Portable heaters

[Chris From The Gulag]

Have some sympathy for us poor b.t.l. tenants who have no real option other than to bring in outside heaters.

Very shortly , and facing west , I will see the sun for three hours a day ... over four months ... on the rare days there's no cloud
cover.

Electric storage heaters ... with stones in them ... need 6 / 8 hours even before the outside feels warm ... and , no more night tariff !

Thankfully , I'm one of the two tenants ... out of twelve ... not on a catherine wheel ... a prepayment meter.

[Nikiya]

I thought convector heaters were supposed to be cheap to run (relatively speaking)?

[Honey Badger]

.

[Chris From The Gulag]

I thought convector heaters were supposed to be cheap to run (relatively speaking)?

Operative word being THOUGHT ?

Perhaps ... when tariffs were a lot lower when mine came off the production line in 1998 ?

According to the instruction manual , should be kept on 24 / 7 ... and only use the dials to produce external heat when needed.



Best guess ?

Around £ 13 per week to run as per the manual ... for the one room I permanently occupy.

Saving grace for me now is the winter fuel allowance !

[Rosemary_1706]

Following on from your post and Honey Badger's, an electric blanket can work well and some come with a timer so it takes the chill off before you get warm and fall asleep.

I think electric heaters come with an auto off breaker if it falls over.

Something I did last year and when I was in university students accommodation (years ago) was to tape good quality clear kitchen plastic wrap over the window frames! I think they sell special purpose film in hardware shops, but cling film did help reduce drafts!

A heavier set of curtains from a charity shop would help too.

[bowlingbun]

Is there anywhere in particular you feel coldest?

Changing your clothing can really help.
I know Princess Diana swore by her Damart type underwear, but it makes me feel way too hot, I always wear cotton.
My father in law wore ankle length pants in his draughty cottage, but it would have been better to deal with the draughts.
In winter I always wear socks (after 2 knee replacements I struggle to put tights on) and if it's really cold, my "metal knees" seem to really feel the cold. So I wear men's HJ cotton "golf" socks from ebay, these have a fold over top, but I don't fold them over, just pull them over my knees.
I also wear cotton corduroy trousers - Dash used to do some that fitted me well, but sadly they've gone out of business now. I dug a pair out of the wardrobe this morning as it's been raining all day in the New Forest. (Three weeks ago I was sunning myself in Crete in temperatures around 30 degrees).
I would also recommend Peacock's cotton ladies vests/camisoles, only £3-£4 each, lots of colours.
In my tiny ensuite I have a small over the door fan heater, which I put on a few minutes before my shower, makes a real difference.

[leah_1902]

Following on from your post and Honey Badger's, an electric blanket can work well and some come with a timer so it takes the chill off before you get warm and fall asleep.

I think electric heaters come with an auto off breaker if it falls over.

Something I did last year and when I was in university students accommodation (years ago) was to tape good quality clear kitchen plastic wrap over the window frames! I think they sell special purpose film in hardware shops, but cling film did help reduce drafts!

A heavier set of curtains from a charity shop would help too.

Do you know of anyone who makes thick curtains? I have visited my local charity shops and cannot find any curtains.

[leah_1902]

Is there anywhere in particular you feel coldest?

Changing your clothing can really help.
I know Princess Diana swore by her Damart type underwear, but it makes me feel way too hot, I always wear cotton.
My father in law wore ankle length pants in his draughty cottage, but it would have been better to deal with the draughts.
In winter I always wear socks (after 2 knee replacements I struggle to put tights on) and if it's really cold, my "metal knees" seem to really feel the cold. So I wear men's HJ cotton "golf" socks from ebay, these have a fold over top, but I don't fold them over, just pull them over my knees.
I also wear cotton corduroy trousers - Dash used to do some that fitted me well, but sadly they've gone out of business now. I dug a pair out of the wardrobe this morning as it's been raining all day in the New Forest. (Three weeks ago I was sunning myself in Crete in temperatures around 30 degrees).
I would also recommend Peacock's cotton ladies vests/camisoles, only £3-£4 each, lots of colours.
In my tiny ensuite I have a small over the door fan heater, which I put on a few minutes before my shower, makes a real difference.

I tend to feel very cold at night in winter. I have trialled extra layers to no avail. Tomorrow I’m going clothes shopping.

[bowlingbun]

Join your local Freecycle and say you want thick or blackout curtains. The blackout material is thermal.

[Londonbound]

Every year our council run a winter warmer campaign, it gives a grant to a charity to promote keeping warm etc for elderly/disabled.
If you have no or bad central heating and are on low income might be able to get a better system supplied.
They advise keeping temp minimum 18 Centigrade, keeping doors shut, wrapping up warm, blankets, draught excluders etc.
So might be worth contacting the council.