As far as the experts are concerned, we might well be looking at one of the most unusual and indeed unpredictable winter seasons for some time. Predictions as to the ‘Godzilla El Nino’ that’s apparently going to wreak chaos vary from one meteorologist to the next, but the general consensus is that the Great British Winter will be taking no prisoners this year.
Suffice to say therefore, this is exactly the time of year to be giving real thought to how you and your family will be looking after your health and wellbeing throughout the winter by staying nice and warm. It might not be blowing an Arctic gale outside just yet, but you’d be surprised just how quickly those sub-zero temperatures creep up on us all and deliver a rather nasty sting.
So in the spirit of riding things out in the most amicable and indeed affordable manner until the spring sets in, here is a quick look at 10 essential tips from the experts on keeping warm this winter:
1 – Warm yourself, then the room
First up, try to remember that it is much easier and quicker to warm your own body up than it is to warm up the room you are in or of the home as a whole. Hot drinks work well. If you’re finding yourself a little on the chilly side therefore, it’s vastly quicker and more convenient to pile on as many extra clothes as necessary to warm yourself up before moving on to heating the home. UGG® are a great choice for high quality warm boots or slippers.
2 – Wear a hat
If you found it hard to believe when you were told that 80% of body heat is lost through your head, you weren’t actually wrong…it’s not quite as severe as this. Nevertheless, anywhere on your body you leave your skin/hair exposed for any period of time, it is inevitable that you will lose a decent amount of heat. Long story short, get into the habit of wearing a hat (wooly preferably!) on a pretty constant basis throughout the winter and you won’t struggle to keep warm nearly as much.
3 – Use the ceiling fan..really?
Chances are the very last thing on your mind will be switching on the ceiling fan that’s usually reserved for mid-summer use when it’s so hot you can barely breathe. Nevertheless, cast your mind back to science class and you might just remember that warmer air naturally rises while colder air sinks. It’s therefore inevitable that the warmest air in your rooms will be trapped in the ceiling – so why not go about a swap?
4 – Use tinfoil
It might sound a little odd, but you’d be surprised just how big of a difference it can make to add a layer of tinfoil (or two) to the walls immediately behind your home’s radiators. The simple fact of the matter is that no matter what it is your walls are made of, chances are they are acting like sponges for the heat being emitted, rather than bouncing it back into the rooms of your home. It’s odd, but it works!
5 – Buy a better duvet
Instead of wasting money on additional overnight heating or electric blankets, why not invest instead in a high quality winter down duvet. Downduvet.co.uk have some of the best selection of premium winter down duvets. The added bonus of upgrading your bedding being that not only will you enjoy a better night’s sleep each and every night, but waking up warmer means waking up happier…or at least, not quite so grumpy.
6 – Bust those draughts
You may have sworn as a child that you’d never reach an age where you’d be using the same draught excluders you saw all over the place at your grandma’s house – it’s amazing how paying the bills personally can change your mind! Even just a few cracks and imperfections here and there around doors and windows can radically alter interior home temperatures, so it’s in your best interests to get serious with draught-busting.
7 – Share the wealth
The warmest room of the home for much of the day tends to be the kitchen, for obvious reasons. As such, it’s never a bad idea to keep the kitchen door propped perpetually open to help share the warmth throughout the home’s other living spaces. And for that matter, try to get into the habit of leaving the oven door open (pets and young children safety-pending of course) after cooking anything at all, rather than allowing a huge amount of residual heat to be trapped inside and be put to no use whatsoever.
8 – Rearrange the furniture
If your sofa is located right in front of a large window, chances are you’ll be spending your winter evenings colder than you need to be. Likewise, if you have your sofa positioned right in front of your main living room radiator, you are pumping a ton of heat into the fabric of something that really doesn’t need heating. Think strategically when it comes to the furniture in the room, ensuring that heat sources are not blocked and sources of cold are kept at arm’s length.
9 – Seal the chimney
If you have an open fireplace, chances are that any time you are not actually using it there is a ridiculous amount of heat being sucked up the chimney and blasted into kingdom come. These days, it’s possible to pick up a chimney blocking balloon like this for next to nothing that will effectively seal it off and make a huge difference.
10 – Watch those windows!
Last but not least, there’s no more important time of the year to spare a thought or two for your window dressings and to up the ante if necessary. Your windows are almost guaranteed to be one of the biggest pressures on the temperature within your home, so even if it means simply hammering in a few hooks and hanging a bunch of thick sheets and towels temporarily, be sure to show the winter who’s boss!
