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| Wednesday, October 08, 2008 |
| How long can I hold out? |
 The Boston Globe article: Warming to the challenge informally surveyed Boston area families to see if they were holding back from turning on the heat. Across New England, residents staring at rising fuel costs and the dismal economy are tapping a deep vein of Yankee thrift and holding off on heat to save money this year, planning to rely instead on wool, down, and fortitude.
"We just put on some more sweaters and put more layers on the bed," said St. John, who works in information technology. "We want to make sure that if any one of us gets laid off, we've got extra money."
Every winter, New Englanders fret over how much heat they can afford. Usually, the most painful decisions are made by the poor and elderly. But this year, an increasing number of middle-class families, long accustomed to paying for heat as a winter necessity, appear to be planning to cut back as well.
Greene, 34, said she contacted her oil company, cut her scheduled delivery of oil for the winter, and ordered an extra cord of wood to heat the four-bedroom house that she and her husband, a marketing executive, moved into last fall. The family, she said, is trying to get by on a heating budget of $259 a month.
"Everyone has the fluffiest slippers you can find, extra blankets, flannel sheets, and even my 5-year-old, who hasn't worn pajamas in years, is wearing footsy pajamas," Greene said. "Basically, my theory is: Find a blanket." It is starting to get cold at Boston Gal's HQ, but so far I have resisted turning on the heat in my level of the house. The blankets are out and slippers and cardigans are being put to good use. I am not sure if I will be able to wait until November to turn on the heat, but I will give it a try! |
| posted by Boston Gal @ 9:32 AM *
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| 9 Comments: |
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I have a little space heater for the bedroom and one for the bathroom that I use when it's starting to get cold, but not yet cold enough to justify heating up the whole house.
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I have to admit: we've already caved in and turned on the heat. Two weeks ago, think, when the rain seemed like it would never end and the sun would never shine.
At 66 when we're home, 58 away, and 60 at night, the winter shouldn't be TOO expensive. I hope.
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biggest improvement ever was buying a heating blanket for the bed... i have it on a timer, it goes on about 1/2 hour before bedtime, and I turn it off when i hit the sheets... it allows me to run my house quite cold with minimal probs... i also wear long underwear, sweater and warm slippers when I am at home - i run my home at 60 degrees...
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The heat's not on yet, but we just started making coffee in the mornings again. I'm betting another 2 weeks.
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I try to use the stove when I get home. I'll make a batch of muffins or bread(from a box) along with dinner. It helps take the chill off the rooms!
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I actually had mine on a couple of times because we had some pretty
cool nights. I put the thermostat on 65, which knocked the chill off.
It hasn't been on for a week.
I just moved to this house in January, and am really trying to keep my
utilitiy costs down. I even turn my computers off when I'm not using
them, and also turn off the one light in the kitchen that I used to
leave on 24 hours/day, and it's a CF bulb.
I invested in a new electric blanket, and get my water "for free" as I
have a well. Of course "free" only lasts until the pump goes bad or,
Heaven forbid, the well runs dry.
Fortunately I'm warm natured and prefer sleeping in a cold room with
lots of blankets to sleeping in a warm room.
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We've had ours on a few times as we just got a baby bird and I don't want him to freeze! But we've been taking a lot of steps to improve our insulation in the house this summer...so hopefully that will show on our oil bills!
We also got a space heater from BJs to run in the den which gets a bit cold-it has a temp gauge on it and will shut off when the room reaches the specified temptation. Since our house is all one zone and open plan..if that room is cold it kicks on the boiler which burns more oil. So we're trying to stop that.
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We've had a wood stove for years and just bought a pellet stove for our second floor. You have to get into the system of bringing in wood or pellet bags, but the spouse and I already figured out we've paid ahead for our heat. About $350 for pellets (we'll probably buy $350 more) and $400 for wood. Not too bad for an old house.
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Wow you haven't turned on the heat yet? I've been keeping the thermostat at 66 so it's been on for around 2-3 weeks now.
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I have a little space heater for the bedroom and one for the bathroom that I use when it's starting to get cold, but not yet cold enough to justify heating up the whole house.