Also laying on your belly is much warmer than sleeping on your back or side. Best to combine with mattress and blanket or with sleeping bag, thus making some kind of ""cocoon", a micro climate, yes. For who wants to try it: Shower and/or bath with cold water. I know someone who is called "the ice man". I´m learning a lot from him about this. He himself is a living example of how it helps getting more healthy by our natural "immune system", being able to live in - for humankind - extreme temperature conditions, like many of our ancestors centuries before us.
I'm thinking of going the simple route. I'm going to put in a high efficiency catalytic wood stove that will crank out heat for like 20 hours on a single load of wood. I've also had good results with the Mr. Heater propane heaters.
My wife used to work with homeless people, and she noticed that the prepper sites do not usually mention cardboard. She used to help folks make "squirrel nests" out of cardboard, plastic, and tarps. Premium cardboard, such as refrigerator boxes, can have good qualities, but you can't always find those. Layers of thinner cardboard and duct tape can work really well. Plastic bags of leaves surrounding the nest can top off the insulation. We'd like to see you do a show on cardboard. More of you preppers should visit some homeless camps to witness real ingenuity.
@@catalhuyuk7 yes, all that and personal circumstances. For example, marriage breakdown can coincide with unemployment. Try landing an office job requiring a suit when homeless, living in a tent! :-(
@@TheTerryMarsh1 I agree. Unfortunately too many people are one paycheque away from becoming homeless. Circumstances can change your life in a heartbeat. Good luck to you if your statement came from personal experience.
For young people, if you have an elderly family member or neighbor, don't forget to contact them in person and check to make sure they too have some form of heat.
Yeah, and make sure they have a few cheaper option because elderly people often don't use things like heat and ac because of the cost. Wool blankets, survival sleeping bags, down sleeping bag, microwavable heating pads, heated throws, even the 7-watt heated animal tank warmer could save their lives.
In the '50's and '60's, we had horses in Ohio. Our horse barn wasn't that warm, although straw helped. My dad bought old rugs and carpets from estate sales and hung them on the inside barn walls. Made a huge difference. Like tapestries in medieval monasteries. Keeping out wind and holding in warmth.
For anyone reading this it’s super important to use straw and not hay- stray stays dry and hay gets wet and can make you (or an unsuspecting animal) freeze
Here's a safety tip for Sterno style alcohol stoves; if you sprinkle a few grains of table salt into the burner you'll be able to see the flames as they glow yellow.
I was without housing for awhile. I was in Michigan and spent a winter in a vehicle that was broken, no heat. For me I gradually got used the temperature. Eventually I didn't need a jacket on when the temperature was below freezing. In the wind I felt the cold hit me some, but I would just fight it; eventually I'd probably get used to the wind too if I had been in it most of the time. Put bottled water under your blankets and your body will keep it from freezing. I am mostly worried about others who might have a hard time with getting used to the cold, since getting used to it can be some suffering. Mostly, a good helpful book can help you feel better, a shower to keep your body clean, a place for your bodily waste, a safe place to sleep (a lot of people in society are not really trustworthy), enough food (preferably no need to cook), a clean water source, and a place to dispose of trash. Don't use any drugs (including weed, alcohol); one might get depressed, but the drugs will cause many problems. Depends on the situation, one might survive, and even help others to survive without them going through hell if they do survive.
I purchased several clear shower curtains at Dollar Tree to tape around my old single pane windows, that face north because of the cold wind. Was able to to do for less cost than the roll of plastic sheeting at local store. I will leave my south facing windows alone for the sunshine and at night, will close the drapes. Side note: A few years ago when I moved into this house, I cut rolls of bubble wrap to fit on the interior side of the window glass. Just spray the window glass with water and place the flat side of the bubble wrap against it. Still up 3 yrs later! I did this to the north facing windows that no one sees. It truly made a big difference as those 2 rooms were the coldest in the house. This was a trick I learned from an RV camping group.
@@rtoguidver3651 It really is! Has worked great! If a window is still drafty in the corner or something, I use the plastic too in order to cover the entire sill, until I can add caulking.
@@aliciaokiegal Take the trim off the window and use expanding foam around the window, this will fill any gaps inside and out.. Better yet replace the windows w/ double pane windows, maybe one at a time.. About $150 each for good ones and you can do it your self, it's simple... What state are you in ?
The bubble wrap and water trick works really well on windows that you don't own and can't change. Put the bubble side against the window to get extra insulation: 1x is the air inside the bubbles. 2x is the air around the bubbles trapped by the flat side of the plastic. You get both light and privacy with this plan. Then as spring arrives, you can roll it up and stow under the bed.
Hello! Another idea for a candle heater... I have a large stock pot with a strainer that fits inside it. Put a 4" unscented candle in the pot and put the strainer on top upside down, like a dome. The entire unit will radiate heat. Place it on a cookie cooling rack on a heat safe surface.
Not sure how helpful this will be, but: Flip your bed layers. Have a blanket touching you with your duvet and extra blankets on top of that. For extra warmth have another blanket between you and the mattress (you can swap it out for bath towels as well if needed). This is a great way of having a "warm" bed if you don't have/want to use electric blankets/water bottles etc. Also I have an extra pillow that I keep between my head and the wall during winter, (assuming you don't have a headboard) this helps insulate you and stops the wall leeching warmth. (this might be obvious to some but these were helpful to lots of friends so figured I'd share anyway). Hope this helps someone 💛
I do this too. Forget the top sheet - it’s cold. I have a soft fuzzy microfiber blanket touching me instead and my comforter and I’m warm. Oh, and I do wear an oversized hoodie so I can pull the hood over my head. It’s like an old fashioned nightcap like they wore in the olden days! Keep your head warm!
As I am German I do know the Video about the small candles. The Main Point is to keep a certain distance between the candles and also enough space to the flower pot. If not the wax can get too hot and thus start burning completely and not just the wick. As the material is basically oil, the fire needs to be treated accordingly and can’t be put out with water. The safe distance between those candles is about an inch or three cm. As for the height - that depends on the amount of candles you use. The more candles the higher the distance should be. But even with only one the flame should be beneath the pot. Heat rises so there’s still enough to warm up the pot.
I saw a survival u tube post more than 6 months ago. This guy put together a metal box with metal pipes. One set of pipes goes in from outside and another exit at the top to the outside. In between are 3 lighted candles at even spaces heating up the 2nd pipe running right to left with openings to the room. For a required space, it heats up quite well. This box can be increased with a bigger space. This solved the co2 dangers. If you factor in a small computer fan at one end of the second pipe, this will distribute heat in the room faster.
@@weikwanglee4383 that was the outsider. He's not a survivalist. He built a cabin in Canada and wanted to create a heater from candles so he could use it while camping in his portable camping cabin.
1. Layers 2. Micro climate 3. Insulate floors. 4. Let sun in. 5. Seal up drafts..windows with plastic or tape etc. 6. Dribk warm food and drinks 7. Exercise major muscles 8. Snuggle up people and pets 9. Sleep bags and emergency blankets, wool 10. Hand warmers. 11. Water bottles with hot water 12. Fire place 13. Kerosene heater, propane, warm pans put in micro climate, sterno heat, terracotta heater, alcohol stove, 14. Generator with space heater or heated blanket. 15. Bricks out in sun or by fire..put in sleep bag 16. Use your car. 17. Camp stove/tent stove.
My mom grew up in northern Sweden in the 40's and 50's. She tells me about heating rocks in the fireplace and placing them in bed before they would go to sleep to make the bed warm to get into. Europe may have to go back to that practice this winter.
I was born in 1951 in Oklahoma, and we lived on a farm and as a child the only stove we had was in the front room and kitchen. The cook stove was an old kerosene oil cooking stove. We would warm up bricks and wrap them in towels and put them at the foot of the bed to keep us warm in our bedrooms. I remember there being so many blankets on the bed that once I was under the covers I could hardly move. I can tell you, the warmed, wrapped bricks kept us warm.
Here in England the majority don't have fireplaces we have radiators, we are going to have power blackouts January/February so I bought some terracotta pots and tea lights plus a camping stove with gas bottles so I can at least have a cup of tea
My Dad grew up in a big family. Several would sleep in the same bed. He told me once that he remembers snow coming in the cracks in the windows. It was common practice to heat up bricks by the wood burning stove and wrap with cloth to put under the covers at the foot of the bed. This was not Sweden or Europe, it was Indiana USA.
My house uses diesel fuel for the furnace. Last year when the price of heating oil shot way up, I started turning my thermostat way down to save on oil... leaving me to figure out how to deal with a *much* colder house than I'd ever experienced. In addition to stoking my fireplace more, I found that fleece clothing and blankets are a very comfortable way to keep warm. An added bonus: my sister sewed me some fleece pillow cases, and they really help keep my head warm and cozy on cold nights. So now when I feel like I'm getting fleeced by the oil companies, I fight back with fleece!
Growing up, when we had a power outage, we slipped back a few decades and used more clothing (layers), if it got too cold we covered up with blankets and quilts (still more layers). For a good portion of my teenage years we had a wood stove, and we ( I mean me usually), got warm twice or three times, once when I cut the tree down, once when I split the wood for the stove and again when we burned it for warmth and cooking. We used the sunlight to see by, when the sun went down, we did too and went to bed, under a ton of blankets and quilts. We used food to warm us; good tasting, filling, with plenty of FAT cooked in. That human heater you talked about is due to having a diet tailored for cold weather, it did not make you fat, it helped your body warm itself. Many of the oldsters would only have a small house, and that was due to not having to heat as much, (100 to 200 years ago.) Those who did have large houses, had multiple fire places and stoves and the wealth to maintain them with. SO, what I'm saying is, have plenty of layers to put on, either clothing and/or blankets, and eat often and well for the calories needed for that human heater to work properly. There are many ways to stay warm in the cold, use them! There are many ways to die in the cold, don't! There is one tool that everybody has that will be your salvation, that would be your BRAIN, use it and study, research, understand, and ask questions and you can survive.
To add to the Layers bit regarding clothing: I highly recommend investing in thermal underclothes, like thermal pants, shirts, and one-piece thermal suits; these go under your clothes as a base layer and really help to trap in heat, I still have in my possession a thermal suit that saved my life one winter when I was homeless; side-note DO NOT wear thermal clothes to bed, you will sweat to the point that you wake up dehydrated in the middle of the night desperately needing water!
1. Canopy beds are not just decorative. Make a warm zone in your bed. Build a canopy that also includes a bed skirt to maintain temp under the bed. Use the under bed space to store items that can get cold but can also act as insulation. Use thick blankets and curtains for the canopy cover the top and sides. That’s the whole purpose of a canopy bed (well and to keep bugs out!) use the same layering concept as your clothing. 2. Pee when you can. Your body spends energy warming your urine because your bladder is in the middle of your body. 3. If you have power, and use an electric blanket - use it under you not over you, or use a mattress warmer. Heat rises, if you get warm you can remove your blankets but keep the heat.
The Styrofoam trays used by grocery store meat departments work well as an extra later inside winter boots. Take out the insole and cut the tray to match. Makes a big difference! I'm sure others can think of more creative ways to use them!
During my high school marching band years (early '60s), in the winter months it was SOP to use layers of newspaper for this purpose. Our uniforms required dress shoes, so the insulation had to be out of sight.
Some people think this is strange, but going to the bathroom is one of the most important things to keep warm. The body loses an incredible amount of energy heating up what should be disposed of. I think you should also include this in a future video :)
Living a mile from Lake Erie, before we put up plastic sheets over the Windows we are going to cover for the Winter, we use the blue painters tape to seal all of the inner edges along the trim and joins. This cuts down on any Drafts that might work their way in. Then we place the plastic covers over the windows. Plus they leave very little residue when you remove them in the spring. Hope this helps.
Blue tape didn’t stick for me, I ended up using the clear packing tape instead for putting bubble wrap on our windows. We also used a plastic piece that painters use to stop paint from getting on things n put it over us when the electric went out, it caused a bit of condensation but was warm. They have large rolls of plastic to use for even for makeshift greenhouses at Walmart for 25.00.
Several years back, I was in a cabin in late October in Ohio. The electric blew one evening. We lit tea lights and I put a mirror behind them to amplify the light. It also amplified the heat. I've had good results in later years by using mirrors to increase heat & light during power outages. Another thing that can be helpful during a winter power outage. If it stays cold enough, you can use a vehicle to store stuff from the freezer. You can also bring in chunks of ice (put them in a container for when it melts) to put in your fridge to keep it cold.
Remembering the technology that used to be used to make an ice box before there were fridges and freezers is pretty smart. Not so many would remember that now. In our neck of the woods, people are encouraged to take plastic containers and freeze water in them to use up all the extra space in the freezer, as it costs less to freeze and keep frozen than the empty space inside the freezer, and also because there will already be ice insulation in the freezer to keep the food frozen much longer if the power goes out.
@@PracticalPreparedness This guy puts out a lot of excellent ideas for generating electricity & heating living spaces. th-cam.com/video/JGVZVCU8FGE/w-d-xo.html
@@daphneraven6745 qt, 1/2 gal, gal. Plastic milk or juice containers work great for this application. Be sure to not fill containers to the top to allow for water expansion.
Am older and live in an upper corner condo. Lots of Windows. Have been prepping for a year. Money is at a premium. Have a large Sun umbrella one that angles. Yanked it into a corner band tried it for a semi tent actually kept heat in. Also am using portable room dividers can be used for Windows and any other areas. You can use pictures to block cold windows etc. Let your imagination go wild. May not be perfection But survival is the idea!
Where I live our 'dollar' stores often sell cheap fleece lap blankets in the winter - I find a few of those as curtain 'liners' help keep the home a bit warmer in the winter. Very versatile those little blankets.
A two person tent on top of your mattress will help you sleep well and will actually sleep 2 (even 3-4 if they are kids) on a queen size mattress. (Bungie cord or strap it around the mattress or to the bedframe for stability). Harbor Freight moving blankets over and around a dining table make a well insulated tent. A puppy play pen makes a cheap safety zone around a heat source and can spread around a fireplace as well. I also use old cookie sheets under lighting/heat/cooking sources. The raised edges keep dangerous fluids or hot liquids under control. Cast iron pans as bed warmers in beds or sleeping bags.
Dana M: Yes; you could also put a few rocks inside that empty pan, so that when you’re heating the pan anyway, you also have something you can wrap in an old towel to tuck into the beds after you warmed them all once with the cast iron pan. On really cold nights, especially for older people or very thin little ones, it sure helps. Hot water bottles are really super nice too, but if you don’t have them, and money is tight, rocks are free
I've been thinking about a bed-tent for several years. I've just now thought of a get-out-quick scheme in case of fire: either a knife or a larger handle on the zipper.
@@throughthoroughthought8064 : Before houses were well insulated, back in the day when the fireplace or stove had to be lit in order to heat the house, beds had canopies and draperies, because houses got really cold at night. It was about the only way to keep people warm at night, without having somebody stay awake half the night just to stoke the fire. They certainly counted as a sort of bed tent.
