| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| Jes |
Posted - Sep 05 2005 : 3:43:40 PM
Living in Maine in an old farm house can prove to be challenging enough in the winter. With the increase of oil prices....how to get this house shut up tight for the winter proves to be doubly challenging! I DID just find out we are getting new windows!!
We have NO HEAT upstairs. We do however have an antique cookstove in the kitchen and a wood stove in the livingroom...these do heat the upstairs nicely. And we have the dreaded oil....I wish I could say we just wont use it....but I know that wont be the case.
Any other tips on keeping the draft down in your house and making it more efficient? We were thinking of banking the back of the house with trashbags full of leaves. Does this really work?[/
Just a Maine Girl
http://sweetpeas.motime.com ~journal
http://sweetpeasme.motime.com ~collective souls....a journal's journey |
| 23 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| hennessy |
Posted - May 08 2006 : 6:58:35 PM
My farmhouse is 90 years old, and is not heated upstairs either. I use a featherbed and down comforter to keep myself toasty warm up there in the winter. I tend to be cold all the time, but even for me the feather bed and comforter work great (but it's hard to get out of bed in the morning!). I also keep down throws around so whenever I am sitting somewhere I can tuck one around me and stay warm.
If you lived in your heart, you'd be home by now. |
| BamaSuzy |
Posted - Apr 16 2006 : 8:05:22 PM
One of my adult daughters has had to live in a vareity of drafty old houses and mobile homes and she has become almost an expert at sealing off just about any place extra air can come in...
She says just give her a roll of duct tape and a roll of plastic and she's all set! ha!
New windows should help but make sure they are installed correctly or the wind will still leak in!
Also, if there are any kinds of floor vents, such as from previous heating systems, seal them off with plastic as well.
I've also heard of lots of folks using the hay bale method around their foundations and even up north facing walls of their homes.
best wishes!
You can bury a lot of troubles digging in the dirt! |
| _Rebecca_ |
Posted - Apr 11 2006 : 07:19:11 AM
Very good ideas!
Keep humidity at about 50%. Plastic on the windows is good.
Fleece blankets over the windows are a great temporary solution. I liked the ideas about rubber backed and velcro!
The more carpet, rugs & furnishings you have on the inside during winter the better. Think packrat mentality. (The opposite is true for summer--wood floors and bare furnishings for keeping a house cooler.)
And think medieval--tapestries on the walls! LOL!
Also, think medieval with the canopies around the beds to keep your body heat in at night.
We bought a cheap little electric heater at Lowe's for about $12 and gave it to my mom to use. That thing works like a little champ!
Also, people used to have a "winter room." They would only heat one room in their homes and this was the main area where the family gathered.
Keep windows completely covered on days that are overcast/dark.
Do lots and lots of baking in your oven.
Think Laura Ingalls Wilder and heat some bricks to put in your beds at night.
Think Louisa May Alcott & wear snoods on your heads and shawls around your shoulders.
That is about all that I can think of!
.·:*¨¨* :·.Rebecca.·:*¨¨* :·.
Wife of Jonathan, Mother of Joel, Caitlyn, Elia |
| bboopster |
Posted - Apr 11 2006 : 06:42:41 AM
Hello Jes,
Do you have forced air or radiant (hot water) heat? If you have the hot water type (hopefully you have the old cast iron radiators but this sytem works with both.)Here is a solution I used in my old Farm house 1871 and we are using an updated version in our new house 2006. Wood burning boiler. The old house we had it in the basement next to the boiler which did cause my allergies to act up at time ussally when I have to start the boiler or feed it. But once up stairs the drafts in the house ussally help with the air excahnge. The new house has an outside wood burning boiler that is connected to the boiler in the basement through an heat exchanger. No allergey problems and the new style boiler heats the hot water (on demand) and will eventualy also heat the hot tub. The brand we have is call an Empire wood boiler. We also have put the old style radiators in our new house. The heating contractor thought we were nuts but he's eating his words now as the house is toasty warm. The boiler also runs best on 70% greenwood so you can get or cut and use right away. 
Pray for our troops to come home safe and soon.
