>>>>>>>>>>http://www.telegraph.co.uk/topics/weather/6921281/Britain-facing-one-of-the-coldest-winters-in-100-years-experts-predict.html
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>Then there is a little cool snap in Carolina too. http://www2.wnct.com/nct/news/local/article/once_in_a_generation_cold_snap_forecast_for_nc/91554/
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>And people are dying in Chicago - http://cbs2chicago.com/wireapnewsil/Chicago.man.s.2.1400772.html
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>Help, help, help the sky is freezing!
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>Someone forgot to tell global warming that most homes in North Carolina have heat pumps and heat pumps don't work well below 37 degrees F. That is the balancing point for most. They also have to de-ice. They are designed for temperatures around 50 degrees F and will work down into the teens, but at a point, there is no longer enough heat to extract from the cold air for anything above 60 degrees indoors. Brrrrrrrrrrrrrr!!!!!
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>Now here is a lady who knows her details <g>.
>>>>>>
>>>>>>Hi,
>>>>>>Curious - do you keep your home heated above 60F ?
>>>>>
>>>>>Is that still the practice in Germany? (Oops, sorry that should read England I guess :o) The same practice all over Europe?) It was back in the 80s when I was there for 3 years. It always seemed cold to me. I prefer indoor temps around 66-68 degrees F...
>>>>
>>>>TBH, I've no idea what the average thermostat setting might be in Europe (or the U.S) . Mine's set at 12C (so roughly 53F) and that seems adequate for most of the house. A couple of rooms that are most used have additional heating (a wood fire and an AGA) but for bedrooms etc that setting seems fine. I must say I'd find 66 uncomfortably warm....
>>>>
>>>>I remember reading somewhere that reducing the setting by 1 degree can reduce your heating costs by 10%
>>>>But that's seems a stupid statistic - the obvious thing to do would be to set it to 70 then reduce it by 10 degrees at which point your heating costs should be approaching zero!
>>>
>>>53 degrees! You're a better man than I, Gungha Dhun ;-)
>>
>>Checked our only thermometer (in the kitchen which is probably the wamest room) when I got up this morning - 40 F. Just wear a decent sweater....
>
>That was the practice when I lived in Germany. Everyone kept their homes around 50 - 55 degrees F in the winter (if it was even that warm) and overdressed inside to keep warm. It makes it really cold when you get out of the bath! :o)

My family had a house on a lake in New Hampshire (the lake that was 'golden pond') when I was younger. It was what locals called a 'camp' - meaning it wasn't winterized at all. It was huge - 11 bedrooms - but only had 2 huge stone fireplaces and an oil fired floor furnace for heat. No insulation.

In the winter, standard practice was to put the clothes you would wear tomorrow in bed with you when you went to bed so you could put them mostly on before climbing out of bed in the morning in a room somewhere near the freezing mark. Lots of ice on the windows and sills.

Water in the winter came from a hole you chopped (or later chainsawed) in the ice and brought in in tubs. They were kept in the kitchen closest to the livingroom fireplace so they wouldn't freeze (too much).

Ahh the memories. Sure as heck glad I don't have to do THAT anymore!!

Even my father finally couldn't stand it and he insulated the place and had a well put in. Later, my mother (after getting the house in divource) had it truly winterized. Much nicer!