This 'tip' is maybe a little dumb, but I had to do it once (as I didn't have proper waterproof shoes when I was traveling): If you don't have/can't afford good wool or heavy socks, or waterproof shoes/boots, put plastic (empty!!) cereal bags on your feet as your 'base layer'. They're pretty sturdy and plenty big. (I prefer cornflakes bags myself.) Save a bunch ahead of time and give them a quick rinse out and thorough dry. They work a treat as free shoe/boot/sock 'liners' and they do keep your feet warm and dry. Upcycling too 👍
When I was raised the old fashioned way my parents would take bread backs works better and put them over your socks use a rubber band to put over your jeans and tie them down that way keeps the heat in works great keeps your feet dry too if you're in the snow if you've got bad shoes
Sailor_Stine•. That brings back memories.. When I was growing up, if we managed to soak through our footwear, our folks would dry our feet for us and put on clean dry socks, then came the bread bags. I believe a rubber band came next or second pair of socks. I don’t remember for sure. Then we could put our wet shoes on and go out again. In the area where i live, my parents’ generation and further back all had a complete set of shoe repair equipment in the house. They could easily replace the soles of the shoes as they wore out, and they always did. A person can get a lot of years out of a pair of shoes that were well-made. Today’s athletic footwear is often molded, and meant to be discarded after six months or a year of wear, Although most of us wear them much longer. It might not be a bad idea to find a pair of gently-worn boots with stitched soles that can be repaired for continuous use, along with an inexpensive awl with leather needles and a really good quality thread that be waxed, or some artificial sinew. In a pinch, I have repaired leather footwear when somebody has had a blowout, tear, or other issue with footwear; It sure made a difference in each case, to be able to keep the weather off the feet at a time when replacement was simply not an option. If you’re a person that can’t afford good quality woollen socks, consider buying a wool sweater at your local thrift shop. Sometimes you can get them very cheaply. Then revel it back and use the wool to knit nice warm socks and mittens, maybe a nice hat.
Not dumb. I already save the cereal bags as well as cake mix bags, Stove Top stuffing bags, etc, really anything to recycle / upcycle. They are food grade and saves money on storage bags. Just a little tid bit on saving money.
Hello just finally sat down to watch video and begin to read comments! Living in Maine and now a recent widow after being with my husband 42 yrs, lots of learning and adjusting to do, and at almost 70 yo, can feel overwhelming 😂. Outstanding video…thank you! It’s almost 4am and I can’t focus. I’ll be reading and asking questions tomorrow. Again, my sincere thanks! Victoria
I'm in this with you, Victoria. Lost my husband this past spring. after 44 years. Yes, it sure can be overwhelming. But, we can make it. We didn't stay married as long as we did by being brainless and I think we picked up bits and pieces of what to do and they will fall into place. We are stronger than we imagine we are. ~Sherrie in South Carolina
Victoria, there are more of us around than you might think. We're stronger than you might think or we wouldn't be here at this site. I like the encouraging tone of these videos...they give me ideas that I can use on my limited budget, and at 75, my limited movement. I did buy a small tent from WalMart last week on clearance, and I love the idea of strapping it to my bed with bungie cords! Since I traded my Queen bed for a Twin, I would be afraid of it sliding off otherwise. Such great ideas In the video AND in the Comments! We should form a Widow's Preppers Organization! LOL
Anyone using unfamiliar heating methods to cook and keep warm could benefit from 3 welding supplies that can help. 1. welding gloves. They are heavy leather with gauntlets extending up the forearms that can protect from the heat. 2. leather welder's apron. This will protect clothing from sparks and embers (think synthetic shell winter jacket). 3. Welding blanket (carbon felt). Use this to wrap hot items to prevent scalding and fire when dealing with radiant heat items. Great list Justin. Well thought out as usual.
@@PracticalPreparedness I saw a clever use for carbon felt as a wick for oil lamps and an oil heater on Robert Murray-Smith's channel you might enjoy. Bonus info!
@@paulhelberg5269 - I LOVE Robert's channel, and being 100% Irish (American) I can't be accused of being any kind of anglophile either. That man's just brilliant and does a great public service.
If your power goes out during the winter make sure you turn all your taps on. Open them just enough so there is a steady flow (just above a trickle). Moving water freezes at a lower temperature than stationary water. Just might save your pipes from busting.
As a Ukrainian - huge thanx, a lot of useful information! It will be some difficult winter this year (already, actually - only few hours of light and no heat +snow and -2😒). Really thank you !
Once again, a really useful video. I'm on the skinny side and noticed my ankles got cold even with fuzzy slippers inside the house when my temp sensor is reading anything below 74. I ordered a pair of slipper socks that go 2/3 way up my calves and they're a dream! They fit inside my big, waterproof "fishing boots" that I wear when I take the dog out, esp early in the morning when everything's wet w/dew. People whose extremities get cold either from Reynauld's or just lack of natural inslation might do well to consider slipper socks.
I've got low blood sugar hypoglycemia plus thyroid disease too which also makes me cold so can anemia so as a child the way we is raised when we would go outside to play we would take bread bags and put around or socks and take a rubber band and put around her ankles to keep the heat in and the wetness out it works wonders
Reynauds is mostly just a lack of iodine in the diet Lugol's iodine is a great survival item Can disinfect water,protect the thyroid from radiation,boost metabolism,be used to clean wounds, help warm the body , prevent/treat reynauds, reduce cancer risk by improving " apoptosis " It's not expensive but it's not cheap, but you can find very cheap DIY recipes online Best of luck finding some relief from your reynauds, my gram passed a few years back and she had reynauds until I discovered the link with inadequate iodine
I use clothespins to hang thick bath towels over our window curtains at night. It does a great job of blocking out the cold air. Cheap fleece lap blankets also work well. You just have to remember to remove them during the day to let in the sunlight. If you hang two at a window, you can simply push them to the side like a normal curtain instead of removing and reattaching the clothespins each day. Or you could just sew a rod pocket onto one end of the blanket and use it as a curtain. . . flannel sheets, pillow cases, pajamas, and flannel curtains....and you're good to go. On another note: Mittens keep your hands warmer than gloves with fingers. They can be worn at night, as well.
Thank you for your advice. Mittens are the best. That is what I use to shovel snow. Just be careful because as my dad always said: "There are only two things you can do with mittens, keep your hands warm and wet your pants."
@@alanstevenson9885 🤣Thanks for your reply. Might I suggest an adult diaper/brief and/or "pants with elastic waist bands". Then all you need are your thumbs to pull them down. If Alan Harper on "Two and a Half Men" can do both "1" and "2" while sitting down, then anyone can. Stay warm! 🙂
Being in Wisconsin when I built my house I put a 1/2 inch thick stainless rocket stove in the basement and covered it with 2 feet of concrete over the fire box and then sent the chimney up through the kitchen with a stainless pipe uncovered to the roof vent . The rocket stove will heat up the big slab and the uncovered pipe in the kitchen will keep it above freezing up stairs . I have a nice flat area right above the stove that we sit and lay on and it's toasty no matter what temp it is outside . Best part of it is that once you get it warm it takes 5 to 6 hours before you need to light another fire . Passive heat . Another benefit is that you need less than half of the wood than a normal wood stove for the same heat . 3 fires a day and about 10 pieces of fire wood per fire is all you need . I stole the idea from a monster stove guy I met in Canada . Many a good time has been had with family on the cushy platform I built above it !
I've actually sewn sheets on one side of all my woollen blankets. Just make sure the sheets are cotton and not a polyester or other man made material. It solves the problem of itchy wool and the cotton doesn't make you sweat.
Thank you I am allergic to wool & I’ve thought about this just didn’t think it would help but if the Cotton is of thicker thread it should help or even as far as sewing two sheets. Genius idea thx 😊
@@nikkistyx6875 I am so allergic to wool. I keep warm with my down with nylon ripstop but I have always been curious about if there were ways to help me with wool. When I was young, even wearing a shirt under a wool sweater never helped. But I could probably sew it to a fleece blanket.
Do you have rubber hot water bottles in the USA? Most homes in the Uk have at least one but usually several. They come with a furry/fleecy cover. Very efficient and cheap heating. You boil the kettle, make tea, fill your hot water bottle ( adding a little bit of cold water) and take your cuppa and your hot water bottle to bed. Bliss!
I would add a "combo" method to your list:. If using the Sterno fuels, elevate a thick cast iron pan over the flame. When the Sterno burns out, the pan will radiate heat for quite some time.
A cheap trick to keep your feet warm is to take one of those foldable windshield shades that has the silver lining, and using your boot or shoe insole, cut out a piece. You can then place that either under or on top of your insole in your shoe. I can assure you, that this will keep your feet warm. If reflects the heat onto your foot and also insulates it from the cold ground.
Even clevier if you sew a pair of simple moccasins from it and wear them outside footcloths. Footcloths are easy to make, just a 3feet square of cloth wrapped around the foot
Indoor oil lamps with smokeless oil gives heat and light … and larger candles in hurricane style holders also give off a ton of heat … been through many extended power outages including feb 21 with back to back MAJOR ice storms … went 2 weeks with out electric … we were warm, fed and clean because we always storm ready … (lots of practice)
Good tips, especially when you can prepare ahead of time. I'd like to share some experience I have as well. Omaha had an event called "The October Snowstorm" which knocked out power to most of the Omaha area. When ours went out, my ex evacuated with my smaller 3 children to a relative that hadn't lost power. My oldest 2 sons and I stayed at the house. It was an older Victorian with 10' ceilings, but our water heater was gas powered and the thermostat was mechanical, so we had access to hot water. We segregated off the living room with blankets, and filled three 5 gallon buckets and put them in the living room. Just those kept the temp about 20 degrees warmer than outside, which was not toasty, but it was enough. We also left the taps on a fast drip in the upstairs kitchen and bathroom to prevent the pipes from freezing, and rotated which faucet we were renewing the hot water from to help keep the pipes from freezing. We wore hoodies under winter coats, 2 pairs of socks, and slept on the sofa or in chairs covered in blankets. We made it through 4 days like this, with temps going down into the 20's outside, and we could keep the temp in that room in the mid 50's. Like I said, not toasty, but doable. There were so many people that evacuated their homes completely that came back to burst pipes when the power finally came back on.
Fellow Omahan here. I too, lived through that October snowstorm and 2 week power outrage! Let's hope the "Cristmas blizzard" prediction for this Thursday won't be as bad!
that tap dripping doesn't work if things are -30, it just freezes the pipes, the running water freezes from the outside in making th opening smaller and smaller until the entire pipe is frozen
I set my furnace to 55 and have a Lasko bathroom heater that you push a button and it heats for an hour and then shuts off. I love that it shuts off. I ended up buying one for the basement for nights that are so cold that I might worry about the pipes.
@@yogabee2222 Nah, my heating oil bill was $3000 about 6 years ago. Now, I only use a half a tank by keeping the thermostat very low and just using one Vornado to heat my house. I just wanted a second heater to run for an hour in the basement. Vornados raise the room temperature by 10 degrees in one or two hours. Ten degrees is enough.
I like my instant pot. I can run it for a time on a solar generator. Heat water-filled canning jars to store heat; remove the weight to use as a humidifier, heat potatoes to store heat then eat A 12 volt blanket can be used with a solar generator and uses less electricity than converting to AC for a standard electric blanket.
If this is due to a total grid down event, natural gas will not come through to your gas stove or fireplace. The camp stove could be set up in an old fireplace with the actual chimney from it going up the fireplace. Another note about the camp stove. They need a fiberglass fire blanket under them so they do not start a fire if not on a stone hearth completely. If your stone hearth is big enough to have the entire stove on it, the hearth will radiate heat into the room. Another plus is you can cook on the camp stoves. Get a true welded side camp stove since this won't allow any smoke from the stove to escape into the house or building. Another option is sealing a folding camp stove with the sealants for true whole house wood stoves. If in a total grid down event from a ice/snow storm you will need water and the city water might not be flowing for some reason. If you get snow or ice from outside, boil your water first in a dedicated container then filter it into a clean container. Ice and snow can carry pathogens that can make you sick. It isn't like snows of years ago either. If you see an oily film on the water once melted in the melting pot, take a paper towel and place it on top of the water. It should, if set on the top of the water draw in the chemicals and oils. If that doesn't work, you might try the older trick of using a cup or even a can with the pour spout or hole coming from the bottom of it and not pouring or letting out any more than two-thirds of the water. Wait a few minutes for the oils to rise after filling the container before pouring. If you have activated charcoal, like for an aquarium, you can pour it through that or even a gravity fed water filter with one of the black activated charcoal filters. The activate charcoal won't last too long. It should be long enough to get 10-50 gallons of water depending on the type of oils or chemicals it attracts from the melted snow. You can always test your snow by seeing if it burns. If the snow has enough chemicals to burn, I'd think hard before water drinking it. Just my tips and what I've learned.
Re natural gas heating: That's why my major heating fuel is propane in a tank far enough away from the house not to be dangerous. I don't even like central heating at all. One unvented wall heater upstairs, one downstairs. They have low oxygen auto shutoff safety and are also far more efficient. That plus most of all, the pilot light doesn't go out if the electricity fails bc it's run by a battery that I change every season whether it's needed or not.
If you use tea lights in an emergency, place them on a cookie sheet or pie pan. Much safer, and they'll reflect the light. We live in a small space, it is cheaper to heat and cool a small space. In the US Midwest we have all 4 seasons. Another way to keep in heat, dressers and bookcases go against outside walls. Tina, Al's wife
I just got back into camping and decided I’ll be buying a heated vest for those cooler nights and chilly mornings. I’ll also keep it charged so when we do lose power, I can put that on and not feel like I have to confine myself to a tent or a bathroom, just to stay warm.
I used raised terracotta pots and old candle stubs to protect 500 root-stock plants during a very early freeze. My poly-tunnel was 12' x 20' and I used five medium and large pots and just left it to warm things up. For three nights and days and this method radiated a good deal of heat and kept things well above freezing.
Thanks for the real-life experience! I put a thin plastic over my tomatoes every year to get a couple mor weeks out of them, but I really need a poly tunnel
@@PracticalPreparedness a polly tunnel is one of the best investment you can make. One thing I do as well to keep things warmer inside the poly tunnel is I use straw bales as tables and grow on top of them. (I am older and it save bending so much.) As you water them the plants inside of the bales get wet and start to break down thereby providingl heat. Funny thing is that I did not realise this little science project was happening until I removed the bales to do a good clean before the spring and everything inside froze. This back-saving trick always produces a good deal of heat.
