Heating for SHTF and in general.

[bettersafethansorry]

My new house has a real problem retaining heat....

single glazing,
badly poistioned radiators,

ect.

How can i improove this without spending a lot

and how can i heat the place if the GCH is gone?

[Decaff]

You can get a film that you cover the windows with from b&q called storm guard plastic secondary glazing film £7 for 4.02 M

For behind the radiators you can get reflector foil for around £7 for 5meters to reflect the heat back into the room.

Good old fashioned draft excluders along the front and back doors along with thermal backed curtains will make a big difference, if you have old bath towels you can roll them into a thick sausage shapes and tie the ends with ribbon to make cheap draft excluders, don't forget to get draft excluder brushes put round the letterbox, cost around £5 upwards from b&q. The towels will also work for soaking up condensation on window cills.

Forgot the heating bit!! Look out for calour gas heaters.

[dannytsg]

Pipe lagging foam make brilliant draft excluders. I get it from B&Q and have made a few for our house. They work very well. We also use quite a few tea light candles in the living rooms whilst the heating is on, surprising but they do feel like they make a difference.

[grenfell]

Insulation is easier than heating to sort out. It is possible to have it done for free although check that there isn't a hefty charge for the survey. A customer asked me to do her loft and I told her to check out the free deals. However, with the survey charge it would have cost more than it did for me to do the job. Doing it yourself takes out the labour charge and most of the sheds such as Wikes sell it pretty cheap.
Double glazing is expensive but secondary glazing is cheaper , it can even be done with cling film stretched tight by warming with a hairdryer .. Tinfoil on cardboard behind the rads help reflect heat into the room. Seal draughts if possible , thicker carpet and don't forget the old idiom about insulating ( and heating) the body rather than the room.

[junmist]

This really depends weather you own the property or rent. First windows if renting I would use the plastic that you can heat seal with a hair dryer and nice heavy curtains also put curtains up at the doors(charity shops). Own apply for a grant to replace the windows( if you rent let your landlord know about the grant)
Heating First how old is your boiler if it is an old one you should be able to get a grant to replace it. Poorly placed rads you will have to move them if you don't like where they are personal I hate rads under windows I always try to move them if they are there. and silver foil behind them and don't forget to close doors(something I am really bad at doing ).
What is your loft insulation like again either you or a landlord should be able to apply for a grant to get that sorted out. if not insulate a little at a time when you have the money.
And last but not lest which way is your house facing east/west west/east house are always colder that houses that face north/south or south/north.
opps see you all got there before me

[ForgeCorvus]

I'm currently experimenting with bubblewrap double glazing.... I'll let you know

[handyandy]

My new house has a real problem retaining heat....

single glazing,
badly poistioned radiators,

ect.

How can i improove this without spending a lot

and how can i heat the place if the GCH is gone?

If you have a chimney and fireplace that has been blocked/boarded over might be an idea to open it up again and have an open fire
Is a good back up if your central heating goes off/power cuts etc
If its not possible to do this then I guess extra insulation,secondary glazing etc is the only way to go,but ALL these done together makes a difference not forgetting
to draught proof the house too

[preparedsurrey]

This really depends weather you own the property or rent. First windows if renting I would use the plastic that you can heat seal with a hair dryer and nice heavy curtains also put curtains up at the doors(charity shops). Own apply for a grant to replace the windows( if you rent let your landlord know about the grant)
Heating First how old is your boiler if it is an old one you should be able to get a grant to replace it. Poorly placed rads you will have to move them if you don't like where they are personal I hate rads under windows I always try to move them if they are there. and silver foil behind them and don't forget to close doors(something I am really bad at doing ).
What is your loft insulation like again either you or a landlord should be able to apply for a grant to get that sorted out. if not insulate a little at a time when you have the money.
And last but not lest which way is your house facing east/west west/east house are always colder that houses that face north/south or south/north.
opps see you all got there before me

Boiler - if its working and safe don't fix it - modern ones aren't as durable - yes they might be fractionally more efficient but thats all, if you don't get it free you'll never get payback in the life span of the new boiler, anybody who claims otherwise is working on an absolute best case scenario.

Rads usually got under windows as thats the coldest spot in the room and heat will circulate from there.

There are currently schemes to get insulation done FOC dependant on your income (its not neccessary to be on benefits). Personally i'm not a fan of filling a cavity wall full of insulation especially on older properties - i've been out to too many houses where this has caused damp problems but by all means get a load for the loft (it needs to be clear and not boarded).

Try to heat the room you spend most of your time in rather than the whole house.

Lastly if you do start opening chimneys up make sure they are safe to use, if its been blocked it could well have deteriorated significantly, so be sensible

[jansman]

I will go with what preparedsurrey says. Heat the room you are in. Our primary heating is wood/coal, two stoves. We have GCH,but use it rarely. Usually when the temperature drops so much I worry about pipes bursting. Saying that we are well insulated, and that is the key, as others have pointed out.
Our forefathers wore more clothes than we do now, and for good reason. Their Winters were colder, so were their houses. They did not have the luxury of being able to walk semi- naked round a building heated like the orchid house at Kew Gardens!
As fuel gets scarcer, and more expensive, this kind of discussion will be more commonplace. As long as you can heat one room you are ok. Do not rule out full,long underwear'Thermals' as they are known. They make a heck of a difference.

[grenfell]

The internet is full of ideas about staying warm and not wasting energy . Some are obvious and some less so. One , for instance , says not to flush the toilet every time. The reasoning behind this is that you are warming up a gallon or so of cold water to room temperature only to chuck it down the drain and replace it with another gallon of water at just a few degrees .