C-3PO: “I didn’t ask you to turn on the thermal heater. I merely commented that it was freezing in the princess’s chamber…”
R2-D2: [Chirps his objection]
C-3PO: “But it’s SUPPOSED to be freezing! How we are ever going to dry out her clothes, I really don’t know!”
Star Wars V: The Empire Strikes Back
It begins.
The winter mantra of, “Does the house feel cold to you?” has been resurrected and is in frequent use by all three of us. The thermostat is programmed to hold at 66 during the day and 62 while we’re all sleeping upstairs. Yes, that’s cooler than most houses around here, but with layering it is actually a reasonable temperature. Winter in the Great Frozen Midwest = turtleneck and a sweater.
The problem comes when we don’t put on layers, go barefoot on the wood floors or (similarly) peel off our socks when we’re tucked up under a blanket and then wander into the kitchen for a glass of water, and sit in the basement watching TV for too long.
To accommodate our individual neuroses, we’ve developed personalized responses. Padawan Learner and the two cats make a bee-line for a register cover every time the furnace kicks in and soak in all the lovely heat coming out of that particular spot. Dad Windu piles all the basement’s good blankets on top of himself while he watches TV and invites guests over as often as he can so that he has an excuse to turn the thermostat up, “…in case they get cold easily.” I make endless cups of tea and wonder why I can’t get to sleep at night.
But come spring, 62 will be considered shorts weather and we’ll turn off the furnace and leave the windows open all day and all night when it hits 45.
We don’t have a furnace. We have a wood stove in the living room.
Of course, it’s not usually really cold here. We do have a week or two of 20 degree weather, but then it goes back up.
Our bedrooms are unheated, so we use a lot of blankets.
When my hubby and I lived in a home that *did* have a furnace, he would lie on the floor in the morning and put a blanket over his feet and the heat vent and turn the thermostat up.
It’s probably a good thing we don’t have a furnace now, huh? Too expensive.
I broke down last year and got electric blankets on sale. I like a cold bedroom, but I hate a cold bed. I have all electric heat in the apartment (we’re in CT- don’t ask). The blanket uses 10% of the energy of the heaters. I turn it on just before bed to warm up the bed. On really cold mornings, I’ll turn it on again in the morning for a short time. I figure I’ll get into mid December at least before I turn on the bedroom heater. The kids haven’t wanted theirs yet, but then I have the coldest bedroom by far.
My son has the freezer in his room, which is doing fine for heating at the moment. (Yes it’s a small apartment
) My daughter does have a heater on in her room, set around 60, she’s got parakeets, so it’s a backup in case it gets cold while we’re out.
I’ll break out the bathroom heater shortly. They get set on 55 as a precaution against freezing, then get turned up for showers. I try to run the dryer just before shower time too.
I like the house cool too. This is a good thing since the entire leaks heat like crazy out of every window and poorly fitting door jamb.
Ami – Wow, I’m impressed you brave even just a few weeks of 20 degree weather unheated bedrooms. I’m getting the shivers just thinking about it. That must be an incredible wood stove to keep you all cozy through the winter. I do envy your lack of a gas bill, let me tell you!
RavenChild – Electric heat in CT? Ouch. Those electric blankets sound like a real budget saver. I think I’ll keep an eye out for some for our bed. PL has a loft bed on the 2nd floor, so he keeps toasty stealing all the heat from the rest of the house as it rises. I don’t think I would have ever thought to run the dryer right before taking a shower. You’re a clever one, aren’t you! Mind if I steal your idea?
E – Yes, I’ve stood next to those doors on a windy day. Yowsa. When did you say the builder was coming out for an estimate again?
Please do.
Another idea for those who put plastic on windows. If you want the light, but don’t need the view, bubble wrap adds a nice layer of insulation. Necessity being a mother and all.
We’re winterizing today. It’s in the 60′s now, and dropping to the 20′s for tomorrow night. Brr.