Enjoying the road to the simple life :>) |
| Destiny~ |
Posted - Apr 11 2006 : 06:21:08 AM
Boy do these stories bring back memories. Not only did I have ice on the inside of my bedroom windows but also snow. My bedroom walls were never finished, just had insulation, but there were gaps around the windows and the snow would blow in. My parents didn't heat the upstairs, they closed off the top of the stairs with a door laid horizontally across. You had to lift it up to get up the stairs. The rest of the house they heated with a wood burning stove, they still do and it's thirty years later. My bathroom was also upstairs so I would have to turn on a propane heater to warm it up if I wanted to take a shower. Of course I would jump back into bed while it was heating. I had a ton of blankets on my bed plus a sleeping bag. I, too, would pull my clothes into bed with me to warm them up in order to get dress. Oh, and when I would use the toilet at night it would have a layer of ice on top of the water.
I love reading all of your stories like mine.
One suggestion on the curtains, don't forget the tops. Cold air can escape at the top of the curtains if they are away from the wall. That's one reason they used to have those boxes covered in fabric (I can't think of the name right now) over the tops of the curtains. |
| Alaska farm girl |
Posted - Apr 10 2006 : 11:43:36 AM
Hi, we live in a 104 year old house and it has all the original window casings(with pulleys)I can't think of replacing those! My ex-mom-in-law sewed insulated curtains with accordian pulls for her giant windows.I bought insulated curtains and that has helped alot.When I was little,my parents hired a carpenter named Olaf to do some small reno.Well he went overboard and tore out the chimney.My dad had to run around that night and find a barrel stove to install!We have lots of stories about Olaf and his carpentry! Blown insulation is fairly easy if you can find the equip. |
| dakota |
Posted - Dec 27 2005 : 1:50:43 PM
This is wonderful reading these post , I to live in a 105 yr old house .We finally insulated the living room alot of work and $$ but worth it .Now we are saving to restore the hard wood flooring .We do have one tip is I use my front door so I hang a quilt over the back door .Well we nail it on the top so you can still use if ness .It seems to keep the draft down .Its just wonderful to know I am not alone |
| Krisathome |
Posted - Dec 23 2005 : 8:43:29 PM
I am fairly hot blooded and so is my family so we keep the heat set low. When I am home alone during the day, I turn the thermostat down to 63 and then up to 66 when the kids get home at 4pm.
Our house is quite old(115 years)and has little to no insulation. But calling the insulation co. is not in our budget right now so we dress warmer and use more blankets on our beds and even on the couches.
I have double layered the curtains in a couple of rooms. And I found a great deal on some insulated drapes at Goodwill the other day and they look wonderful in my front room that faces the north.
I don't really have any extra blankets but I have thought about buying some nice bath towels that would fit the size of all my cold, ice covered windows(yep, we have ice on the inside of our windows). And just tacking them up on the window frames. It will be a bit dark but at least it would be less drafty. |
| CabinCreek-Kentucky |
Posted - Dec 22 2005 : 06:14:13 AM
in these olde cabins ... with drafts coming through every door and window ... we jus' put on an extra layer of clothes. i know that doesn't solve the problem of energy loss or heating our home .. but it does 'heat us' and keep us toasty. xo, frannie
True Friends, Frannie |
| jenny louise |
Posted - Dec 22 2005 : 02:16:59 AM
Great ideas, everyone. We have an old drafty farmhouse as well, and have always had a wood stove, very efficient and toasty. But my d.h. developed wood allergies so this past year we installed a corn stove. While it has its advantages, it is not nearly as toasty as the wood stove. So we have put the insulated curatins up and installed some new windows, and it has helped a good deal.
Mary Anne, if you ever feel the need to replace your wonderful old windows, my friend does renovations and is a glass artist. She reconstructs old windows into new framing and sends the whole thing out to a shop that does the nice insulated windows with the old glass. Not sure how it works, but it does. Maybe you could look up a glass person in your area.
Now we are one day past solstice, it will be getting lighter and warmer! Hah! wishful thinking!!! jenny louise |
| Horseyrider |
Posted - Dec 21 2005 : 04:43:43 AM
Over the years, we've done many things to improve the way our old house holds heat. The first thing we did was to insulate. The contractor was embarrassed because he didn't bring enough insulation; he based our estimate on walls built today; our 140 year old house was built with real honest two inch by six inch lumber! The cavities were much larger, and as a result took more insulation material (and made us cozier when it was done).
Second thing was some new windows. I consented to the replacement of several; but I couldn't bear to part with those that have the old original rippled glass! I love my old windows, and think of all those people who gazed out through them before me.
We also replaced the heating plant. We had one that they told me ran about 60% efficiency. That means 40% of what I was buying was going up the chimney! I'm too thrifty to be able to stand that sort of waste, so we got one of the new 97% efficiency ones. We no longer use a chimney for the furnace; it's a PVC pipe for moist air.
