Winterizing - Page 2

[Brisen]

Originally Posted by Usually Curious

Hmmm, nice. Another thing to worry about off-gassing.

I'm going to try to find wool blankets at my local thrift store. It's too bad, nice new fleece would look spiffy, I think.

So, does the plastic just work to stop drafts from cracks around the window? It doesn't do anything to actually insulate the glass? I'm not crazy about not being able to open windows all winter.

[quantumleap]

We pulled off baseboards and put sray foam in the crack between the wall and the floor, although, in a good house, you wouldn't have such cracks. It has made a difference though. FYI though, when the can says, "only fill 40% of crack", they really mean only 40%. I'm surprised the baseboards are not popping off the walls!
Plastic is going up this weekend on every window we can put it on. This fleece thing puzzles me. Do you take it down every day or just live in the dark? We already get basically no sunlight in the winter (about two hours of "day" for most of the winter), so no way would I be interfering with what little we do get!
I'm also, incredibly, looking forward to considerable snowfall, so that we can bank it up around the house. Hurrah for the insulation of snow. Hurry up October! Sometimes I think we might actually be warmer if we just built an igloo in the front yard and moved in there. Our house is terrible. Ugh.
We do use a small space heater in the bathroom for showers and also in the living room (coldest room in the house). The electric to do so hasn't been too bad (an increase of 20-40$ a month, which is considerably less than the oil it would take to do the same thing!).
I'll be checking back for more ideas...

[CarrieMF]

So, does the plastic just work to stop drafts from cracks around the window? It doesn't do anything to actually insulate the glass? I'm not crazy about not being able to open windows all winter.

We put silver insulation inside the windows. IT's only on the bottom 1/4 or so. We don't open windows in the winter.

[oneKnight]

Like Selkat, when I did some work in the kitchen and removed the baseboards I stuffed fiberglass strips into the space where the wall ends and before the floor starts. (They are designed to use to wrap pipes but it worked great for behind baseboard cracks too.) It made my kitchen floor much less drafty, and there are cracks in my hardwood so the floor just IS drafty. I got some brown colored caulk for the floor. If I had the will to do it, I should do the same thing in the rest of the house.

Our heat pump (same as a/c unit) in the back yard needed the insulation replaced on the coolant pipes. It's pretty cheap to get some of the fiberglass wrap or black styrofoam-type tubes to fix that up.

[SuzyLee]

WRT to window film... Generally you do NOT blow dry the outside window film, and you CAN blowdry the inside film, because blowdrying pulls it perfectly tight and you don't "see" the plastic as much. But you don't have to blowdry.

We leave the window film on all year round on windows that we don't need to open in the summer. That means we don't have mess with it every fall! Yay! If you house has AC on in the summer, your window film will help your electric bill in the summer too, by trapping the cold air in.

On our super drafty windows we have both inside and outside window film, that we leave on all year round. The added bonus is that bugs can no longer crawl in the house through those huge cracks in the windows.

I may sew winter curtains for my Patio Doors using old blankets as the lining for warmth.

[ShareBear]

Bumping an old thread again...

I'm making curtains for my patio doors which are very drafty. I bought two full-sized off-white sheets and (as soon as the store restocks) will buy two full-sized off-white polyester blankets. I'll make curtains with the sheets and back them with the blankets. I was hoping to find the sheets and blankets at the thrift store but I couldn't find two sheets or two blankets that matched. I'm doing the light color so that some light can come through on days where it's so cold I want to keep the curtains shut.

For the bedroom, I'm hopefully going to finish a quilt I've been working on for a while. The lining is this really warm but ugly blanket that's been in my family for years. The backing is 10" plaid flannel squares from sheets, shirts, and pajamas. The top is a nice design pieced from twill pants and work shirts in neutral solids. The finished product will be heavy, warm, and soft. I can't wait. My boys and I will be soooo cozy.

I need to go shopping for long underwear of some sort. I was hoping to find some on clearance this spring, but by the time it went on clearance at the stores I shop, they were sold out of the sizes I need (for myself and my two kiddos).

I'm moving to Texas next year and I will really miss this whole preparing for winter thing. Preparing for summer heat just doesn't have the same appeal. I looooove fall--this time of year is just the greatest. October especially is the bestest.

[thixle]

Okay, I was searching around for some alternatives to the plastic blow-dry-on crap and found: http://www.builditsolar.com/Projects...bubblewrap.htm

You use water (maybe a little glycerine mixed in) to hold bubblewrap to the window pane. You can take it down on warm days and put it right back up the next day! The author also says it lasts through more than one winter (as opposed to the thin sheeting crap)

[Brisen]

Thanks for that link -- it looks great!

[Porcelain Interior]

I didn't read the entire thread, this may have been mentioned...

I live in a really old house and we have good windows, but it still leaks air like crazy.

We just calked the exterior of the house, around the window trim, and anywhere there were gaps in the wood siding. It's not cold yet, but inside my house the noise from outside has been reduced A LOT. Which means we've sealed our house really really well, that has to translate to less drafts and a warmer house. The cool thing is calk is pretty inexpensive, and it comes in clear too.