@@maryburger1232 I used five pots ranging from 8-24 inches. Raised on cobble stones with multiple candle stubs in each one. I placed these throughout the poly tunnel and it did raise the temp at least 2°C which was enough to keep my root stock from freezing. I also use straw bales in my polytunnels as tables. I put my plants directly on them and when watering the straw gets wet, which also increased the temperature through composting. However, at the time the bales had only been in there a week so I don't think that made any temperature difference. The point is, that this method does work. If used indoors it is not going to make the place warm, what it will do is keep you from freezing.
We did the “big freeze” and power outage in Texas last year in 2021. We closed off all unused rooms, blanketed all our windows and taped the door jams. We also “house camped”, complete with tent, cots, sleeping bags, etc. We used our gas fireplace extensively and dressed like we were out camping in the winter. And since it was so cold, we simply put our food in coolers out on the patio to keep it frozen, and stuff we didn’t want frozen in the garage. Since then we got a Jackery and solar panel and some power packs and a smaller solar panel to keep our devices charged. If your house is raised (pillars), block off the access to the underside of your house if you can to keep the wind from sucking the heat out from under the house. Also, our water heater is gas powered and we always had hot water, so we were able to take warm showers or simply run our hands under warm water for a few minutes, which also helped from keeping our pipes from freezing. Our stove is gas, so we didn’t have to worry about that, but if it was electric we have some camping alcohol stoves that would have worked in a pinch.
I have gas water heater as well. But heard since the pilot light is ignited by electricity, it wouldn't work if the power is out. I mean you will only have the hot water that is left in the tank, once that is used, then you won't have any hot water anymore. Is that not correct?
Watching this getting ready to fill in insulation underneath my mobile home. I've started using a small tarp between blankets instead of piling on more. Been going about 9 winters with minimal heat, multiple layers of clothes is key.
@@PracticalPreparedness yes, depending on room temperature you can sweat minimally but it has never bothered me much. My daily working conditions are much worse than that!
@@clippylady9837 hello, PA here. I'm using fiberglass bats. Was a rental and spots had been missing for years. Couldn't pass up the offer to buy, it has paid for itself in reduced lot rent already.
Buy a lot of candles and make sure to put inside a tin so it last longer, don't forget about clay pot, then make a terracota heater. Put it in each corner of the room that you sleep in. Don't forget to buy fire extinguisher too just in case. If you have a pet / child, make sure to put the terracota heater in a high place where they can't reach them (but not too high). If the room is too small that you afraid you could knock the candle, make a hanging table. This trick will work even better if you have a bunk bed since hot air tends to rise to a higher place.
Young man, 1 minute, and 45 seconds into your video, was something that I had thought about abstractly, but didn't know how to go about it. Now I do PURE ABSOLUTE GENIUS! Why doesn't any other preparedness channels cover such important details?
@@PracticalPreparedness - I appreciate that you're very knowledgeable and practical w/o the hysteria used to drive sales. That's actually more productive than terrifying and manipulating people into a self-defeating state of panic.
I like how you said this, and appreciate the kind words. I’ll admit it can be hard to ride the line of instilling urgency with fear mongering sometimes, but it’s a far cry from some of what we see these days, to your point.
I love a cold bedroom but sometimes my feet get so cold I can’t go to sleep. I put an electric blanket on the bed and crank it up before bed and once I go to bed turn it completely off or only at a 1. Your body temperature takes over. The other thing I do every winter is heat up to tube socks filled with dry uncooked rice and microwave that for 2-2:30 minutes and place them near my feet and one up by my stomach. I’ve never had to turn the heat on at night.
I have no first-hand experience with this, but I read it the other day and it seems to make sense. Instead of heating hot water bottles and using them in a sleeping bag, try fabric bags of rice, etc. The water can actually keep getting colder and colder (sucking the warmth out of you) whereas the rice bags will not.
@@jenkilmury4617 , good question. It wouldn't work in that situation. It would be a good choice for someone who just wants or needs to cut back on electricity. We always cut our heat way down at night.
I have a wood stove(Nevada) and we keep bricks and blocks around the stove as heat sinks(they stay warm even after fire dies down, extending the heat for a period of time) Instead of setting rice bags directly on the stove, they could be placed on a cookie sheet on a block on top of the stove...no risk of burning the bag from direct heat and the block is there anyway...not Martha Stewart pretty, but sensible.
Last Winter I bought a Comfy wearable blanket. The original one is quite thick. During a snow storm and a 24 hour power outage I put it on and sat on the couch with my feet up and hood on. It was like a mini tent. I stayed very warm!
@@PracticalPreparedness Yes, Comfy is the brand and I got mine on Amazon. The Original is super thick with a fleece-like lining. The Comfy Dream is lighter weight.
When I go camping in winter I bring two tents. A small sleeping tent and a larger two room tent. I set up the small tent inside the larger tent, if you do this inside during an emergency you create two zones. Ever been cramped up from small spaces. You’ll love having room to move around, do a little workout… or set up a living area with comfy chair… food ,water and cooking zone. Micro living in micro shelter. Air mattresses don’t stay warm.
1 of the best methods to stay warm Is to Move your furniture out of the way and set your camping tent up in your living room or where ever Throw blankets over the top of the tent or whatever you have for extra Installation It's a lot easier to heat the inside of the tint then it is your whole house Just be careful What you're using for heat And also make sure you have good airflow.
I wouldn’t use the blankets on top if using combustibles or if it wasn’t absolutely freezing just to keep that extra airflow, but def an option it gets bad. My personal pref, thanks for sharing this Jason!
I seriously cannot thank you enough for all this detailed information. So many things that people don't even think about that literally could save their life and/or those that they love and care for. I am now subscribed and will share with my 2000+ social media friends.
Wear boots, with real wool linings, even in the house. Get a gilet/bodywarmer so you're not constricted by your coat. Sleep in natural fiber garments, and put a fleece (better yet microfiber) throw onto your bed, over your sheet, and pillows, then put another one on top of it, then your bedding. You sleep between the two layers of fleece/microfiber blanket. Wear a hat. Get fluffy socks that have rubbish elastic around the ankles, so they're not going to leave a mark on your skin. Sleep in them, even in a good sleeping bag. They're also easy to kick off if your feet get too hot in the night. Put a fleece, or microfiber (they're fab) over your furniture, especially if it's leather/imitation leather. If you're cold out the throw down, sit on it, then wrap it around you. If you have to get up and do something, fold it over onto itself to keep as much of your body heat as possible.
The best investment I made last year was buying 2 large heated throws, as the price has soared now in the UK. They are pretty cheap to run at 190w, but get very hot on top level- we prefer them at around half. Mine is large enough for my son and I to share in the settee and I have a second my daughter uses in her self contained flat in our loft. I’ve also bought us all hot water bottles with knitted covers which I put into the bed before bedtime. We all have one of those huge hooded fleeces that you can literally curl up in. I bought a load of BBQbrickettes cheap at the end of the season for our small BBQ, so we have something to cook on if the worst comes to the worst this winter. I’ve put bubble wrap on the windows which has already made a difference and put a thermal curtain across our old front door with a draughty excluder made out of the leg of an old pr of leggings stuffed with old clothes.
Off-grid personal heating solution from the Indian Himalayas involves: hot coals from a wood fire placed in a clay pot, worn around the neck on a strap, under a pure wool poncho ( fire resistant ). It is smoky but portable, with care! Is used in rural India, where heating large spaces like schools, community meeting halls or churches is impossible. A non-smoky alternative might be an old leather school satchel, handbag or purse, worn around the neck, filled with hot rocks/ bricks, etc. under a poncho or loose oversize clothing.
Okay, so this week is a good test. It is a low of 22 F the next few nights. Last year, I used electric blankets and LOVED it and still do. This year, so far, I am experimenting with down with nylon ripstop and so far, I love that, too. Cozy with either of those solutions even though I set my thermostat to 45. I ended up also buying a good down parka and I feel like everybody should have one of those. I also have soft fleece winter coats and those are easier to sleep in and I can put my hands in the nice warm pockets. Just having fun trying everything out.
Come on David,are you a man or a mouse.I’m a woman living alone,I’m not worried.Our winters aren’t as bad as they used to me.Surely you have blankets n clothes to layer up ?if not ask for help.Keep moving or are you disabled/if so you need to ask for help or maybe a neighbour.This was normal in the eighties.If you are old ask for help now ,don’t wait.I hope this helps a bit 🙂
A word about using wet rocks- it is only an issue if they have been wet for a prolonged period. This usually comes up in discussions about campfires- taking rocks from a river or lake to make your fire pit. I have seen rocks split and pop but never explode. It really depends on local geology if the rocks are the right type and they have to been well soaked. I wouldn't worry if the rocks have been in your house for any length of time. Another possibility to add might be to double up your window coverings at night by hanging thick blankets close to the glass since that is were most heat is lost from a room. Also, make sure your attic/loft is as insulated as possible now before a problem comes up. Good video!
Looks like the prep most people are thinking is for the cold winter and expensive heating cost . Then there are a few leaning more toward a complete blackout and looting may occur. Since I am in the Deep South, I am more worry about blackout longer than 3 or 4 days and looting may occur. Planning to have family or friends stay together under one roof for safety in number. Hoping it won’t happened though.
I use blue painters tape to seal off drafts. It goes on easy and comes off easy too. I like to use Grabber survival tarps instead of the cheap Mylar scrap. For the alcohol stove, you can also use 190 proof Everclear grain alcohol, but you may have to order it from your state store or package store.
Stay in basement - great point -- and any heat will certainly help protect pipes from freezing. Not much, but it all helps. Don't forget to turn off & drain outside faucets, etc.. 😊 Thank you so much for dedicating a great deal of time to helping others.
PT: if there’s a chance that the pipes in the house will freeze, pick a bathroom, and adjust the float on the toilet tank so that there’s always a trickle of water flowing from the tank to the bowl of the toilet. You also have the option of turning on the sink to just a tiny trickle, especially if you have one of those toilets where the tank it’s not easy to access. Either one of these actions will keep the water moving through the pipes all night so it won’t freeze, and the beauty of she was in the toilet as the source of running water, is that a person sleeping in a nearby bedroom can hear it if s/he wakes up in the middle of the night wondering if it’s working. If things are so cold that you think the pipes will freeze anyway, and that happens in the far northern places of Canada, the procedure is to drain the pipes; Most homeowners will know how to do that from the basement or the lowest floor in the house. Hot water tanks are likewise trained and mined as a freshwater source, and the water to the toilets turned off and flushed away, with antifreeze left in the toilet. Incidentally, the water in the back of the tank is clean water unless you’ve added chemicals to the tank.
@@daphneraven6745 So many people have never had to deal with the situation so they have no idea where to start. You shared very helpful information. Thank you. 😊
I set my home heat to 60 degrees all winter time. I’m disabled and live on a tight budget and a buddy heater was just too expensive for me so I wound up getting one of those circular inferred propane heaters that directly connects to the gas grill propane bottle. There’s no 0 2 sensors but it does have a tip switch in case Fido bumps into it. At the time I purchased my heater, it only cost like $30. The MR. Heater, though safer to use was near $100 by the time you got the adapter hose and such. I’ve used this style heater for many years and had no problems.
Just paid around $119 for Mr. BUDDY Heater (on sale) and told hose for using bbq propane tank would be around $60+ tax...plus a filter (plus cost of propane of course). Deciding wether to invest in hose...or just return it.
MR Buddy had a sale over the summer on Amazon as they are changing colors from red to grey. Was able to get 2 of the big ones for $100ish. I wouldn't have considered it outright. Propane is getting mighty expensive these days!
Am hearing online that there is a simply diy projects online postings by several utubers. There get the preferable woodstove fan two blades and attach to their Mr. Buddy heaters. This helps send the heat about 3-5feet horizontal instead of straight through the roofs or ceilings and works well. Am wondering if some of these projects would benefit by being placed on top of fire(not red) bricks to retain heat?
Very useful tips. Thank you. If anyone can access to the rice straw, it also worked really good as insulation. You pile it up and when going to sleep you burry yourself under the pile with layer under and over your body 6 to 12 inches thick. It keeps the cold air out, keep the heat in and moisture still can evaporate out and you are not sweating. Fill it in duvet cover also an option for not having direct contact with the straw. The other option is mosquitos net made from cotton. You fold into blanket shape a few layers over each other and use it as blanket. It is soft and hug the contour of your body and preserve the heat. I'm talking from my past experience during hard time in Pol Pot regime, option one, and option two before Pol Pot time.
Awesome write-up Linda. I can tell you are speaking from experience, and appreciate you sharing these tips. 6-12 inches is extremely important and I feel most will underestimate the insulation needed to keep conduction from occurring with the ground
I recommend getting a Kelly Kettle, it's a special kind of water kettle for camping that uses only a handful of sticks to boil water using the furnace effect. Very, very efficient. Only to be used outside though, but excellent for making tea and hot water bottles. There is also cooking equipment to stick on top. More pricey than a gaa stove, but then, you'll only need sticks.
It's amazing! I just made a vid with it in it, BUT you can't use this inside safely as its an open flame and you're burning biofuel. Outside it's perfect
Plastic around your porch railings does great. Breaks the wind. Started in June. My neighbor said I'm nuts. Not laughing now. Heating oil is 520 a gallon. He he my Two 120 lb shepherds love to snuggle. I have 550 gallon of oil. 200 lbs of propane. And a coal / pellet stove. Think I'm covered. But then I camp in blizzards. Stay safe
Excellent video. covered a lot of good ideas. I suggest that a cast iron Dutch oven with a lid can heat up in a cooking fire outdoors and collect coals from the fire to become a radiant heater. I have put scrap iron and railroad spikes in one as added mass to absorb heat then wrapped it in a welding blanket (mine is carbon felt) to prevent burns from contact.
@@PracticalPreparedness My experiment was not scientific nor have I had occasion to repeat it so I can't tell you if the mass or the insulative blanket were the important factors. I tried this idea out at my cousin's home in Northern Wisconsin many winters ago. I was staying in a basement bedroom that got rather cold by morning. With the Dutch oven it warmed the space to a fairly comfortable degree and I slept well, By morning it was cool to the touch and the room was a little warmer than usual.
