We had one of those pulleys in the kitchen growing up. I wouldn't have one though. Everything would smell of food cooking. I still remember all our childhood clothes did. I spent a lot of my working life outside in all weathers @McRazz, so I understand completely. At least shovelling snow from doors got you warmed up first thing in the morning
It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
My Mum had one of those @Songbird-2. It was in the kitchen where there was an Aga.
I'm lucky in my house in France as there is a wood burning oven in the breakfast room. The stairs are in the breakfast room and the heat goes up so I have a clothes dryer on the landing. The landing gets very warm. If I want a warm bedroom I open the door, if I want it cool I shut the door. There is an electric radiator in the bedroom but I only use it for a short while in the morning. The kitchen is the other half of the breakfast room separated by old oak beams. The sitting room is next to the breakfast room, but it has 2 electric radiators which are off at night and on in the day.
Dordogne and Norfolk. Clay in Dordogne, sandy in Norfolk.
It certainly is good that all have different ways of heating our homes and doing laundry. We adapt our needs and likes to our environment really. I had a pulley wired over the kitchen sink and nothing ever smelt of anything kitchen wise.
All very good tips. I've always filled the oven before I would dream of turning it on and leave the door open and turn it off at the wall to stop the fan cooling it and let the heat into the room.
I've always done batch cooking and also use a slow cooker. We use an open fire when we can get wood and use calor gas heaters to heat two rooms in short bursts. This gets the temperature to about 16. Electric blankets are a must!!!!
It's an old place with high ceilings so impossible to heat on a budget. Best to heat the person not the room. The cats sleep on a sheepskin rug wrapped in a highland wool blanket 👍
To get rid of condensation, put a line of cat litter along the bottom of the window.
Our heating is on thermostat at 16C but in reality the thermometer drops to just above 15 before the boiler then kicks in, and it sits at about 15.5 so it's on/off in short bursts all the time but never goes above this. We recently got the latest bill and it's manageable so we'll stick with this. It's not exactly warm but it's liveable until the spring / summer comes.
Layering up I've found is the way to tackle it and trap in your body heat. I've even gone to wearing my ski sallopets in the house at times that I wear for winter gardening and when I used to work outdoors. Two thick jumpers as standard now every day, gilet ontop if necessary, 'normal' clothing and personally I'm just too cold indoors, especially when more sedentary like working on the computer. It's hot water bottle on knees and a blanket then as well.
If it seems particularly cold we've used the oven to cook for dinner with the thought that you get both dinner and some heat out of it so it's worth it and it does work to take the chill off the kitchen and living room.
Other savings have come from using the shortest wash cycle on the washing machine and realising just how many oven made things can be cooked in the microwave instead in a fraction of the time.
I am drying clothes on the radiators. Up to a few weeks ago they were drying outside still, just, but not anymore, too cold lately. But I follow the 'if you insulate then ventilate' thought and I do put the windows on vent setting to clear the condensation most days and let some fresh air in. I've had damp and mould in homes before n I don't want it again and just layer up a bit more while they're open. It does let out some heat but it's a trade off for me.
My dear old grandmother used to put a dish half full of table salt out, you need a big dish and a lof of salt. This draws the water out of the air and the dish fills up with water. A little like those things you can buy as dehumidifiers.
But overall so far with the bills, having the gas heating on much lower, not using the electric fire, showers instead of baths (so not heating as much water), much less oven cooking and the washer only on a 14 minute cycle the bills not come much higher than usual which was a pleasant surprise.
Houses are different on the continent. But: I have discovered electric blankets. I never had radiators on in the bedroom, always went to bed with hot water bottles and socks, not good. I turn on the electric blanket 10 minutes before going to bed and also when I wake up at night, which is very often. I don't now how much I am saving or if indeed I am saving anything, but I am not going back to the misery of a cold bed. I now do many washes at cold settings and measure water in the kettle according to needs (something I had to insist on with OH). All our lights are LED and we are lucky to have a laundry room in the basement where I dry clothes. We had an expert from the government suggesting various things but when she saw our bills she complemented us and said that if we put thick polysterene or similar on the ceiling of our basement would be a cheap and effective solution to make our floors (ceramic tiles) less of a shock to the feet if we happen to be without slippers!
I'm also in Scotland so have the cold and damp that @Fairygirl describes ... not had the washing outdoors for a few weeks now. Luckily we have a large airing cupboard. Some of the gubbins for the air source heat pump is in there, but there's still plenty of room for washing. Once a week the system heats the water to 70C over night to prevent Legionella. So if either of us fancy a bath we tend to have it the next day. I only ever run the washing machine at 30C with the lowest spin cycle ... seems to be fine even for bedding.
We have a whole house ventilation system which we put in 20 years ago when we built the house, so no condensation or mould.