Keeping enough moisture in the air makes a big difference in the comfort level. Right now we're running two humidifiers, but my hair tells me it's not enough. So today I'll do a load or two of laundry, and vent the moist air inside the house. That'll change that right away!
Now I need to replace the windows in my bedroom. They're not original, and they don't work well. There are four of them. I'm dragging my feet, but maybe in the spring.... |
| Judi |
Posted - Dec 20 2005 : 2:41:57 PM
When we were in Wales we stayed in an old stone, 17th century cottage. There was a heavy drape covering the door, just like a window. We have a steel door on the front of our house, and it gets really cold (not to mention any drafts). I made a curtain out of heavy fabric, use a draft-stopper at the bottom, and I believe it helps. I also like the way it looks (the fabric matches my drapes.) |
| Jes |
Posted - Sep 08 2005 : 05:48:16 AM
I'll have to check out and see if our local utility co. has a site...I'm sure it must!
Just a Maine Girl
http://sweetpeas.motime.com ~journal
http://sweetpeasme.motime.com ~collective souls....a journal's journey |
| Alee |
Posted - Sep 07 2005 : 07:45:27 AM
I am glad some of my ideas might help! A lot of those I get from my mom every winter as she tries to help my boyfriend and I save money! My parents lived in an old farmhouse for a few years when they first got married and this was in Wyoming about 35yrs ago. During those first few winters, Wyoming had a set of really bad winters with TONS of snow and record cold snaps. Some of the other ideas came from Avistautilities.com (our power company around here). They have a great website with lots of tips and even an "Energy Audit" for you home. It takes about an hour and you are running all over the house and then back to the computer to enter in stuff... :)
Anyway- I hope it works out great for you!
Ciao
Alee |
| Jes |
Posted - Sep 07 2005 : 04:35:55 AM
THANKS ALL!!!
NANCY: "The burn your bum" story was just too funny!
I am SO making some "snakes" this fall!!!!
Our insalation? I'd say is long gone from mice & other little buggers. Our new addition is the best insulated room in the house....but we will not be heating it this winter. (such a shame, it's so pretty)
I am going to definetly check all of the outlets.
We always put the clear plastic on our windows. The first year I moved in, Jon had put the "unclear" plastic on all of the windows....by the end of the winter I'd felt like a wild woman....all cooped up! If someone pulled in the driveway, I'd hear the dogs barking, but could never see who it was. The clear plastic is a little more...but worth it to keep me sane!
ALEE: I'm printing off your list to show the Hubster! thanks!
Just a Maine Girl
http://sweetpeas.motime.com ~journal
http://sweetpeasme.motime.com ~collective souls....a journal's journey |
| therusticcottage |
Posted - Sep 06 2005 : 07:16:06 AM
Clare - sharing about your childhood home brought back some not so warm memories! We also had a house with no heat upstairs and no storm windows. Tons of blankets on the bed which made it hard to even turn over. We used plastic on the windows too.
To help the drafts at doors make a fabric tube and fill it with sand or rice. Then lay at the bottom of the door to help stop drafts.
"If you are lucky enough to have a garden, you are lucky enough!" |
| Alee |
Posted - Sep 05 2005 : 9:58:30 PM
Some quick energy searches can give you lots of tips but here are some highlights that I have found work wonders!:
1)- New windows are a start but they still lose a lot of heat- consider the shrink wrapped plastic OR getting really heavy lined curtains up. My mom bought some insulated curtains that have rubberized backing on the side facing the window- you would be surprised how much these help!
2) Get a can of cheap spray insulation and unscrew EVERY lightswitch and electrical outlet you have. Then go around the house and shoot that insulation in there! You would be surprised how much that can help reduce drafts.
3) sew a door snake. Cut a bit of cloth and sew it into a simple cylinder- Stuff with anything from batting to straw to rice. Shove these at the base of the doors all over the house- especially ones going outside. These help keep those pesky drafts out too.
4) Vacuum your refrigerator coils. Your fridge and freezers operate a billion times better when the coils are vacuumed each month. With the dirt and hair on them, they can not disperse the heat efficiently enough and hence use more fan time and energy to do so.
5) if you can stand a bit of extra humidity (In Wyoming where I grew up this was a blessing) get a special attachment to your dryer hose (Looks like a coffee can with a water can in side) This catches the lint from your dryer but lets the heat into your house. If you do this make sure you keep your eye on your device and don't forget to block off the air duct going outside.