Practical Preparedness: Hi, Justin! A word about that heating pad of yours. I had one that looks remarkably similar. My back has been hurting, after an injury, so I was lying on the heating pad for a bit of soothing relief, and I fell asleep. A good hour later, the phone finally woke me up. I had fallen solidly to sleep. When I got up, my Arctic fleece sheet underneath the heating pad, had melted, and the mattress pad beneath burnt. The pattern of the wires had burnt my back in that same pattern. I didn’t even feel it happen. If it weren’t for the friend who persistently called until I answered the phone, (and I don’t know what possessed her to do that, since she never did it before,) it could’ve gone sideways pretty badly. So that’s something to think about with those heating pads. Water bottle, warm stone, or reusable warm electronic or the type with a little thin coin inside to activate them might be a good way to go. In terms of maintaining the layers of shelter, particularly with regard to clothing, tentage, or blankets/sleeping bags, I keep a Sucrets box or two in each of my backpacks, travel bags, and purses. The one thing that goes in my main bag, Is a Sucrets/Altoids tin Containing anything that the lack of has gotten me into trouble. Those contents are not generally expensive, but they have saved me again and again, and all the kids in the family have pretty much benefitted from it at some point when we’ve been in a pinch. In fact, a few years ago, they all asked me for one for Christmas. So they have one. In mine, traditionally I keep a Swiss army knife, the smaller one. There are Band-Aids, and a few folded bills of money in small denominations. There is a tiny eyeglass screwdriver with two different tips, an assortment of tiny screws, and tiny rubber washers, and rubber/plastic nosepiece supports some of which came off of water balloons that the kids had, once the balloons were burst; these allow for adjustment of glasses, and the tiny rubber bands allow me to tighten up the hinges on glasses after people lose weight. I have done quick repairs on other peoples’ glasses as well as my own in a pinch, and they’re always very grateful. There are a few first aid supplies including bandages and a few segments of plastic drinking straws (which has one end sealed using a lighter and a pair of pliers, that I filled with antibiotic ointment or other first aid helps, including Q-tips and cotton balls, and which were clean with a little bit of rubbing alcohol and sealed up securely.), steristrips, and CA adhesive. There are needles for sewing fine leather, heavy leather, and needles that are sharp- and ball-ended for different fabrics. There’s sinew, and thread of different weights so that quick repairs can be made on the go before they get any worse. There is a tiny pair of nail clippers, and a tiny vial of oil. There are a few hair pins, safety pins, a fine file, tweezers that are actually useable and that I have already tried and found to be great (the really pointy ones are not really as useful as I thought they would be), and some replacement buttons for jeans. It’s easy to put one a little closer to the end to give a person a little more space, and to use a rubber band to loop between the buttonhole and the button, for the times when a girl is bloated but needs to wear the pants/skirt she has. For times when a person has lost weight and has to continue to wear the same pants, and may not have the sewing skills to take them in, one of those snap-on buttons can be put a little further in the waist band as well, to take up some of that extra size in the waistband. Half a dozen of them cost about a dollar. A spare house key fits in there, along with a list of contact information which is good to have because a lot of us just rely on our smart phones now, and don’t remember the phone numbers... Mine also has a little piece of mesh to repair a tent screen, and duct tape, horseshoe nails, some wire, shrink tubing, and of course, one of those ultra thin feminine protection pads. Some of the kids have mini flat wrenches for bicycle repairs in theirs, a few coins… My grandmother kept one in her vehicle all the time, with trouting flies and lures in it, although I didn’t realize it until after she had passed. So, I guess the bottom line is this: one of those inexpensive tins is only about the size of a deck of cards, but especially with a few tiny plastic bags from the craft store, they can keep all repair and emergency essentials organized right on hand to get a person out of a terrible bind, and are completely customizable. I think the most expensive thing in mine is Swiss Army knife, and it pays for itself time and time again. I usually put a few elastics around mine, and of light I’ve discovered that the earbud pouches that I can get at the dollar store or just the right size to fit my tins, so each one gets zipped securely into attend before getting tossed into a bag. Another excellent, but moisture-proof option for emergency supplies is one of those little pill cases that goes on the keychain; if you’re lucky you can find it in steel. I hope this helps someone to have the stuff on hand to get more time out of their gear, and to be on themselves out of a bind. Mine has saved eyewear, fixed ripped leather boots, and so much more, saving hundreds of dollars. And the truth of the matter is, even if I wanted to spend all that money, in some of the situation where the repairs needed to be made, there was no place around in which to spend the money. The items could not be replaced, so making a repair was absolutely essential.
Awesome share, thank you Daphne. That’s horrible about the heating pad. I NEVER put mine on high, it gets too hot, so I’ve never had an issue. I’ve had that pad for a very long time. It’s a great reminder to be extremely careful with something that has a heating element.
@@PracticalPreparedness : That’s a good point. It’s been enough time that has elapsed since that happened, that I don’t remember the setting on which I had it. All I’m certain about is that I was comfortable enough on it when I put my back on it that I fell asleep. It’s certain that I would’ve turned back the heat setting if I had been burned by it when I first used it. That I could be burned like that, without even knowing it, and feeling no pain although I was not under the influence of any substance, was disconcerting in the extreme. The whole thought that it could’ve happened before I fell asleep it’s really disconcerting, and I’ll always be grateful to that friend for her uncharacteristic persistence on that day; she never once was persistent like that before that day and never once since that time. If she had not been persistent on that day, I think there’s a chance that I may not have lived or been left so debilitated that there would have been no quality of life left for me. Given that there are other people that live in very close proximity to my residence, it could’ve been an outright catastrophe all around. From that, I would suggest that a hot water bottle is much safer option, or perhaps one of those salt-based reusable heating packs with the little coin-type crystalizer in it would be the way to go.
Another option, cook with charcoal outside. Put some stones in with the charcoal fire. Then, you can bring back hot food and hot stones, for warmth to your house.
I live Off Grid in a 24 ft camper ,I installed a small antique washroom stove . I learned this installation process from Mother Earth News decade's ago to make any wood stove, in any size structure more efficient and safer . Cut a hole in the back and upper part of the ash pan , 1 inch hole for mine . ( a drill wood cutter like for door knobs , they come in many sizes) Cut same size hole through exterior wall . Run metal pipe through exterior wall, add a shut off valve and then add pipe that sticks an inch inside ash pan of stove. Shut off valve is used to adjust air flow from outside. Fire gets oxygen from outside to burn , it stops drafts in home and burns and heats much more efficiently. P.S. my wood stove uses 9 inch logs and I only burn 2 sticks at a time . ✌️💖☺️
Why the heck is this not being shared elsewhere? I need to look into this, seems too simple to be true, but it makes complete sense! Thank you Maddcow!!!
Also shut off your water at the source where it comes in and open your taps to drain your tank. That will stop the lines from freezing and busting. Also the same for your toliet. Both very expensive to fix and replace, causes a lot of damage when it warms up. So you need another source of water where you are sleeping so it does not freeze and makeshift toliet you can seal in another room. Gas lines can freeze so should be insulated by wrapping. I grew up in a house where my mom sealed off my bedroom from heating during the winter. You will have hoar frost covering inside windows and down the walls. even across the floor You may want to clean up your winter boots so you can wear them inside. Not the high healed ones as you will probably slip and fall. Just good rubber soled flat boots Put a few plants in your warmed room as they produce O2 and take in CO2 alternately.
Snake plants (aka sword/mother-in-law's-tongue) produce so much oxygen that experts have estimated just 10 full size ones would be enough to keep you alive in a sealed coffin. Of course you'd go mad real quick, but you wouldn't suffocate.
@@PracticalPreparedness . To prevent toilet from freezing: drain/siphon as much fresh water as possible from the tank; pour 1 & 1/2 cup of winter temp windshield washer fluid in tank and bowl.
I grew up in the mid 70s to mid 80s, and my grandmother had a couple of bed warmers, one was made out of cast iron and another that was made out of brass and porcelain. you would put coals or hot rocks or bricks from the fireplace in it and the place it in the bed for about 15 minutes before going to bed. some of my best memories were sleeping at her place during the winter and having a warm cozy bed that had been heated with one to sleep in.
Great idea, I can't imagine how much better that would have been compared to the how water "bag" that my mom would put in my bed. Awesome feeling crawling in regardless though
@@suzannenapolitano5480 Thank you Suzanne, I grew up in very rural area, my parents split when i was 7, so i spent a lot of time with my grandparents, both of which grew up in the depression. so, i learn a lot about being self-reliant from them, being a rural area, the power grid was always going down in the dead of winter, so the only real reliable heat source was wood. I am lucky that i own a house that has a wood fireplace, my new green deal, hippy neighbors are going to lose their minds this winter when I use it to stay warm when it's cold out or the power is out. also, you can cook in a wood fireplace if you need to, I use pine to start the fire and oak or aspen or other hard woods to keep it burning all night. hot dogs, tin fil pack diners, Dutch oven stews can all be cooked in a wood fireplace if you are out of power or gas. in fact, you can cook almost anything in a Dutch oven, next to a fireplace. you just have to rotate it more frequently and use less coals, since there is not wind or area for the heat to escape, so it run hotter than it would outside.
Outdoor sidewalk guide solar lights can be charged in the day for light. You can put them in a flower vase. Take one or 2 when you need to go to the bathroom. Also, you can sleep in the day when the sun warms the house and be active at night.
Buy a few dollar store thermometers and find out which is the warmest room/area of your house under normal conditions. In an emergency that will not change. For layers, my mom used to tell how her grandparents would wrap their legs with newspaper to insulate them against the cold.
Get a double skin cotton ridge tent for the yard/garden if you run out of fuel (that will keep you warmer than the house as it will use body heat). Get a good hollowfibre sleeping bag which will wash. Get outdoor clothes. Get a woodstove or kerosine or LPG heater. Get a self inflating matress to keep you off the ground. Seal up doors between the rooms with tap so as to use as draught excluders. Get a multifuel stove for cooking and heating water to keep you warm.
I found a fondue set in my attic a unused wedding present I had forgotten about for 18 years 🫣 it’s perfect for heating tinned foods and boiling water and things so will be fab if there are blackouts
@@Houseatnumber9 of course, the one I have uses an alcohol burner. If you only have a candle, it doesn't really cook, it warms liquid, but is still good in a pinch.
Thank you so much for this video, such a comprehensive list you have compiled and I’m so grateful. Very reassuring to see there are so many options even if we face the worst case scenario here in Europe this winter. Keep up the amazing work.
Gas water heater is a second furnace, it got us through 5 days of Christmas to New Years of a broken furnace and power outage. Just fill the tub, laundry tube and sinks every few hours. Kept our house in the 50° range during sub zero weather. Replaced the old one recently with another tank gas heater instead of a tankless one for just this potenciality. The heater itself radiates heat as do the hot water pipes throughout the house.Note also that it's vented so no co or co2 buildup. No electricity needed either as in a tankless.
You were discussing the heating pads, those too can overheat and cause a fire if you lay on them. What I did one winter was to sew pouches on the outside of a sleeping bag and placed the heating pads in them. One for the feet area, one for the waist and one for the chest, the heat radiated through the bag and kept these areas warm. Another thought would be an electric blanket. Our heater went out during a really bad cold front, I pitched an "A" frame type shelter with a king sized electric blanket, used a tarp folded with a quilt between and quilts on top to lay on. Tossed in 2 sleeping bags, one for me one for kitty, and it kept us warm enough to get a comfortable sleep. For the windows, I bought some pool noodles and 1x1 dowels, cut them to fit the windows and wrapped them in Saran Wrap. The noodles help seal around the frame and kept a majority of the drafts out, the wrap did help holding in the heat. I have 2 solar batteries so that helped a lot.
@@PracticalPreparedness Ahh, the joys of modern inventions like the Jackery! lol Keeping the feet warm is a big plus. Now they have those battery powered hunting socks that keep ones feet warm. Especially for me now, with diabetes, I have to really watch my feet, I also have a pair of fur lined slippers with rubber soles that keep my feet warm.
A couple of years ago I got a little tea candle lantern, you unscrew the bottom and fit the candle in and then screw the bottom back in, it keeps the flame safe and also makes the candle last for much longer than candles out in the open as all the wax is used, also it's made of metal so it heats the whole lantern up, it was only £3 from Dunelm so I highly recommend it.
@@PracticalPreparedness I checked their website yesterday and couldn't find it. Best to look for any Metal Lantern for tea candles. There's some inexpensive ones out there and some groovy looking modestly priced ones. But they are handy.
We have a smokeless fireplace. As long as natural gas is flowing it will work. You MUST keep the stones perfectly aligned or it doesn't work properly so it can be risky. Important to have a good co2 detector.
Wichita Kansas had an ice storm one winter that took out the electricity for a week during a pretty cold winter. I can tell you that you'll want to make sure your emergency candles are unscented because I only had all my scented decorative candles to burn and that smell was overwhelming. They did help to keep the temperatures for that week in the 50's inside the house. We had a propane hot water heater so I was able to fill all my pots with hot water and scatter them around the house and fill the hot water bottle to take to bed. After about 5 days the basement started to cool down and that made the rest of the house colder. Thank God the lights finally came back on
Thanks for these tips. It might be helpful to have someone explain how to insulate the water pipes coming into and within the home. Exploding frozen pipes were a big problem in Texas.
Years ago we used a heat tape and wrapped around the pipes....you need to plug them in...you'll need a power source.....also...do some research...cheap ones could be a fire hazard and also should not be used with PEX? piping.....
While this is not an immediate emergency solution for most people, it pays to bury the inlet pipes to the proper degree according to your climate. When I bought a nearly ruined (but also almost free) 130-yr-old house with good bones and started to restore it, burying those pipes was one of the first things I did. They should've been 4' down and were barely covered! That was begging trouble! Also had all the interior pipes replaced with pex - it will freeze but not burst. And mine don't get a chance to freeze. A rotating cast of characters had come and gone in this place for decades with nobody spending $ on necessities, just hideously modern and cheap decoration. I put on a heavy duty metal roof that might last a few hundred years, all new windows (21), insulation, new wiring, etc. In fact I spent over twice the auction price on immediate practical upgrades, but the end result is that now I can keep the place warm easily on less than half what previous occupants spent for the privilege of still freezing their tails off. People spending fortunes on new McMansions in gated communities don't have houses half as good as mine imo. A lot of those Texans froze to death in the lap of luxury.
A huge one not mentioned here. My pickup is diesel. A diesel will idle for a long time with minimal fuel consumption. I keep the tank full and have an extra30 gallons of fuel for it. I installed a power inverter in it to be able to use power tools around the ranch away from the shop. It's only2000 watts, but the inverters up to 5000 watts are reasonably inexpensive. I also installed a 3rd battery in my truck that's A deep problem cycle battery. It will provide lighting and some heat from the lights all night without the engine running. Starting the truck for 20 - 30 minutes recharges in the batteries. On very cold nights, I could leave it idle all night too to run a 1500 watt space heater with minimal fuel consumption. My truck is a mobile, inexpensive generator. Gasoline engines are not nearly as efficient, but would also work. A power inverter, in my opinion, is a must. Even without grid down, they have many uses..like running my air compressor for emergency flat tires, etc.
Thanks for adding all these Skip. I’ve been thinking about a diesel myself. Making the jump to a truck is no biggy at all (country boy), but never had a diesel. Thanks for this
We think alike, I have a 2000 watt inverter for my car and got through a 5 day power outage a few years ago. I was able to keep 2 fridges, a chest freezer and my sump pump going by rotating them each through a few times a day. I didnt have to run it constantly but I kept the car running will in use and for a little while after each use and only used a half a tank of gas. Un like old carburetored cars, modern computer controlled, fuel injected cars dont have any trouble idling for long periods. I prefer this system to a gas generator as the car is way quieter and doesn't draw so much attention even though it does use more gas to get the job done. Since then I have upgraded to a pure sine wave inverter which is better for our modern computer controlled appliances. I am Saving for one of the bigger solar generator systems but it's not going to happen for this season.