Some other things we do/have done *not all winterizing ideas*

Window Quilts (you can use anything.)

Shutting off rooms- this works exceptionally well in big old houses with lots of small weird spaces you don't need. Where do you hang out during the day? Don't be running space heaters all if you're predominantly all in the living room.

Sleep in the same room.

If you have a two story house and it's hard to heat the entire thing, have your kids bunk downstairs for sleeping and shut off the staircase with a blanket or a door if you have a door on it.

Don't heat the bathroom. Really- how long are you in there? Unless you're sick or pregnant just leave it ice cold.

Take a hot bath right before bed, but don't get your hair wet. You will get into bed toasty and radiate heat. Do this instead of running a space heater.

Experiment with turning your thermostat OFF (yes really) at night until you find out how much heat your house will hold overnight. When it's in the 20's here our house is about 48 when we wake up. That's a little crazy- so I put my thermastat in the LOW 50's. (We have a woodstove now so we don't use it anymore at all.) It makes no sense to heat the house all night long, you're in bed. It's also healthier to sleep in a cool room.

Bake a lot.

Have laundry parties, if you're using a dryer and your house is chilly kids LOVE to help fold laundry.

[Brisen]

Originally Posted by Porcelain Interior

We just calked the exterior of the house, around the window trim, and anywhere there were gaps in the wood siding. It's not cold yet, but inside my house the noise from outside has been reduced A LOT. Which means we've sealed our house really really well, that has to translate to less drafts and a warmer house. The cool thing is calk is pretty inexpensive, and it comes in clear too.

Thanks for mentioning this -- it never occurred to me to do anything to the outside of the house.

Don't heat the bathroom. Really- how long are you in there? Unless you're sick or pregnant just leave it ice cold.

We do this, but my dh doesn't like it. I usually get up before him, so I turn on the heater in there so it's warmed up for his shower, and then get in there after him and turn it off.

Take a hot bath right before bed, but don't get your hair wet. You will get into bed toasty and radiate heat. Do this instead of running a space heater.

If you don't have anyone who is at risk of drowning in it, you can also leave the hot water in the tub to warm up the room.

Have laundry parties, if you're using a dryer and your house is chilly kids LOVE to help fold laundry.

Sounds like fun!

[karne]

In our house we use wool rugs in the bedrooms. It is amazing how insulating a wool rug is, and how much warmer it can make a room feel, as opposed to just hardwoods or synthetic fibers. They can be pretty pricey, but I have actually gotten great deals on pottery barn rugs on craig's list. Also re: the bathroom, if you're taking a shower wouldn't the steam heat up the bathroom anyway?

[serenetabbie]

Since I last posted on this thread (OMG, what, 2 years ago!?), we have been getting those big rolls of thicker plastic to do our windows. The difference between that and the thin film in the kits is amazing. And no, we still do not blow dry the plastic.

Another thing I am doing this year is making flannel doublers for the windows to move away from the plastic. I asked all my friends, co-workers and neighbors to keep an eye out for old flannel flat sheets in any size. I bought some of those spring tension rods, and hang the curtain from the top hem. The twin sized sheets fit in our windows very well with no sewing! We will use the same idea for the sunporch windows and the doorways leading into the house.

This year we are talking about shutting off the upstairs and sleeping down stairs. We have a big, more open stairwell, so it will be a little tricky to shut off, but I think it can be done. For that I am gathering the largest medium weight blankets I can find from the good will. It will pretty much look like the whole stairway has curtains around it from downstairs. I can hang the blankets from the railing for most of the way, but the front has an archway over it. Any suggestions for that?

[FireWithin]

Originally Posted by oneKnight

If you hang fleece in your windows do you notice that when the sun shines on them they almost smell like they're burning? I sleep during the day, and in the past I used a fleece blanket to block out sunlight while I sleep. Now I have a real blackout curtain, which is also supposed to insulate your windows but fleece is cheaper.
Maybe others don't notice the smell, I am just very sensitive to some scents.

no I never noticed it. We use 7 of these on our 8 windows in a less than 700 sqft apartment, and I never smelled it at all.

[quelindo]

Originally Posted by serenetabbie

Since I last posted on this thread (OMG, what, 2 years ago!?), we have been getting those big rolls of thicker plastic to do our windows. The difference between that and the thin film in the kits is amazing.

Would you mind sharing the manufacturer or posting a link? I know 3M makes the kits (along with other companies) but I can't picture what you're talking about.

[thixle]

Originally Posted by New Mama

Would you mind sharing the manufacturer or posting a link? I know 3M makes the kits (along with other companies) but I can't picture what you're talking about.

We've used the drop-cloth type stuff on the outside of the windows before... Put it up with a staple gun.