Once thing that's not been mentioned so far is using a steamer for cooking. We eat a plant based diet and use the steamer most days for veg or rice. Don't think I'd get much use from an air fryer.
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I wouldn't have one though. Everything would smell of food cooking. I still remember all our childhood clothes did.
I spent a lot of my working life outside in all weathers @McRazz, so I understand completely. At least shovelling snow from doors got you warmed up first thing in the morning
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
I'm lucky in my house in France as there is a wood burning oven in the breakfast room. The stairs are in the breakfast room and the heat goes up so I have a clothes dryer on the landing. The landing gets very warm. If I want a warm bedroom I open the door, if I want it cool I shut the door. There is an electric radiator in the bedroom but I only use it for a short while in the morning. The kitchen is the other half of the breakfast room separated by old oak beams. The sitting room is next to the breakfast room, but it has 2 electric radiators which are off at night and on in the day.
I've always done batch cooking and also use a slow cooker. We use an open fire when we can get wood and use calor gas heaters to heat two rooms in short bursts. This gets the temperature to about 16. Electric blankets are a must!!!!
It's an old place with high ceilings so impossible to heat on a budget. Best to heat the person not the room. The cats sleep on a sheepskin rug wrapped in a highland wool blanket 👍
To get rid of condensation, put a line of cat litter along the bottom of the window.
Layering up I've found is the way to tackle it and trap in your body heat. I've even gone to wearing my ski sallopets in the house at times that I wear for winter gardening and when I used to work outdoors. Two thick jumpers as standard now every day, gilet ontop if necessary, 'normal' clothing and personally I'm just too cold indoors, especially when more sedentary like working on the computer. It's hot water bottle on knees and a blanket then as well.
If it seems particularly cold we've used the oven to cook for dinner with the thought that you get both dinner and some heat out of it so it's worth it and it does work to take the chill off the kitchen and living room.
Other savings have come from using the shortest wash cycle on the washing machine and realising just how many oven made things can be cooked in the microwave instead in a fraction of the time.
I am drying clothes on the radiators. Up to a few weeks ago they were drying outside still, just, but not anymore, too cold lately. But I follow the 'if you insulate then ventilate' thought and I do put the windows on vent setting to clear the condensation most days and let some fresh air in. I've had damp and mould in homes before n I don't want it again and just layer up a bit more while they're open. It does let out some heat but it's a trade off for me.
My dear old grandmother used to put a dish half full of table salt out, you need a big dish and a lof of salt. This draws the water out of the air and the dish fills up with water. A little like those things you can buy as dehumidifiers.
But overall so far with the bills, having the gas heating on much lower, not using the electric fire, showers instead of baths (so not heating as much water), much less oven cooking and the washer only on a 14 minute cycle the bills not come much higher than usual which was a pleasant surprise.
I have discovered electric blankets. I never had radiators on in the bedroom, always went to bed with hot water bottles and socks, not good. I turn on the electric blanket 10 minutes before going to bed and also when I wake up at night, which is very often. I don't now how much I am saving or if indeed I am saving anything, but I am not going back to the misery of a cold bed.
I now do many washes at cold settings and measure water in the kettle according to needs (something I had to insist on with OH). All our lights are LED and we are lucky to have a laundry room in the basement where I dry clothes. We had an expert from the government suggesting various things but when she saw our bills she complemented us and said that if we put thick polysterene or similar on the ceiling of our basement would be a cheap and effective solution to make our floors (ceramic tiles) less of a shock to the feet if we happen to be without slippers!
Luxembourg
Our central heating is on all day and set to 19c. I keep the unused bedroom radiators on a 2 setting as without it, they get damp.
As we have big windows, all our curtains are thermal lined and the bedrooms have blinds as well.
My main tip would be to use brushed cotton bedding, it's amazing how much warmer it feels just getting into bed.
I don't batch cook as I don't like cooking. I use the main fan oven every day for half an hour or so and the small oven to warm the plates.
I'm with @Ben Cotto in this, life's too short to be miserably cold, I'd sooner go without holidays.
Luckily we have a large airing cupboard. Some of the gubbins for the air source heat pump is in there, but there's still plenty of room for washing. Once a week the system heats the water to 70C over night to prevent Legionella. So if either of us fancy a bath we tend to have it the next day.
I only ever run the washing machine at 30C with the lowest spin cycle ... seems to be fine even for bedding.
We have a whole house ventilation system which we put in 20 years ago when we built the house, so no condensation or mould.
Once thing that's not been mentioned so far is using a steamer for cooking.
We eat a plant based diet and use the steamer most days for veg or rice.
Don't think I'd get much use from an air fryer.
Good idea for a thread @AuntyRach
Bee x
A single bee creates just one twelfth of a teaspoon of honey in her lifetime