@@richardelliott9511 I bet most people don't know about inverters. A great choice for the money. Also they do not have to be maintained and don't take up much space. A few years ago we lost our power due to tornadoes. We had a generator but a lot of people didn't and their basements flooded. An inverter and knowing how to use it may have saved the day.
I've heard of people using those catcan isopropyl alcohol stoves on a small, upside down terracotta ceramic pot (so like a hot air balloon only made of ceramic instead of canvas). The pot can withstand the flame, but it'll help give the heat generated by them flame more surface area to disperse around the room
Hoping this video also helps the dog rescue orgs :) Thank you again Justin! We're now preparing a microclimate in our home, and I would not have been aware of this practice if not for your videos. (Also Ireland always seemed like the land of the hot water bottle to me, so this too is now especially good.)
I bought hot water bottles that actually came with sweater that fit over them. I bought smooth large 3” rocks in size to put in a pan and put in my gas oven for a short time to heat for the micro climate like you said, a small tent. I also bought down comforters and 0 degree sleeping bags.
Tips: 1. Space lit 'tea light candles' apart (i.e., not next to or touching each other) to avoid them catching on fire. 2. Alcohol stoves are banned in some areas (for ex. California). 3. Stock up on 'stick matches' and (refillable) butane lighters, because you might them to start a fire easily. (Without them is like stocking up on canned foods, but not having a 'can opener'.)
I have most of my stuff in my 6x6 pantry. I can sleep my 3 people family in there. Use a solar generator and heating pad for warmth and a small crockpot to cook canned goods. The only thing I need to leave the room for is to use the bathroom
Aldi and Lidl also sell camping/hiking supplies, jumpers, etc. on the cheap. I've seen cheap tents in there - probably not great on a mountain but perfect for an indoor microclimate.
Bubble wrap on your daylight sunshine window is great . Adding insulation,sunlight inside and a some what disruptive view. Use in my RV. Emergency blanket or large aluminum sun shade for cars is great at blocking door heat loss and as a room divider to reduce room footage/ area and to increase heat and live by heat source . I used fishing line with tacks and clothes pins/ metal paper claps to hang a wall of emergency blanket. Worked great.2 weeks of power outage at 5 to 19 degree. 4 days help of a borrowed generator.
I would like to Thank you for your video and everyone else on here that made comments I have snapped a picture of many many different comments I am going to make copies of all your ideas , and make a home made book for my daughter-in-law & son and another one for my other son give it to them for Christmas thank you again and thank all of you for your comments I have learned a lot and appreciate it very much as I have been a single mother for a long time and boys don’t always want to listen. God Bless You All!!!!😊🙏
I bought a bunch of those thermal foil blankets. I cut up one into 1ft squares an put 1 square on each foot, tie up around my ankles then put shoes on. Works very well keeping my feet warm. An have one under my blanket to help keep me warm also works well.
Fleece blanket - even the cheap ones - are very warm. Especially if you are indoors. I camp out in the cold weather with 1 fleece in my 40° bag. Then there's the Life Tent. Reflective mylar tent that is actually very warm. Camped out in 30° weather in a lean to, no fire necessary. Life tent comes with a long cord to make a basic A-frame tent with one open side. Was so warm I used my fleece blanket as a pillow. Corrugated cardboard is an excellent insulator. I bring 2 large boxes and a moving blanket for my dog Jake when we camp. Form 1 box, second folds for ground insulation, blanket over it all. Jake stays toasty. You can cover drafty windows in an emergency situation to reduce heat loss, or put them on an uncarpeted floor under your bedding to stay warmer.
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Add any I might have missed below!
Thanks as always for watching
- Justin
I clay pots and candles for a heat source
Also laying on your belly is much warmer than sleeping on your back or side. Best to combine with mattress and blanket or with sleeping bag, thus making some kind of ""cocoon", a micro climate, yes.
For who wants to try it: Shower and/or bath with cold water. I know someone who is called "the ice man". I´m learning a lot from him about this. He himself is a living example of how it helps getting more healthy by our natural "immune system", being able to live in - for humankind - extreme temperature conditions, like many of our ancestors centuries before us.
I'm thinking of going the simple route. I'm going to put in a high efficiency catalytic wood stove that will crank out heat for like 20 hours on a single load of wood.
I've also had good results with the Mr. Heater propane heaters.
What are 500 million people going to burn in these stoves Bro?
Hmmmmm 10 edits in the first 51 seconds.....that's really shit
My wife used to work with homeless people, and she noticed that the prepper sites do not usually mention cardboard. She used to help folks make "squirrel nests" out of cardboard, plastic, and tarps. Premium cardboard, such as refrigerator boxes, can have good qualities, but you can't always find those. Layers of thinner cardboard and duct tape can work really well. Plastic bags of leaves surrounding the nest can top off the insulation. We'd like to see you do a show on cardboard. More of you preppers should visit some homeless camps to witness real ingenuity.
I swear I almost did. This is a great tip and reminder!!
You and your wife are amazing . Great tip. Thanks so much . 🙏
@@joanngreen8747
Trauma.
Mental illness.
Addiction.
Some people you just can’t reach.
@@catalhuyuk7 yes, all that and personal circumstances. For example, marriage breakdown can coincide with unemployment. Try landing an office job requiring a suit when homeless, living in a tent! :-(
@@TheTerryMarsh1
I agree. Unfortunately too many people are one paycheque away from becoming homeless. Circumstances can change your life in a heartbeat.
Good luck to you if your statement came from personal experience.
For young people, if you have an elderly family member or neighbor, don't forget to contact them in person and check to make sure they too have some form of heat.
Great callout Carla, thanks for thinking of others
Yeah, and make sure they have a few cheaper option because elderly people often don't use things like heat and ac because of the cost. Wool blankets, survival sleeping bags, down sleeping bag, microwavable heating pads, heated throws, even the 7-watt heated animal tank warmer could save their lives.
In the '50's and '60's, we had horses in Ohio. Our horse barn wasn't that warm, although straw helped. My dad bought old rugs and carpets from estate sales and hung them on the inside barn walls. Made a huge difference. Like tapestries in medieval monasteries. Keeping out wind and holding in warmth.
Smart man, good thinking. Would not have thought of that!
For anyone reading this it’s super important to use straw and not hay- stray stays dry and hay gets wet and can make you (or an unsuspecting animal) freeze
Here's a safety tip for Sterno style alcohol stoves; if you sprinkle a few grains of table salt into the burner you'll be able to see the flames as they glow yellow.
I didn’t know this, thank you!
Thank you for this tip!
Thank you 🙏
I was without housing for awhile. I was in Michigan and spent a winter in a vehicle that was broken, no heat. For me I gradually got used the temperature. Eventually I didn't need a jacket on when the temperature was below freezing. In the wind I felt the cold hit me some, but I would just fight it; eventually I'd probably get used to the wind too if I had been in it most of the time.
Put bottled water under your blankets and your body will keep it from freezing.
I am mostly worried about others who might have a hard time with getting used to the cold, since getting used to it can be some suffering.
Mostly, a good helpful book can help you feel better, a shower to keep your body clean, a place for your bodily waste, a safe place to sleep (a lot of people in society are not really trustworthy), enough food (preferably no need to cook), a clean water source, and a place to dispose of trash. Don't use any drugs (including weed, alcohol); one might get depressed, but the drugs will cause many problems.
Depends on the situation, one might survive, and even help others to survive without them going through hell if they do survive.
Your right.
Very helpful insights,thank you 🌺
I purchased several clear shower curtains at Dollar Tree to tape around my old single pane windows, that face north because of the cold wind. Was able to to do for less cost than the roll of plastic sheeting at local store. I will leave my south facing windows alone for the sunshine and at night, will close the drapes.
Side note: A few years ago when I moved into this house, I cut rolls of bubble wrap to fit on the interior side of the window glass. Just spray the window glass with water and place the flat side of the bubble wrap against it. Still up 3 yrs later! I did this to the north facing windows that no one sees. It truly made a big difference as those 2 rooms were the coldest in the house. This was a trick I learned from an RV camping group.
The bubble wrap is a great trick I’ve heard through many channels. Thank you for sharing
You can get a 1000 ft role of plastic wrap at Lowes for $30, but the bubble wrap sounds better.
@@rtoguidver3651 It really is! Has worked great! If a window is still drafty in the corner or something, I use the plastic too in order to cover the entire sill, until I can add caulking.
@@aliciaokiegal Take the trim off the window and use expanding foam around the window, this will fill any gaps inside and out.. Better yet replace the windows w/ double pane windows, maybe one at a time.. About $150 each for good ones and you can do it your self, it's simple... What state are you in ?
The bubble wrap and water trick works really well on windows that you don't own and can't change. Put the bubble side against the window to get extra insulation: 1x is the air inside the bubbles. 2x is the air around the bubbles trapped by the flat side of the plastic. You get both light and privacy with this plan. Then as spring arrives, you can roll it up and stow under the bed.
Hello! Another idea for a candle heater... I have a large stock pot with a strainer that fits inside it. Put a 4" unscented candle in the pot and put the strainer on top upside down, like a dome. The entire unit will radiate heat. Place it on a cookie cooling rack on a heat safe surface.
Not sure how helpful this will be, but: Flip your bed layers. Have a blanket touching you with your duvet and extra blankets on top of that. For extra warmth have another blanket between you and the mattress (you can swap it out for bath towels as well if needed). This is a great way of having a "warm" bed if you don't have/want to use electric blankets/water bottles etc. Also I have an extra pillow that I keep between my head and the wall during winter, (assuming you don't have a headboard) this helps insulate you and stops the wall leeching warmth. (this might be obvious to some but these were helpful to lots of friends so figured I'd share anyway). Hope this helps someone 💛
All about the layers!
I do this too. Forget the top sheet - it’s cold. I have a soft fuzzy microfiber blanket touching me instead and my comforter and I’m warm. Oh, and I do wear an oversized hoodie so I can pull the hood over my head. It’s like an old fashioned nightcap like they wore in the olden days! Keep your head warm!
I sleep on a fleece blanket and cover up with one. Works good. Lol
@@Grace2HopeYou must keep a cold house!
If you use an electric heating pad, consider placing it over you, rather than having your weight on it.
As I am German I do know the Video about the small candles. The Main Point is to keep a certain distance between the candles and also enough space to the flower pot. If not the wax can get too hot and thus start burning completely and not just the wick. As the material is basically oil, the fire needs to be treated accordingly and can’t be put out with water. The safe distance between those candles is about an inch or three cm. As for the height - that depends on the amount of candles you use. The more candles the higher the distance should be. But even with only one the flame should be beneath the pot. Heat rises so there’s still enough to warm up the pot.
Thank you! :)
I saw a survival u tube post more than 6 months ago. This guy put together a metal box with metal pipes. One set of pipes goes in from outside and another exit at the top to the outside. In between are 3 lighted candles at even spaces heating up the 2nd pipe running right to left with openings to the room.
For a required space, it heats up quite well. This box can be increased with a bigger space.
This solved the co2 dangers.
If you factor in a small computer fan at one end of the second pipe, this will distribute heat in the room faster.
@@weikwanglee4383 that was the outsider. He's not a survivalist. He built a cabin in Canada and wanted to create a heater from candles so he could use it while camping in his portable camping cabin.
Thank you for the information!
I started saving the soup cans to make wax candles it's a good way to warms our hands and keep it warmer while we lit the room.
1. Layers
2. Micro climate
3. Insulate floors.
4. Let sun in.
5. Seal up drafts..windows with plastic or tape etc.
6. Dribk warm food and drinks
7. Exercise major muscles
8. Snuggle up people and pets
9. Sleep bags and emergency blankets, wool
10. Hand warmers.
11. Water bottles with hot water
12. Fire place
13. Kerosene heater, propane, warm pans put in micro climate, sterno heat, terracotta heater, alcohol stove,
14. Generator with space heater or heated blanket.
15. Bricks out in sun or by fire..put in sleep bag
16. Use your car.
17. Camp stove/tent stove.
Thanks Sharrice! Took my android and took a picture of your list you did up! You a peach!
Have noticed hot spices warm me up in any environment! Thanks for the list!
Cayenne pepper put into little veggie capsule taken internally will warm you up too. It really works!
Hand warmers too!
#15 😉👍👍
My mom grew up in northern Sweden in the 40's and 50's. She tells me about heating rocks in the fireplace and placing them in bed before they would go to sleep to make the bed warm to get into. Europe may have to go back to that practice this winter.
I'm with you on that Tipsovr
I was born in 1951 in Oklahoma, and we lived on a farm and as a child the only stove we had was in the front room and kitchen. The cook stove was an old kerosene oil cooking stove. We would warm up bricks and wrap them in towels and put them at the foot of the bed to keep us warm in our bedrooms. I remember there being so many blankets on the bed that once I was under the covers I could hardly move. I can tell you, the warmed, wrapped bricks kept us warm.
Here in England the majority don't have fireplaces we have radiators, we are going to have power blackouts January/February so I bought some terracotta pots and tea lights plus a camping stove with gas bottles so I can at least have a cup of tea
I bought 2 hot water bottles last week. I'm about to have a cup of tea and fill one up.
My Dad grew up in a big family. Several would sleep in the same bed. He told me once that he remembers snow coming in the cracks in the windows. It was common practice to heat up bricks by the wood burning stove and wrap with cloth to put under the covers at the foot of the bed. This was not Sweden or Europe, it was Indiana USA.
My house uses diesel fuel for the furnace. Last year when the price of heating oil shot way up, I started turning my thermostat way down to save on oil... leaving me to figure out how to deal with a *much* colder house than I'd ever experienced. In addition to stoking my fireplace more, I found that fleece clothing and blankets are a very comfortable way to keep warm. An added bonus: my sister sewed me some fleece pillow cases, and they really help keep my head warm and cozy on cold nights. So now when I feel like I'm getting fleeced by the oil companies, I fight back with fleece!
Growing up, when we had a power outage, we slipped back a few decades and used more clothing (layers), if it got too cold we covered up with blankets and quilts (still more layers). For a good portion of my teenage years we had a wood stove, and we ( I mean me usually), got warm twice or three times, once when I cut the tree down, once when I split the wood for the stove and again when we burned it for warmth and cooking. We used the sunlight to see by, when the sun went down, we did too and went to bed, under a ton of blankets and quilts. We used food to warm us; good tasting, filling, with plenty of FAT cooked in. That human heater you talked about is due to having a diet tailored for cold weather, it did not make you fat, it helped your body warm itself. Many of the oldsters would only have a small house, and that was due to not having to heat as much, (100 to 200 years ago.) Those who did have large houses, had multiple fire places and stoves and the wealth to maintain them with. SO, what I'm saying is, have plenty of layers to put on, either clothing and/or blankets, and eat often and well for the calories needed for that human heater to work properly. There are many ways to stay warm in the cold, use them! There are many ways to die in the cold, don't! There is one tool that everybody has that will be your salvation, that would be your BRAIN, use it and study, research, understand, and ask questions and you can survive.