[MonkeyPrincess]

Originally Posted by Porcelain Interior

Experiment with turning your thermostat OFF (yes really) at night until you find out how much heat your house will hold overnight. When it's in the 20's here our house is about 48 when we wake up. That's a little crazy- so I put my thermastat in the LOW 50's. (We have a woodstove now so we don't use it anymore at all.) It makes no sense to heat the house all night long, you're in bed. It's also healthier to sleep in a cool room.

I love sleeping in the cold! : And I totally wouldn't mind turning the heat off at night. Although, I'm wondering if it will cost more to have to bring the heat back up to a warmer temp? Or to keep it constant?

Also, anyone have any tips for keeping the pipes from bursting when keeping temps low in the winter? We live in a drafty, old house and the basement is f-r-e-e-z-i-n-g in the winter.

[gentlemango]

Originally Posted by serenetabbie

Since I last posted on this thread (OMG, what, 2 years ago!?), we have been getting those big rolls of thicker plastic to do our windows. The difference between that and the thin film in the kits is amazing. And no, we still do not blow dry the plastic.

Where do you get it? Is this on the inside? We have 3 stories so we cant do exterior plastic.

MonkeyPrincess, we have had many pipes burst in our house even with the heat on and low. Some parts of the house are v. difficult to heat. It's the nature of a drafty old farmhouse.

[Pam_and_Abigail]

Questions:
1. I can't seem to find any kind of sealant that I can use on the inside of the windows, except for an off-gassing solvent-based one. The regular caulk is apparently hard to get off and might peel off the paint, so I've been told at the hardware store.

2. Does baking really help? You're still burning electricity to power the oven, and I don't think they're really as efficient as, say, a furnace.

3. When you apply plastic to your windows using two sided tape, where do you tape it down?

Here's what I hope to do:
- use expandable foam to seal cracks
- replace door weather stripping
- make fabric and rice draft blockers
- plastic on windows?
- make (or buy used) some heavier curtains

we also got a programmable thermostat this fall, and we have it programmed to be 58 F at night. When I had to get up at 6 am with the babe, it was awfully chilly!

Oh, and do any of you have trouble with your kids poking holes in the plastic on the windows? I can sooo see this happening with my eldest taking a pencil and poking holes in it.

[serenetabbie]

Where do you get it? Is this on the inside?

We got in in trade for yard work from our neighbor who knows a guy who works at a local plastics plant who she traded homemade wine for. Follow that? It's industrial grade plastic sheeting, and I have no idea what they use it for. My other neighbor bought something like it in a huge 10 ft X 100 ft roll at Lowes (he had nothing to trade the other neighbor I guess). I think he said they sold it as a vapor barrier.

We put it on the inside, but this year I am going to also put it outside since our house is about 100 years old. The windows are beautiful but drafty as all get out. I am planning to use staples outside. Upstairs there is no way I am putting it on the outside! I am too afraid of heights for that craziness.

When you apply plastic to your windows using two sided tape, where do you tape it down?

I run the tape along the top, sides and bottom of the frame/sash. That way if any of the paint or stain peels off it is not so noticeable. Also, a lot of air comes in right where the frame and wall meet, so I try to cover as much of that as I can.

Oh, and do any of you have trouble with your kids poking holes in the plastic on the windows?

I never had an issue with the kids poking holes in the thinner stuff, but the dogs did poke/nibble the edges away until they could sniff the cold air. Silly dogs. They did not do that with the heavier plastic.



I have the flannel sheets hung in DD's and DS's room. I found two light blue ones for DD's room and DS's room has cream with green fishermen on them. Until it gets very cold, I have them sort of ruched up on top of the sashes to let more light in and keep the draft out. When it gets a little colder I will put the draft dodgers on the sashes and let the flannels down.

I also found a tip online somewhere that said if you have radiators to put aluminum foil behind them shiny side out to reflect the heat into the room more. It seems to make sense. I figured I have nothing but a dollar or two to loose, so I went to the dollar store and bought $2 worth of cheapo aluminum foil. I am not sure if it is helping since we have only had the heat on a little bit so far, but it looks festive for sure

And today I put in the little foam thingies behind the switch plates & outlet covers on the outside walls. I had had outlet protectors (those safety things) in them to cut down on the draft, but WOW I sure can tell a difference there already with these foam things. $3 and 20 minutes well spent! I even had enough to give some to my neighbor since most of our outlets & switches are on interior walls. .

In our basement we covered the windows with plain old black trash bags and duct tape for the winter (we do this every year). We put a door blanket over the door leading to the bilko door (we just did that last year). We got insulation, the pink yucky kind, wrapped it in some of that heavy plastic and stuffed it under the spaces where the foundation meets the floor (what is that space called? I know there is a name for it). The outer faucets get the super duper fancy old socks and plastic baggie sealed with duct tape treatment to keep them from freezing. We have to keep the cold cellar door open so the pipe to the pump does not freeze (NOT a pleasant thing I tell you, to climb down into the well house with a blowtorch and thaw the stupid thing out), so our basement is usually pretty chilly, but since the furnace is down there with the addition of the trash bags, insulation & blanket things seem to be working out. Last year at least we did not have to thaw out the pipe... so here's to hoping this year is the same!