6) Put that removable stick on velcro on your drapes. When you don't need them open for light seal the curtains to the wall or window frame to create another air pocket barrier between you and the outside.
7) Check insulation in "easy" to modify places like any attics and such- you can get spray insulation or the regular Red Panther fiberglass stuff up there.
I hope this helps!
Alee |
| Aunt Jenny |
Posted - Sep 05 2005 : 6:04:29 PM
We don't have new windows in our old old house and we do the plastic over the north and west side windows downstairs...I had to draw the line once when husband got carried away and sealed up the kitchen windows!! I need my air no matter how cold it is out sometimes!!! It does look awful. We could sure use more insulation ..we don't have much and the upstairs is real cold in winter..I have tough kids and lots of blankets..haha
Our laundry room sewing room is the worst..NO insulation..it was an add on and is either the coldest or hottest room in the house..and it is a big room..depends on the season..but it is my favorite..besides the kitchen since I sew, do laundry and iron there...and get away from the noise. I should have a comfortable chair to read in out there....hmmmmmm
We have plans to try to do more insulating this fall, and then next spring when we put on the new roof (with any luck) even more. We put those weather strip things on the bottoms of our very old doors and they have helped alot too. Our old house has 4 doors to the outside.
Jenny in Utah
The best things in life arn't things |
| bramble |
Posted - Sep 05 2005 : 5:43:35 PM
Jes- On a slightly more modern approach, have you contacted your utility company to do an energy inspection? We lived in a 214 year old house and now a 70 year old house and both times we had them come out ( at no charge) and walk us through what areas they saw that we could improve. Common sense is one thing, but they did give us alot
useful suggestions that helped us cut our heating costs by 25% the first year. Windows make a huge difference, that's great that that's already on the agenda. Good Luck, we are looking at further ways to reduce our expense this winter too.
with a happy heart |
| Lazycreek |
Posted - Sep 05 2005 : 5:13:20 PM
We lived in an old, old farm house when I was growing up also. My dad took the clear, thick, plastic sheeting and covered the outside of the house with it. He did a double layer on the North side of the house. It looked aweful, but it sure did the job, so we didn't care.
Charlee
Believe in the power of your dreams |
| Clare |
Posted - Sep 05 2005 : 5:11:27 PM
Yes, Nancy! Layers of blankets on the beds in those unheated bedrooms. I remember ice on the single pane windows... I could etch my name on there while laying on the top bunk! Our spirits were always warm and well fed, though. (Sounds like you branded your bum on the oil stove!  I remember laying my clothes on the top to warm up before I got dressed.)
**** Love is the great work - though every heart is first an apprentice. - Hafiz
Set a high value on spontaneous kindness. - Samuel Johnson****
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| quiltedess |
Posted - Sep 05 2005 : 4:54:17 PM
Clare, you and I could have grown up in the same house, I never did think of it as poverty either. We just put a ton of blankets on the beds. One time when I was kindergarten age, I ran out of the shower and into the living room to stand in front of the oil stove . . . and backed in just a touch to close and burned my bum. It wasn't until I was quite a bit older that I found out that house had several "lives" from when my dad had lived in it when he was young, then it became the chicken house, then we lived in it, and then became a chicken house again after we moved out.
Jes, I agree with Clare on all her suggestions. New windows will help a ton. Is your house insulated I hope? You can also buy these little foam inserts to put in behind your light switch and outlet covers. And you've probably seen those fabric "snakes" filled with rice or something that can sit at the bottom edge of the doors and keep out drafts.
Nancy |
| Clare |
Posted - Sep 05 2005 : 4:07:14 PM
I may be giving away the level of poverty I grew up in (hindsight and all), but we lived in an old, generally uninsualted house, with an oil stove only in the living room. Dad always put straw bales along the foundation of the house, sometimes layered two bales high, which cut down on the draftiness alot. Bags of leaves might work on the same principal. We also put clear plastic over the windows for extra insulation there. But with you getting new windows that should help you out alot. As long as they're sealed up well between the window casings, you should be fine there. If it gets dire upstairs, blankets over the windows always helps retain some of the heat. How's the insulation in your attic space? That will help retain alot of heat too and isn't all that expensive to upgrade. The wood heat helps cozy up drafty houses alot. Good luck.
**** Love is the great work - though every heart is first an apprentice. - Hafiz
Set a high value on spontaneous kindness. - Samuel Johnson****
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