Great comment, thanks!
To add to the Layers bit regarding clothing: I highly recommend investing in thermal underclothes, like thermal pants, shirts, and one-piece thermal suits; these go under your clothes as a base layer and really help to trap in heat, I still have in my possession a thermal suit that saved my life one winter when I was homeless; side-note DO NOT wear thermal clothes to bed, you will sweat to the point that you wake up dehydrated in the middle of the night desperately needing water!
1. Canopy beds are not just decorative.
Make a warm zone in your bed. Build a canopy that also includes a bed skirt to maintain temp under the bed. Use the under bed space to store items that can get cold but can also act as insulation. Use thick blankets and curtains for the canopy cover the top and sides. That’s the whole purpose of a canopy bed (well and to keep bugs out!) use the same layering concept as your clothing.
2. Pee when you can. Your body spends energy warming your urine because your bladder is in the middle of your body.
3. If you have power, and use an electric blanket - use it under you not over you, or use a mattress warmer. Heat rises, if you get warm you can remove your blankets but keep the heat.
Great adds, the canopy was something I have not been exposed to myself.
@@PracticalPreparedness yeah think castles!
Yes, that’s why canopy beds were invented! Also forts are cool 🎪
The Styrofoam trays used by grocery store meat departments work well as an extra later inside winter boots. Take out the insole and cut the tray to match. Makes a big difference! I'm sure others can think of more creative ways to use them!
That is brilliant. Thank u for sharing
Going to try it today
What a great idea! I just threw one away when I got some pork loin this last week. Now I know! Thanks
During my high school marching band years (early '60s), in the winter months it was SOP to use layers of newspaper for this purpose. Our uniforms required dress shoes, so the insulation had to be out of sight.
Very creative!
Great idea!! Thanks!!
Some people think this is strange, but going to the bathroom is one of the most important things to keep warm. The body loses an incredible amount of energy heating up what should be disposed of. I think you should also include this in a future video :)
Great point! Smaller the place, the better. Especially if you're not using combustibles
@@PracticalPreparedness I guess I was thinking more about going to the toilet. Wondering if you misunderstood my comment? :)
Ahhhhh I see now! Yes you definitely don’t want a video of that! :)
@@PracticalPreparedness True, you wouldn't want to video this concept in practice but it does deserve a mention, perhaps?
I never thought of it that way ,that's why people can get chilled when they need to urinate
Living a mile from Lake Erie, before we put up plastic sheets over the Windows we are going to cover for the Winter, we use the blue painters tape to seal all of the inner edges along the trim and joins. This cuts down on any Drafts that might work their way in. Then we place the plastic covers over the windows. Plus they leave very little residue when you remove them in the spring. Hope this helps.
Yes, last thing you want to do is use duct tape... trust me...
Blue tape didn’t stick for me, I ended up using the clear packing tape instead for putting bubble wrap on our windows.
We also used a plastic piece that painters use to stop paint from getting on things n put it over us when the electric went out, it caused a bit of condensation but was warm.
They have large rolls of plastic to use for even for makeshift greenhouses at Walmart for 25.00.
We have had the Brown tape make a mess too...
Several years back, I was in a cabin in late October in Ohio. The electric blew one evening. We lit tea lights and I put a mirror behind them to amplify the light. It also amplified the heat. I've had good results in later years by using mirrors to increase heat & light during power outages.
Another thing that can be helpful during a winter power outage. If it stays cold enough, you can use a vehicle to store stuff from the freezer. You can also bring in chunks of ice (put them in a container for when it melts) to put in your fridge to keep it cold.
Out of the box thinking, I like it
Remembering the technology that used to be used to make an ice box before there were fridges and freezers is pretty smart. Not so many would remember that now.
In our neck of the woods, people are encouraged to take plastic containers and freeze water in them to use up all the extra space in the freezer, as it costs less to freeze and keep frozen than the empty space inside the freezer, and also because there will already be ice insulation in the freezer to keep the food frozen much longer if the power goes out.
Ty
@@PracticalPreparedness This guy puts out a lot of excellent ideas for generating electricity & heating living spaces. th-cam.com/video/JGVZVCU8FGE/w-d-xo.html
@@daphneraven6745 qt, 1/2 gal, gal. Plastic milk or juice containers work great for this application. Be sure to not fill containers to the top to allow for water expansion.
Am older and live in an upper corner condo. Lots of Windows. Have been prepping for a year. Money is at a premium. Have a large Sun umbrella one that angles. Yanked it into a corner band tried it for a semi tent actually kept heat in. Also am using portable room dividers can be used for Windows and any other areas. You can use pictures to block cold windows etc. Let your imagination go wild. May not be perfection But survival is the idea!
Thanks for sharing this Ali!
Where I live our 'dollar' stores often sell cheap fleece lap blankets in the winter - I find a few of those as curtain 'liners' help keep the home a bit warmer in the winter. Very versatile those little blankets.
A two person tent on top of your mattress will help you sleep well and will actually sleep 2 (even 3-4 if they are kids) on a queen size mattress. (Bungie cord or strap it around the mattress or to the bedframe for stability). Harbor Freight moving blankets over and around a dining table make a well insulated tent. A puppy play pen makes a cheap safety zone around a heat source and can spread around a fireplace as well. I also use old cookie sheets under lighting/heat/cooking sources. The raised edges keep dangerous fluids or hot liquids under control. Cast iron pans as bed warmers in beds or sleeping bags.
Love it, I have a couple gates I could use for that purpose and didn’t even think about it. Thanks for adding!
Dana M: Yes; you could also put a few rocks inside that empty pan, so that when you’re heating the pan anyway, you also have something you can wrap in an old towel to tuck into the beds after you warmed them all once with the cast iron pan.
On really cold nights, especially for older people or very thin little ones, it sure helps. Hot water bottles are really super nice too, but if you don’t have them, and money is tight, rocks are free
A heated brick will keep you warm a long time too.
I've been thinking about a bed-tent for several years. I've just now thought of a get-out-quick scheme in case of fire: either a knife or a larger handle on the zipper.
@@throughthoroughthought8064 : Before houses were well insulated, back in the day when the fireplace or stove had to be lit in order to heat the house, beds had canopies and draperies, because houses got really cold at night. It was about the only way to keep people warm at night, without having somebody stay awake half the night just to stoke the fire.
They certainly counted as a sort of bed tent.
This 'tip' is maybe a little dumb, but I had to do it once (as I didn't have proper waterproof shoes when I was traveling): If you don't have/can't afford good wool or heavy socks, or waterproof shoes/boots, put plastic (empty!!) cereal bags on your feet as your 'base layer'. They're pretty sturdy and plenty big. (I prefer cornflakes bags myself.) Save a bunch ahead of time and give them a quick rinse out and thorough dry. They work a treat as free shoe/boot/sock 'liners' and they do keep your feet warm and dry. Upcycling too 👍
As long as you’re not sweating and you’re staying warm anything I think is a good idea
When I was raised the old fashioned way my parents would take bread backs works better and put them over your socks use a rubber band to put over your jeans and tie them down that way keeps the heat in works great keeps your feet dry too if you're in the snow if you've got bad shoes
Sailor_Stine•. That brings back memories.. When I was growing up, if we managed to soak through our footwear, our folks would dry our feet for us and put on clean dry socks, then came the bread bags. I believe a rubber band came next or second pair of socks. I don’t remember for sure. Then we could put our wet shoes on and go out again.
In the area where i live, my parents’ generation and further back all had a complete set of shoe repair equipment in the house.
They could easily replace the soles of the shoes as they wore out, and they always did. A person can get a lot of years out of a pair of shoes that were well-made.
Today’s athletic footwear is often molded, and meant to be discarded after six months or a year of wear, Although most of us wear them much longer. It might not be a bad idea to find a pair of gently-worn boots with stitched soles that can be repaired for continuous use, along with an inexpensive awl with leather needles and a really good quality thread that be waxed, or some artificial sinew.
In a pinch, I have repaired leather footwear when somebody has had a blowout, tear, or other issue with footwear; It sure made a difference in each case, to be able to keep the weather off the feet at a time when replacement was simply not an option.
If you’re a person that can’t afford good quality woollen socks, consider buying a wool sweater at your local thrift shop. Sometimes you can get them very cheaply. Then revel it back and use the wool to knit nice warm socks and mittens, maybe a nice hat.
If it works, it's not dumb !
Not dumb. I already save the cereal bags as well as cake mix bags, Stove Top stuffing bags, etc, really anything to recycle / upcycle. They are food grade and saves money on storage bags. Just a little tid bit on saving money.
Hello just finally sat down to watch video and begin to read comments! Living in Maine and now a recent widow after being with my husband 42 yrs, lots of learning and adjusting to do, and at almost 70 yo, can feel overwhelming 😂. Outstanding video…thank you! It’s almost 4am and I can’t focus. I’ll be reading and asking questions tomorrow. Again, my sincere thanks! Victoria
😥❤
Thank you for that, and I’m sorry to hear about your loss. Please don’t let anything I cover in my vids cause any extra stress!
I'm in this with you, Victoria. Lost my husband this past spring. after 44 years. Yes, it sure can be overwhelming. But, we can make it. We didn't stay married as long as we did by being brainless and I think we picked up bits and pieces of what to do and they will fall into place. We are stronger than we imagine we are. ~Sherrie in South Carolina
clippy lady-
Victoria, there are more of us around than you might think. We're stronger than you might think or we wouldn't be here at this site. I like the encouraging tone of these videos...they give me ideas that I can use on my limited budget, and at 75, my limited movement. I did buy a small tent from WalMart last week on clearance, and I love the idea of strapping it to my bed with bungie cords! Since I traded my Queen bed for a Twin, I would be afraid of it sliding off otherwise. Such great ideas In the video AND in the Comments! We should form a Widow's Preppers Organization! LOL
Anyone using unfamiliar heating methods to cook and keep warm could benefit from 3 welding supplies that can help. 1. welding gloves. They are heavy leather with gauntlets extending up the forearms that can protect from the heat. 2. leather welder's apron. This will protect clothing from sparks and embers (think synthetic shell winter jacket). 3. Welding blanket (carbon felt). Use this to wrap hot items to prevent scalding and fire when dealing with radiant heat items. Great list Justin. Well thought out as usual.
Thanks Paul! So many uses for the welding blanket too. Could be helpful for that camp Woodstove option or others as you said.
@@PracticalPreparedness I saw a clever use for carbon felt as a wick for oil lamps and an oil heater on Robert Murray-Smith's channel you might enjoy. Bonus info!
carbon felt is also the best wick for alcohol stoves, homemade heaters,etc
@@paulhelberg5269 - I LOVE Robert's channel, and being 100% Irish (American) I can't be accused of being any kind of anglophile either. That man's just brilliant and does a great public service.
Great idea!
If your power goes out during the winter make sure you turn all your taps on.
Open them just enough so there is a steady flow (just above a trickle).
Moving water freezes at a lower temperature than stationary water.
Just might save your pipes from busting.
As a Ukrainian - huge thanx, a lot of useful information! It will be some difficult winter this year (already, actually - only few hours of light and no heat +snow and -2😒). Really thank you !
Be safe Anastasiya
@@PracticalPreparedness thank you! Everything will be okay 🤗🤟
You and your countrymen are in my thoughts and prayers this winter.
@@jacquelinek5036 absolutley, I second this. Much love
Thinking of all Ukraine that’s why I am watching videos to share with my friends Slava Ukraine
Once again, a really useful video. I'm on the skinny side and noticed my ankles got cold even with fuzzy slippers inside the house when my temp sensor is reading anything below 74. I ordered a pair of slipper socks that go 2/3 way up my calves and they're a dream! They fit inside my big, waterproof "fishing boots" that I wear when I take the dog out, esp early in the morning when everything's wet w/dew. People whose extremities get cold either from Reynauld's or just lack of natural inslation might do well to consider slipper socks.
I like the slipper idea! Haven't had a pair in a very long time
Yes, and they usually have a non-slip sole. Love them. 🧡👍🌱
I've got low blood sugar hypoglycemia plus thyroid disease too which also makes me cold so can anemia so as a child the way we is raised when we would go outside to play we would take bread bags and put around or socks and take a rubber band and put around her ankles to keep the heat in and the wetness out it works wonders
Thanks man! My girls and Mom and I all have Reynard's syndrome (that's what they call it now! Can u believe it?!?) Hopefully this will help us too!!
Reynauds is mostly just a lack of iodine in the diet
Lugol's iodine is a great survival item
Can disinfect water,protect the thyroid from radiation,boost metabolism,be used to clean wounds, help warm the body , prevent/treat reynauds, reduce cancer risk by improving " apoptosis "
It's not expensive but it's not cheap, but you can find very cheap DIY recipes online
Best of luck finding some relief from your reynauds, my gram passed a few years back and she had reynauds until I discovered the link with inadequate iodine
I use clothespins to hang thick bath towels over our window curtains at night. It does a great job of blocking out the cold air. Cheap fleece lap blankets also work well. You just have to remember to remove them during the day to let in the sunlight. If you hang two at a window, you can simply push them to the side like a normal curtain instead of removing and reattaching the clothespins each day. Or you could just sew a rod pocket onto one end of the blanket and use it as a curtain. . . flannel sheets, pillow cases, pajamas, and flannel curtains....and you're good to go. On another note: Mittens keep your hands warmer than gloves with fingers. They can be worn at night, as well.
Thanks for another helpful add grinning owl :)
Thank you for your advice. Mittens are the best. That is what I use to shovel snow. Just be careful because as my dad always said: "There are only two things you can do with mittens, keep your hands warm and wet your pants."
@@alanstevenson9885 🤣Thanks for your reply. Might I suggest an adult diaper/brief and/or "pants with elastic waist bands". Then all you need are your thumbs to pull them down. If Alan Harper on "Two and a Half Men" can do both "1" and "2" while sitting down, then anyone can. Stay warm! 🙂
It works also as a barrier from the cold irradiation.
@@santopino2546 I'm not sure what you mean by the term "the cold irradiation".
Being in Wisconsin when I built my house I put a 1/2 inch thick stainless rocket stove in the basement and covered it with 2 feet of concrete over the fire box and then sent the chimney up through the kitchen with a stainless pipe uncovered to the roof vent . The rocket stove will heat up the big slab and the uncovered pipe in the kitchen will keep it above freezing up stairs . I have a nice flat area right above the stove that we sit and lay on and it's toasty no matter what temp it is outside . Best part of it is that once you get it warm it takes 5 to 6 hours before you need to light another fire . Passive heat . Another benefit is that you need less than half of the wood than a normal wood stove for the same heat . 3 fires a day and about 10 pieces of fire wood per fire is all you need . I stole the idea from a monster stove guy I met in Canada . Many a good time has been had with family on the cushy platform I built above it !
