Congratulations to our greenest user!
Picture from The Prodigal Son
A month ago, we asked you how you intended to keep warm this winter without wasting too much energy. Saving this expensive resource highly topical recently due to both its serious concequences for the planet and the onset of winter.
We wanted you to share your tips, ideas and ambitious green projects with our community to demonstrate how enthusiastic and determined you all are to act now!
We’ve been amazed by all the brilliant answers we received and are glad to announce that Archipet has won the double Sunday bed and a grand mattress from Warren Evans: congratulations to you, Archipet! We very much liked your inventive and inspiring ideas to insulate your loft and make your Heathrow flat an eco-friendly one.
Although he mentioned some equipments were expensive, like his system for a more efficient heat recovery through his ventilation system, we’re glad to know he’s saved 800kg of CO2 emissions per year and his gas usage has dropped by 23%!
Picture from Archipet
With your great answers, we’ve compiled a list of simple, efficient and even sometimes inexpensive ways to get through winter without the cold in your house and keep our planet a clean one. Enjoy!
- Wear more jumpers (jillionsing)
- Keep boiled water in thermos for your next hot drink (Hayley 67)
- Keep the heating restricted only to times we need it and keep the radiators turned on only in the rooms regularly used (Martin)
- Use a bottle of hot water under the blanket to keep warm all night (T or Antonia)
- Cook more than one meal at a time and put batches in the freezer to help save energy and costs (treacle)
- Wear hats as a lot of heat is lost in that department (dignifiedcollapse)
- Use the radiators to put damp washing on, not the tumble dryer (Sharon M)
- Drink plenty of warm fluids and make sure you move about (Lisa C)
- Use an extra blanket on the bed, and if possible put a fleece blanket under the sheet you normally sleep on and wear socks (Lisa C)
- Draw your curtains t0 trap the heat (Lisa C)
Picture from phil.woodshed - Close internal doors so rooms stay warm (Number 6)
- Move about often and do a little bit of exercise to stimulate your body (The Prodigal Son)
- Take advantage of late night opening hours in galleries and museums: get culture and cosy (peetyintheloft)
- Invite friends around to share your heating and stay warm together from peetyintheloft)
- Get the family pet to sit on your lap, a cat can keep you warm for hours (Dave)
- Invest in a good dressing gown and a good pair of slippers (breadybooboo)
- Install double glazing (Martin)
- Caulk your windows (T or Antonia)
- Insulate your house/flat properly (Crazy Jarvis)
- Use low energy light bulbs and invest in table lights to only light the are you are sitting in (Lisa C)
- Use rugs on laminate flooring (Lisa C)
- Use thick wall paper and thick carpets (Number 6)
- Use passive solar heaters using recycled aluminium soda cans and wooden skids thrown out by local factories (Trinity)
- Invest in a wood stove like our grandmas used to have (KDHaroundtown)
- Get a small wind turbine on the top of your house since winter is the windiest part of the year in most places, it is a green way to get electricity and due to the fact that they are expensive councils will give a grant to cover the costs (tvfootitt)
Picture from Crazy Jarvis
Lisa C told us the Government offers schemes to insulate your roofs or cavity walls, and since every little helps we reckon it’s worth checking with your local council.
Last but not least, why not follow nc-wall’s advice and stay in bed, a double Sunday bed maybe, with your partner, what better way to keep warm in these cold winter nights?
We hope you all enjoyed thinking about green issues and energy saving in the house and thanks again for your great tips and advice!
Hi not a goo odea to put damp or wet washing on radiators. It is not healthy and can diffuse the heat from the radiators. If you cannot dry outside..use a clothes horse left in the kitchen or bathroom over night the clothes will be almost dry in the morning. Then you can fold them carefully then finish off on the radiators then out them in the airing cupboard to finish off.
A double blanket up at the window if it’s really cold.
Host family games in one room and only have the lights and heating on in that room.draw the curtains in that room and roll up a towel and place it at the botton of the door.this will keep the heat in.
Dress warm, put yor tv,computer in just one room, turn just one irradiator from c.heatinh 10 minutes every hour after 6 p.m till 7 a.m and put a extra table with a small sofa and watch tv or working on the computer in the room where you sleeping to cut the night air.Trough the day do some shoping walking. To get some air changed, open one window at the time in your house to not friezing it.Turn on only the eating in the bathroom on just before five minutes you have bath for about 20 or 25 minutes. Keep your baby warm with blankets in the same place where is warm.