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]

Disabled facilities grant could in theory be used for modernising heating in your household, as it is supposed to encompass anything which improves the living environment for the individual its being spent on (heating being a basic need)

Changing the boiler isn't an automatic fix not a gambling man but I'd safely bet based on experience the pipe system is as ancient (if not worse) than your knackered boiler and is probably well overdue a super flush to get rid of the sludge build up.. lack of people actually getting this done (can be time consuming, expensive, intrusive and disruptive) is often what puts such additional stress on heating that even someone being conservative in restricting how often they have the heat will still see their boiler pack up because its having to work 2x/3x/4x as hard to do its job and even then its a laboured performance.

Aside from the heating look at how the cold is penetrating the property (doors/windows/ceilings/walls) etc or the times it gets cold.. like we scarcely ever have the heating on here all weathers but honestly if I'm that worried about a significant/severe spike of cold weather I know which rooms get colder than the others and why, will usually move a small heater into that room to bring the ambient temperature up.. and I am checking one of those rooms regular enough anyway because the temperature needs to be consistent for a caree to be comfortable in them (maintain at room temperature)

You do want a holistic approach in improving heat sources while trying to resolve it escaping.

Can you get a winter fuel payment?

Only if pensionable age, it will only be paid to that person irrespective of the living arrangements.

[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.