Going to look into this, was that a convo you had or a video you may have watched? Thanks!
@@PracticalPreparedness He showed me the one he built in his home . It was what I based the one I built on .
Great ingenuity, and an awesome beard.
I've actually sewn sheets on one side of all my woollen blankets. Just make sure the sheets are cotton and not a polyester or other man made material. It solves the problem of itchy wool and the cotton doesn't make you sweat.
Super smart!! Thanks pixie!
I have many wool, patch work, crazy quilt, blankets like this.. that I am sure are most likely vintage. That I found while thrifting
Flannelette sheets would be even nicer
Thank you I am allergic to wool & I’ve thought about this just didn’t think it would help but if the Cotton is of thicker thread it should help or even as far as sewing two sheets. Genius idea thx 😊
@@nikkistyx6875 I am so allergic to wool. I keep warm with my down with nylon ripstop but I have always been curious about if there were ways to help me with wool. When I was young, even wearing a shirt under a wool sweater never helped. But I could probably sew it to a fleece blanket.
Do you have rubber hot water bottles in the USA? Most homes in the Uk have at least one but usually several. They come with a furry/fleecy cover. Very efficient and cheap heating. You boil the kettle, make tea, fill your hot water bottle ( adding a little bit of cold water) and take your cuppa and your hot water bottle to bed. Bliss!
I had 1 as a child but haven't seen one since!
I just found them in Lehman's catalog. They seem to be rare in the U.S. I haven't had one since I was little.
I would add a "combo" method to your list:. If using the Sterno fuels, elevate a thick cast iron pan over the flame. When the Sterno burns out, the pan will radiate heat for quite some time.
Mason jars work really well as hot water bottles! The lid seals from the heat.
Tuck them into the feet of your sleeping bag.
Didn’t even think of this, thank you!
always use a cover so you dont burn your feet on them they stay hot a real long time work really good like 4-5 hours
A cheap trick to keep your feet warm is to take one of those foldable windshield shades that has the silver lining, and using your boot or shoe insole, cut out a piece. You can then place that either under or on top of your insole in your shoe.
I can assure you, that this will keep your feet warm. If reflects the heat onto your foot and also insulates it from the cold ground.
Very clever!
Even clevier if you sew a pair of simple moccasins from it and wear them outside footcloths. Footcloths are easy to make, just a 3feet square of cloth wrapped around the foot
And sleeping in a sleeping bag, i would recommend to use it with sleeping bag liners
Tks for the tip for my icy feet.
I was thinking of using this btwn my double windows to keep my apartment warm..
Indoor oil lamps with smokeless oil gives heat and light … and larger candles in hurricane style holders also give off a ton of heat … been through many extended power outages including feb 21 with back to back MAJOR ice storms … went 2 weeks with out electric … we were warm, fed and clean because we always storm ready … (lots of practice)
You’re confidence is inspiring. Thanks for watching and sharing!
Good tips, especially when you can prepare ahead of time. I'd like to share some experience I have as well. Omaha had an event called "The October Snowstorm" which knocked out power to most of the Omaha area. When ours went out, my ex evacuated with my smaller 3 children to a relative that hadn't lost power. My oldest 2 sons and I stayed at the house. It was an older Victorian with 10' ceilings, but our water heater was gas powered and the thermostat was mechanical, so we had access to hot water. We segregated off the living room with blankets, and filled three 5 gallon buckets and put them in the living room. Just those kept the temp about 20 degrees warmer than outside, which was not toasty, but it was enough. We also left the taps on a fast drip in the upstairs kitchen and bathroom to prevent the pipes from freezing, and rotated which faucet we were renewing the hot water from to help keep the pipes from freezing. We wore hoodies under winter coats, 2 pairs of socks, and slept on the sofa or in chairs covered in blankets. We made it through 4 days like this, with temps going down into the 20's outside, and we could keep the temp in that room in the mid 50's. Like I said, not toasty, but doable. There were so many people that evacuated their homes completely that came back to burst pipes when the power finally came back on.
Fellow Omahan here. I too, lived through that October snowstorm and 2 week power outrage! Let's hope the "Cristmas blizzard" prediction for this Thursday won't be as bad!
Ÿÿÿyÿÿyÿ
that tap dripping doesn't work if things are -30, it just freezes the pipes, the running water freezes from the outside in making th opening smaller and smaller until the entire pipe is frozen
For women, Walmart has a Time and Tru black Polarfleece Funnel-Neck pullover on sale for $6.50 on-line right now. It is super warm.
Thank you for sharing this!
Thank you. I'm going to check that out right away!
How will that work at -30° in Canada? LOL
@@jacquelinebourque8041 Get an XL. Layer other layers underneath. Seriously warm.
The small room is a great idea. It's what I do every year.
My furnace is set at 60. I keep the bathroom warm, for obvious reasons.
Lol, the most important!
I set my furnace to 55 and have a Lasko bathroom heater that you push a button and it heats for an hour and then shuts off. I love that it shuts off. I ended up buying one for the basement for nights that are so cold that I might worry about the pipes.
@@wishingb5859 turn up the thermostat and pipes won't freeze
@@yogabee2222 Nah, my heating oil bill was $3000 about 6 years ago. Now, I only use a half a tank by keeping the thermostat very low and just using one Vornado to heat my house. I just wanted a second heater to run for an hour in the basement. Vornados raise the room temperature by 10 degrees in one or two hours. Ten degrees is enough.
I like my instant pot. I can run it for a time on a solar generator. Heat water-filled canning jars to store heat; remove the weight to use as a humidifier, heat potatoes to store heat then eat
A 12 volt blanket can be used with a solar generator and uses less electricity than converting to AC for a standard electric blanket.
Good thinking! Great point on avoiding the DC->AC conversion loss
If this is due to a total grid down event, natural gas will not come through to your gas stove or fireplace.
The camp stove could be set up in an old fireplace with the actual chimney from it going up the fireplace. Another note about the camp stove. They need a fiberglass fire blanket under them so they do not start a fire if not on a stone hearth completely. If your stone hearth is big enough to have the entire stove on it, the hearth will radiate heat into the room. Another plus is you can cook on the camp stoves. Get a true welded side camp stove since this won't allow any smoke from the stove to escape into the house or building. Another option is sealing a folding camp stove with the sealants for true whole house wood stoves.
If in a total grid down event from a ice/snow storm you will need water and the city water might not be flowing for some reason. If you get snow or ice from outside, boil your water first in a dedicated container then filter it into a clean container. Ice and snow can carry pathogens that can make you sick. It isn't like snows of years ago either. If you see an oily film on the water once melted in the melting pot, take a paper towel and place it on top of the water. It should, if set on the top of the water draw in the chemicals and oils. If that doesn't work, you might try the older trick of using a cup or even a can with the pour spout or hole coming from the bottom of it and not pouring or letting out any more than two-thirds of the water. Wait a few minutes for the oils to rise after filling the container before pouring. If you have activated charcoal, like for an aquarium, you can pour it through that or even a gravity fed water filter with one of the black activated charcoal filters. The activate charcoal won't last too long. It should be long enough to get 10-50 gallons of water depending on the type of oils or chemicals it attracts from the melted snow.
You can always test your snow by seeing if it burns. If the snow has enough chemicals to burn, I'd think hard before water drinking it.
Just my tips and what I've learned.
Thanks for the numerous adds Damian!
Re natural gas heating: That's why my major heating fuel is propane in a tank far enough away from the house not to be dangerous. I don't even like central heating at all. One unvented wall heater upstairs, one downstairs. They have low oxygen auto shutoff safety and are also far more efficient. That plus most of all, the pilot light doesn't go out if the electricity fails bc it's run by a battery that I change every season whether it's needed or not.
If you use tea lights in an emergency, place them on a cookie sheet or pie pan. Much safer, and they'll reflect the light. We live in a small space, it is cheaper
to heat and cool a small space. In the US Midwest we have all 4 seasons. Another way to keep in heat, dressers and bookcases go against outside walls.
Tina, Al's wife
I just got back into camping and decided I’ll be buying a heated vest for those cooler nights and chilly mornings. I’ll also keep it charged so when we do lose power, I can put that on and not feel like I have to confine myself to a tent or a bathroom, just to stay warm.
Keeping most of your vitals warm! Very cool
Helps to have at least a couple power banks and a solar generator to charge them them too.
I used raised terracotta pots and old candle stubs to protect 500 root-stock plants during a very early freeze. My poly-tunnel was 12' x 20' and I used five medium and large pots and just left it to warm things up. For three nights and days and this method radiated a good deal of heat and kept things well above freezing.
Thanks for the real-life experience! I put a thin plastic over my tomatoes every year to get a couple mor weeks out of them, but I really need a poly tunnel
@@PracticalPreparedness a polly tunnel is one of the best investment you can make.
One thing I do as well to keep things warmer inside the poly tunnel is I use straw bales as tables and grow on top of them. (I am older and it save bending so much.) As you water them the plants inside of the bales get wet and start to break down thereby providingl heat.
Funny thing is that I did not realise this little science project was happening until I removed the bales to do a good clean before the spring and everything inside froze. This back-saving trick always produces a good deal of heat.
So how many hundreds of pots did you use ?
It's already proven you need hundreds of them to even raise the temperature by 2°C !
@@maryburger1232 I used five pots ranging from 8-24 inches. Raised on cobble stones with multiple candle stubs in each one. I placed these throughout the poly tunnel and it did raise the temp at least 2°C which was enough to keep my root stock from freezing.
I also use straw bales in my polytunnels as tables. I put my plants directly on them and when watering the straw gets wet, which also increased the temperature through composting. However, at the time the bales had only been in there a week so I don't think that made any temperature difference.
The point is, that this method does work. If used indoors it is not going to make the place warm, what it will do is keep you from freezing.
@@maryburger1232 depends on how bi space, and how well insulated the space is
We did the “big freeze” and power outage in Texas last year in 2021. We closed off all unused rooms, blanketed all our windows and taped the door jams. We also “house camped”, complete with tent, cots, sleeping bags, etc. We used our gas fireplace extensively and dressed like we were out camping in the winter. And since it was so cold, we simply put our food in coolers out on the patio to keep it frozen, and stuff we didn’t want frozen in the garage. Since then we got a Jackery and solar panel and some power packs and a smaller solar panel to keep our devices charged. If your house is raised (pillars), block off the access to the underside of your house if you can to keep the wind from sucking the heat out from under the house. Also, our water heater is gas powered and we always had hot water, so we were able to take warm showers or simply run our hands under warm water for a few minutes, which also helped from keeping our pipes from freezing. Our stove is gas, so we didn’t have to worry about that, but if it was electric we have some camping alcohol stoves that would have worked in a pinch.
I have gas water heater as well. But heard since the pilot light is ignited by electricity, it wouldn't work if the power is out. I mean you will only have the hot water that is left in the tank, once that is used, then you won't have any hot water anymore. Is that not correct?
Watching this getting ready to fill in insulation underneath my mobile home. I've started using a small tarp between blankets instead of piling on more. Been going about 9 winters with minimal heat, multiple layers of clothes is key.
Didn’t think of tarps, I feel that would be making me sweat! Def a moisture barrier
@@PracticalPreparedness yes, depending on room temperature you can sweat minimally but it has never bothered me much. My daily working conditions are much worse than that!
Hi….live in Maine, 🥶😱😂. How are you going to insulate underneath your mobile home? Thanks so much for helping!!
Be well,
Victoria
@@clippylady9837 hello, PA here. I'm using fiberglass bats. Was a rental and spots had been missing for years. Couldn't pass up the offer to buy, it has paid for itself in reduced lot rent already.
@@itiswho2 fiberglass bats?? I'm confused. I live in a mobile home in Wisconsin. Need to insulate under it too
Buy a lot of candles and make sure to put inside a tin so it last longer, don't forget about clay pot, then make a terracota heater. Put it in each corner of the room that you sleep in. Don't forget to buy fire extinguisher too just in case. If you have a pet / child, make sure to put the terracota heater in a high place where they can't reach them (but not too high). If the room is too small that you afraid you could knock the candle, make a hanging table.
This trick will work even better if you have a bunk bed since hot air tends to rise to a higher place.
I would never use a clay pot around young children and pets, because they are very bad for the lungs. A neighbour lost three birds that way.
Young man, 1 minute, and 45 seconds into your video, was something that I had thought about abstractly, but didn't know how to go about it. Now I do PURE ABSOLUTE GENIUS! Why doesn't any other preparedness channels cover such important details?
I think some do, but lots are now explaining how the world will end unfortunately.
Thank you very much for your kind words!
YOURE WELCOME, OF COURSE.
@@PracticalPreparedness - I appreciate that you're very knowledgeable and practical w/o the hysteria used to drive sales. That's actually more productive than terrifying and manipulating people into a self-defeating state of panic.
I like how you said this, and appreciate the kind words. I’ll admit it can be hard to ride the line of instilling urgency with fear mongering sometimes, but it’s a far cry from some of what we see these days, to your point.
I love a cold bedroom but sometimes my feet get so cold I can’t go to sleep. I put an electric blanket on the bed and crank it up before bed and once I go to bed turn it completely off or only at a 1. Your body temperature takes over. The other thing I do every winter is heat up to tube socks filled with dry uncooked rice and microwave that for 2-2:30 minutes and place them near my feet and one up by my stomach. I’ve never had to turn the heat on at night.
Same concept as getting warm by a fire before going in your sleeping bag. Thanks!
I have no first-hand experience with this, but I read it the other day and it seems to make sense. Instead of heating hot water bottles and using them in a sleeping bag, try fabric bags of rice, etc. The water can actually keep getting colder and colder (sucking the warmth out of you) whereas the rice bags will not.
It’s interesting, as I’ve used this for heating injuries. I’ll look more into it
How do you heat up the bags with no power ?
@@jenkilmury4617 , good question. It wouldn't work in that situation. It would be a good choice for someone who just wants or needs to cut back on electricity. We always cut our heat way down at night.
A corn bag is also good.
I have a wood stove(Nevada) and we keep bricks and blocks around the stove as heat sinks(they stay warm even after fire dies down, extending the heat for a period of time)
Instead of setting rice bags directly on the stove, they could be placed on a cookie sheet on a block on top of the stove...no risk of burning the bag from direct heat and the block is there anyway...not Martha Stewart pretty, but sensible.
Last Winter I bought a Comfy wearable blanket. The original one is quite thick. During a snow storm and a 24 hour power outage I put it on and sat on the couch with my feet up and hood on. It was like a mini tent. I stayed very warm!
Is that the brand? Great idea to keep insulated
@@PracticalPreparedness Yes, Comfy is the brand and I got mine on Amazon. The Original is super thick with a fleece-like lining. The Comfy Dream is lighter weight.
