house?
21 is shorts and t-shirt surely!
…and this…
We've started collecting £5 & £10 notes. We plan to burn them in an open fire pit in the garden as it will be a far cheaper method of keeping warm than turning on any electrical or gas sourced heating system currently installed in our home.
I would have thought that in both scenarios you are heating the same volume of water, to the same temperature and hence you will require the same amount of energy. The difference would be, how much extra energy you lose, by heating water to 60 degrees.
The enthalpy of the water in the bath would be the same.
But you would be losing more heat from the cylinder.
If you lose X ammount of heat from a 60C cylinder into a 20C room then you lose 1.5X from a 80C cylinder into the same room.
Obvious caveats asside, like if the heating is on anyway it's just heating the same house. But if your culinder is in an upstairs cupboard without enough insulation in the loft above it could be significant?
I love the look oh McNair shirts, but I’d rather not sell my house to buy one.
Does anyone know of anything similar but cheaper?
swanndri the original and not £300.
Am I the only one who is happy with 16-17 degrees c in the house?
We have unmetered district heating (well the there is a meter but we pay a fixed price) so our heating and hot water bill is the same every month winter and summer whether we have it on or not. But being a big old house with floor to ceiling single glazed Georgian windows - in the middle of winter the heating can't get the temp above 14d most days. I've never had to go to any extraordinary lengths to keep warm
Move house in a couple of weeks - timed that well - it'll be interesting getting gas bills again.
Am trying to decide if it’s more efficient to ditch the gas hob wherever possible
Induction hobs supposedly cheapest.
You could also try adjusting your gas hob to make the low flame lower. We used to have to leave the lid off simmering things to avoid a boil over, now we don't.
But for those of you who can't stay warm without expensive gear (??) you probably want IR panel heaters in the ceiling above where you sit.
I love the look oh McNair shirts, but I’d rather not sell my house to buy one.
Does anyone know of anything similar but cheaper?
Take a look at Varusteleka, a Finnish company - I've got one of their Flannel shirts and it's great, I live in it during the autumn, with a base underneath it's toasty on dry winter days too!
Boob tube and a mini skirt, seems to work for the young women around town in the winter months.
we didn't hear the house anymore last winter when wfh than usual. it's a 1920s place, very cold. particularly on windy days.
the only thing I really suffered with was really hurty cold feet. like really painful and nothing I could do could warm them up. double merino ski socks didn't work, nor hot water bottles. not looming forward to this winter
2022 and unless you are on double the average income you have to walk round hugging a water bottle because heating is the same as a mortgage/rent payment.
What a time to be alive.
I’ve accumulated loads of different types of clothing which can be mixed and matched for temperature adjustments. One of my favourites is a huge baggy sherpa fleece hoodie that I bought years ago from a surf and skate shop in Bristol called Shark Bite.
Its big enough to put on over a wetsuit, and I practically live in it when it’s colder. I can layer all sorts of stuff underneath, and if it’s cold and windy out, I’ve got a Desert Storm-era US Army night camo desert parka, which has its own button-in quilted thermal jacket, which I wear on its own over a tee or sweatshirt. I’ve made up a strip of cotton webbing with appropriate buttons sewn on so I can button the thermal liner up when I wear it on its own.
I’ve also got a pair of Meindle Canadian-style winter boots - they’ve got felt boot liners inside, which I take out and wear around the house as slippers - with thick wool socks, my toes are toasty!
All this chat reminds me of when working in a certain popular outdoors shop chain and we were lucky enough to be given the opportunity to order Rab gear at trade prices. A few of us noted that at trade, a Rab expedition down suit for HA mountaineering was about £360. This seemed steep at the time, but even then the conversation of 'probably cheaper than having the heating on' became quite serious. Kicking myself now...
Being somewhat grippy when it comes to having the heating on, I've long since been a believer that it's pointless having down sleeping bags un-used in the cupboard, so will happily sit in one in the evening on the sofa, and during WFH covid times, would sometimes sit at my desk in one. Any type of sherpa fleece hoody is great, as are the fluffy fleeces. a 13.5 tog duvet and a H&M £10 sweatshirt will see you through the depths of the Scottish winter. While Mcnair shirts are very nice, they're expensive and country clothing supplies shops will yield a super warm work shirt for about £20.
I fully intend on making the most of my gym membership when it comes to showers this winter...
Some great looking shirts recced above - thanks everyone
Aldi fleece lined fake crocs for feet due in this weekend special buys
Bought a couple of Woollen jumpers last year
Am I the only one who is happy with 16-17 degrees c in the house?
Nope, you are not alone at all. Our heating is set around 16 degrees during day when people are around, up to 18 in the evening. It only ever goes above 20 when the mother in law is here. Her house is permanently set to a temperature slightly less that that of the surface of the sun.
Our heating is set to 17 for some of the evening. BUT the thermostat is in the hallway near the front door. It's not actually that temperature in the rooms we live in. I would suggest the willy wavers post the temps in their living room at 8pm on a winter's evening.
Ours is probably 20-21 or so at a guess. 16 is probably too cold for actual relaxing in, unless you are seriously bundled up. I find it hard to type at that temperature when working even if my body is ok with a jumper on.
Boob tube and a mini skirt, seems to work for the young women around town in the winter months
I can't figure out if this is going to become a signifier of wealth (you spend all your time in heated environments) or one of poverty (you have adapted to months on end of cold).
Like how having tanned skin changed from indicating a manual labour job to indicating the resources for leisure time and travel.
If wfh at a keyboard, silk glove liners.
Last year I cut the finger ends off a very old pair of North Face gloves and found that worked really well. If needed, I added a £10 Aldi special fleece gilet to the standard ensemble of socks, slippers, joggies, hoodie. Hope it's no colder this winter or its back into the office for me.
I would suggest the willy wavers post the temps in their living room at 8pm on a winter’s evening.
No willy waving here, my house is so bloody cold my willy has retreated inside me leaving just french bulldog face folds where it once was.
WFH r last two years, and Reynauds had made it a bit shit at times. I can keep my body warm but the feet and hands were a huge issue.
The two best things that changed this were massive ski socks from Decathlon for about 3 quid, and a heated mouse! The second sounds stupid, but has been a huge help when stuck at a keyboard all day. Got mine from hotmouse.co.uk
I plan to burn Tories and Pro-Brexit voters.
adjusts glasses.....
Oh.....burn. As you were.
Where can i get some decent door/window seals to replace worn knackered ones? Our back door and some of the window seals are perished/missing and need to be replaced. hoping this will reduce windy drafts and also any heat escaping.
Poler Napsack
Suspect I will live in mine this winter!
The best thing most of you can do is get a comfy pair of lined trousers to wear at home (and out).
I'll often wear a hat while I'm WFH as well, and I have an oil-filled rad in the office, so I can just heat this room.
Aldi fleece lined fake crocs for feet due in this weekend special buys
Nice one, ta.
For feet I have some sheepskin slippers that are warmer than the north face thermoball ones that they replaced. However I can't wear them with thick socks as my feet get colder due to reducing the circulation. Am planning on getting a second pair of slippers a size bigger for winter to fit the hiking socks in.
I also try not to get cold then try to warm up as no amount of layers and hugging radiators will work. Much better to add layers straight from waking up to keep the body heat in.
Exercising to get the body heat going again helps but even losing most of the layers I'll sweat quickly so make sure that exercise is done in a separate layer of clothing which can be changed out of to get rid of the chill from slightly damp clothes.
Where can i get some decent door/window seals to replace worn knackered ones? Our back door and some of the window seals are perished/missing and need to be replaced. hoping this will reduce windy drafts and also any heat escaping.
eBay, but be warned that there about about eleventy bajillion different sizes and profiles, so you need to be careful to get the right one.
I am contemplating a rechargeable heated vest from Amazon, heat me instead of heating the house/rooms. I could then charge it when I go in the office once a week too!
Where can i get some decent door/window seals to replace worn knackered ones? Our back door and some of the window seals are perished/missing and need to be replaced. hoping this will reduce windy drafts and also any heat escaping.
eBay, but be warned that there about about eleventy bajillion different sizes and profiles, so you need to be careful to get the right one.
Ta, cripes that's many!
Ho hum, off to get the measuring wand out and work out how much of which one i need. I'll bet, knowing the hassle we've had so far here with 'odd' decisions made by the previous owners, i'll need about 6 meters of 7 different types!
Looking at it there does seem to be a 'universal' one, so I may buy a bit of that and see if it works, and if it does order a lot more...
A hot water bottle is a must. Mine was quite cheap from Boots, it's old but does its job. I've used this on my lap before now to keep warm.
We have a 'wool room' duvet and mattress also mattress cover. Baavet are as good.
In the kitchen I keep a flask and use up any hot water from the kettle, (this for hot drinks all evening).
If you use a slow cooker, it will heat the kitchen as well as cook any food.
Eating foods such as soups, stews and casseroles keep one warm.
Layer up and wear a hat. I have a pure 'moon' wool throw to snuggle up under when sitting.
I'm struggling to get my windows to close properly. The hinges are apparently knackered.
I can only replace the hinges I think, but dunno if that'll help. The frames might be warped or something.
There are some really good socks called 'Heat holders'. They come in knee or calf length and really do keep your feet warm. They're quite thick so would be a good alternative to slippers (although they are slippery if walking around). I use mine for winter rides.
I’m struggling to get my windows to close properly. The hinges are apparently knackered.
Clean the runners out as best you can manually, then spray GT85 or WD40 liberally on them and the locking bits.
fettlin
Full Member
Where can i get some decent door/window seals to replace worn knackered ones?
@fettlin
This place do a seal sample kit
https://www.handlesandhinges.co.uk/
here:
https://www.handlesandhinges.co.uk/double-glazing-seal-gasket-sample-pack/
- it comes with all the types they stock & I think it includes a discount code if you eventually order from them.
I can only replace the hinges I think, but dunno if that’ll help. The frames might be warped or something.
One of our double glazed windows is like this, we leave it open nearly all year and it's like the frame has shrunk a bit as it's a nightmare to close. PITA as it's upstairs and open outward, so removing it to have a look isn't trivial.
The threat (or fear) of being cold this winter is really starting to bite with many. Some of our staff are beginning to panic, so what we've decided to do is buy all staff super warm winter coats, full base layers, socks, jumpers, hats and gloves.If they want to wear them outside of work then they are more than welcome to. We've also bought them 2 litre flasks so if they want to boil the kettle at work and take the flask home, again, they can.
2022 and this is the state of affairs - what a world we live in eh?