Thanks SRice!
I have A Comfy also!
I forgot all about it!
Thanks for the reminder :)
Those Comfys are the best ! I have a thick one ( and another new as a spare ) and some lighter weight ones. Get wool blankets and polyester blankets ,
When I go camping in winter I bring two tents. A small sleeping tent and a larger two room tent. I set up the small tent inside the larger tent, if you do this inside during an emergency you create two zones. Ever been cramped up from small spaces. You’ll love having room to move around, do a little workout… or set up a living area with comfy chair… food ,water and cooking zone. Micro living in micro shelter. Air mattresses don’t stay warm.
1 of the best methods to stay warm Is to Move your furniture out of the way and set your camping tent up in your living room or where ever Throw blankets over the top of the tent or whatever you have for extra Installation It's a lot easier to heat the inside of the tint then it is your whole house Just be careful What you're using for heat And also make sure you have good airflow.
I wouldn’t use the blankets on top if using combustibles or if it wasn’t absolutely freezing just to keep that extra airflow, but def an option it gets bad. My personal pref, thanks for sharing this Jason!
I seriously cannot thank you enough for all this detailed information.
So many things that people don't even think about that literally could save their life and/or those that they love and care for.
I am now subscribed and will share with my 2000+ social media friends.
Wow thanks Max. Really glad you found it helpful!
Wear boots, with real wool linings, even in the house.
Get a gilet/bodywarmer so you're not constricted by your coat.
Sleep in natural fiber garments, and put a fleece (better yet microfiber) throw onto your bed, over your sheet, and pillows, then put another one on top of it, then your bedding. You sleep between the two layers of fleece/microfiber blanket.
Wear a hat.
Get fluffy socks that have rubbish elastic around the ankles, so they're not going to leave a mark on your skin. Sleep in them, even in a good sleeping bag. They're also easy to kick off if your feet get too hot in the night.
Put a fleece, or microfiber (they're fab) over your furniture, especially if it's leather/imitation leather. If you're cold out the throw down, sit on it, then wrap it around you. If you have to get up and do something, fold it over onto itself to keep as much of your body heat as possible.
Awesome tips, thanks for helping!!
The best investment I made last year was buying 2 large heated throws, as the price has soared now in the UK. They are pretty cheap to run at 190w, but get very hot on top level- we prefer them at around half. Mine is large enough for my son and I to share in the settee and I have a second my daughter uses in her self contained flat in our loft. I’ve also bought us all hot water bottles with knitted covers which I put into the bed before bedtime. We all have one of those huge hooded fleeces that you can literally curl up in. I bought a load of BBQbrickettes cheap at the end of the season for our small BBQ, so we have something to cook on if the worst comes to the worst this winter.
I’ve put bubble wrap on the windows which has already made a difference and put a thermal curtain across our old front door with a draughty excluder made out of the leg of an old pr of leggings stuffed with old clothes.
Nice! Bubble wrap alone is a great setup to put down
Off-grid personal heating solution from the Indian Himalayas involves: hot coals from a wood fire placed in a clay pot, worn around the neck on a strap, under a pure wool poncho ( fire resistant ). It is smoky but portable, with care! Is used in rural India, where heating large spaces like schools, community meeting halls or churches is impossible.
A non-smoky alternative might be an old leather school satchel, handbag or purse, worn around the neck, filled with hot rocks/ bricks, etc. under a poncho or loose oversize clothing.
Never heard of the “coal necklace”, very interesting. Thanks for sharing!
Okay, so this week is a good test. It is a low of 22 F the next few nights. Last year, I used electric blankets and LOVED it and still do. This year, so far, I am experimenting with down with nylon ripstop and so far, I love that, too. Cozy with either of those solutions even though I set my thermostat to 45. I ended up also buying a good down parka and I feel like everybody should have one of those. I also have soft fleece winter coats and those are easier to sleep in and I can put my hands in the nice warm pockets. Just having fun trying everything out.
Hey in the UK and seriously worried about the situation here. At this point I think global warming is our only hope!!!
Stay safe
So sorry for what is going on right now. May God protect you.
Make sure you get a wool hat before winter.
@@americafirst9144 I'm actually going to invest in a balaclava. I'm going to start robbing post offices to pay the heating bill
🙏🙏🙏
Come on David,are you a man or a mouse.I’m a woman living alone,I’m not worried.Our winters aren’t as bad as they used to me.Surely you have blankets n clothes to layer up ?if not ask for help.Keep moving or are you disabled/if so you need to ask for help or maybe a neighbour.This was normal in the eighties.If you are old ask for help now ,don’t wait.I hope this helps a bit 🙂
A word about using wet rocks- it is only an issue if they have been wet for a prolonged period. This usually comes up in discussions about campfires- taking rocks from a river or lake to make your fire pit. I have seen rocks split and pop but never explode. It really depends on local geology if the rocks are the right type and they have to been well soaked. I wouldn't worry if the rocks have been in your house for any length of time.
Another possibility to add might be to double up your window coverings at night by hanging thick blankets close to the glass since that is were most heat is lost from a room.
Also, make sure your attic/loft is as insulated as possible now before a problem comes up.
Good video!
I like the ideas, thanks Jonathan! An extra layer of insulation wouldn't hurt anything
Looks like the prep most people are thinking is for the cold winter and expensive heating cost . Then there are a few leaning more toward a complete blackout and looting may occur. Since I am in the Deep South, I am more worry about blackout longer than 3 or 4 days and looting may occur. Planning to have family or friends stay together under one roof for safety in number. Hoping it won’t happened though.
I agree, I’ve gotten a couple videos out I hope can help folks
It is expected. Total darkness for 3 days I heard
Like Vietnam war, etc. Rotating watch shifts.
I use blue painters tape to seal off drafts. It goes on easy and comes off easy too. I like to use Grabber survival tarps instead of the cheap Mylar scrap. For the alcohol stove, you can also use 190 proof Everclear grain alcohol, but you may have to order it from your state store or package store.
Great tips all around! I’ll check out the grabber tarp
And you can have a shot and feel nice and toasty inside as well 🔥
Following from Scotland United Kingdom...with our gas & electric crisis this is helpful 💜
Stay warm, thanks for watching
Use painters tape to tape plastic over windows so it will come off easily later.
And not rip your paint off :) good idea
I'm definitely using your idea.
Stay in basement - great point -- and any heat will certainly help protect pipes from freezing. Not much, but it all helps.
Don't forget to turn off & drain outside faucets, etc.. 😊
Thank you so much for dedicating a great deal of time to helping others.
More reminders folks get the better I suppose! Thank you!
@@PracticalPreparedness Sorry if I said something wrong or spoke too soon
.I apologize. Won't happen again.
Not at all, just saying I hope it helps to make videos like this. More folks doing it too helps
PT: if there’s a chance that the pipes in the house will freeze, pick a bathroom, and adjust the float on the toilet tank so that there’s always a trickle of water flowing from the tank to the bowl of the toilet. You also have the option of turning on the sink to just a tiny trickle, especially if you have one of those toilets where the tank it’s not easy to access.
Either one of these actions will keep the water moving through the pipes all night so it won’t freeze, and the beauty of she was in the toilet as the source of running water, is that a person sleeping in a nearby bedroom can hear it if s/he wakes up in the middle of the night wondering if it’s working.
If things are so cold that you think the pipes will freeze anyway, and that happens in the far northern places of Canada, the procedure is to drain the pipes; Most homeowners will know how to do that from the basement or the lowest floor in the house. Hot water tanks are likewise trained and mined as a freshwater source, and the water to the toilets turned off and flushed away, with antifreeze left in the toilet.
Incidentally, the water in the back of the tank is clean water unless you’ve added chemicals to the tank.
@@daphneraven6745 So many people have never had to deal with the situation so they have no idea where to start. You shared very helpful information.
Thank you. 😊
I set my home heat to 60 degrees all winter time. I’m disabled and live on a tight budget and a buddy heater was just too expensive for me so I wound up getting one of those circular inferred propane heaters that directly connects to the gas grill propane bottle. There’s no 0 2 sensors but it does have a tip switch in case Fido bumps into it. At the time I purchased my heater, it only cost like $30. The MR. Heater, though safer to use was near $100 by the time you got the adapter hose and such. I’ve used this style heater for many years and had no problems.
I’ve seen those. The buddy heater now is 99, so not on the cheap side. Thanks for sharing
Just paid around $119 for Mr. BUDDY Heater (on sale) and told hose for using bbq propane tank would be around $60+ tax...plus a filter (plus cost of propane of course). Deciding wether to invest in hose...or just return it.
MR Buddy had a sale over the summer on Amazon as they are changing colors from red to grey. Was able to get 2 of the big ones for $100ish. I wouldn't have considered it outright. Propane is getting mighty expensive these days!
Am hearing online that there is a simply diy projects online postings by several utubers. There get the preferable woodstove fan two blades and attach to their Mr. Buddy heaters. This helps send the heat about 3-5feet horizontal instead of straight through the roofs or ceilings and works well. Am wondering if some of these projects would benefit by being placed on top of fire(not red) bricks to retain heat?
I've been living in a van for five years and have learned many of the tricks mentioned here. But I'm always looking for new ideas.
Anything you have that I didn’t I’d highly appreciated! Thanks for watching
BE SAFE !
Very useful tips. Thank you.
If anyone can access to the rice straw, it also worked really good as insulation. You pile it up and when going to sleep you burry yourself under the pile with layer under and over your body 6 to 12 inches thick. It keeps the cold air out, keep the heat in and moisture still can evaporate out and you are not sweating. Fill it in duvet cover also an option for not having direct contact with the straw. The other option is mosquitos net made from cotton. You fold into blanket shape a few layers over each other and use it as blanket. It is soft and hug the contour of your body and preserve the heat.
I'm talking from my past experience during hard time in Pol Pot regime, option one, and option two before Pol Pot time.
Awesome write-up Linda. I can tell you are speaking from experience, and appreciate you sharing these tips. 6-12 inches is extremely important and I feel most will underestimate the insulation needed to keep conduction from occurring with the ground
And always use STRAW never hay!
I recommend getting a Kelly Kettle, it's a special kind of water kettle for camping that uses only a handful of sticks to boil water using the furnace effect. Very, very efficient. Only to be used outside though, but excellent for making tea and hot water bottles. There is also cooking equipment to stick on top. More pricey than a gaa stove, but then, you'll only need sticks.
I just watched a video of someone using the kelly kettle its excellent 👍
It's amazing! I just made a vid with it in it, BUT you can't use this inside safely as its an open flame and you're burning biofuel. Outside it's perfect
Plastic around your porch railings does great. Breaks the wind. Started in June. My neighbor said I'm nuts. Not laughing now. Heating oil is 520 a gallon. He he my Two 120 lb shepherds love to snuggle. I have 550 gallon of oil. 200 lbs of propane. And a coal / pellet stove. Think I'm covered. But then I camp in blizzards. Stay safe
Stay safe. It sounds like you’ll stay warm!
Excellent video. covered a lot of good ideas. I suggest that a cast iron Dutch oven with a lid can heat up in a cooking fire outdoors and collect coals from the fire to become a radiant heater. I have put scrap iron and railroad spikes in one as added mass to absorb heat then wrapped it in a welding blanket (mine is carbon felt) to prevent burns from contact.
Great tip, and thanks for the kind words. Curious, do you recall how long that stayed warm for you? That’s a great idea
@@PracticalPreparedness My experiment was not scientific nor have I had occasion to repeat it so I can't tell you if the mass or the insulative blanket were the important factors. I tried this idea out at my cousin's home in Northern Wisconsin many winters ago. I was staying in a basement bedroom that got rather cold by morning. With the Dutch oven it warmed the space to a fairly comfortable degree and I slept well, By morning it was cool to the touch and the room was a little warmer than usual.
Practical Preparedness: Hi, Justin!
A word about that heating pad of yours. I had one that looks remarkably similar. My back has been hurting, after an injury, so I was lying on the heating pad for a bit of soothing relief, and I fell asleep. A good hour later, the phone finally woke me up. I had fallen solidly to sleep. When I got up, my Arctic fleece sheet underneath the heating pad, had melted, and the mattress pad beneath burnt. The pattern of the wires had burnt my back in that same pattern. I didn’t even feel it happen.
If it weren’t for the friend who persistently called until I answered the phone, (and I don’t know what possessed her to do that, since she never did it before,) it could’ve gone sideways pretty badly. So that’s something to think about with those heating pads. Water bottle, warm stone, or reusable warm electronic or the type with a little thin coin inside to activate them might be a good way to go.
In terms of maintaining the layers of shelter, particularly with regard to clothing, tentage, or blankets/sleeping bags, I keep a Sucrets box or two in each of my backpacks, travel bags, and purses.
The one thing that goes in my main bag, Is a Sucrets/Altoids tin Containing anything that the lack of has gotten me into trouble. Those contents are not generally expensive, but they have saved me again and again, and all the kids in the family have pretty much benefitted from it at some point when we’ve been in a pinch. In fact, a few years ago, they all asked me for one for Christmas. So they have one.
In mine, traditionally I keep a Swiss army knife, the smaller one. There are Band-Aids, and a few folded bills of money in small denominations. There is a tiny eyeglass screwdriver with two different tips, an assortment of tiny screws, and tiny rubber washers, and rubber/plastic nosepiece supports some of which came off of water balloons that the kids had, once the balloons were burst; these allow for adjustment of glasses, and the tiny rubber bands allow me to tighten up the hinges on glasses after people lose weight. I have done quick repairs on other peoples’ glasses as well as my own in a pinch, and they’re always very grateful.
There are a few first aid supplies including bandages and a few segments of plastic drinking straws (which has one end sealed using a lighter and a pair of pliers, that I filled with antibiotic ointment or other first aid helps, including Q-tips and cotton balls, and which were clean with a little bit of rubbing alcohol and sealed up securely.), steristrips, and CA adhesive.
There are needles for sewing fine leather, heavy leather, and needles that are sharp- and ball-ended for different fabrics. There’s sinew, and thread of different weights so that quick repairs can be made on the go before they get any worse. There is a tiny pair of nail clippers, and a tiny vial of oil.
There are a few hair pins, safety pins, a fine file, tweezers that are actually useable and that I have already tried and found to be great (the really pointy ones are not really as useful as I thought they would be), and some replacement buttons for jeans. It’s easy to put one a little closer to the end to give a person a little more space, and to use a rubber band to loop between the buttonhole and the button, for the times when a girl is bloated but needs to wear the pants/skirt she has. For times when a person has lost weight and has to continue to wear the same pants, and may not have the sewing skills to take them in, one of those snap-on buttons can be put a little further in the waist band as well, to take up some of that extra size in the waistband. Half a dozen of them cost about a dollar.
A spare house key fits in there, along with a list of contact information which is good to have because a lot of us just rely on our smart phones now, and don’t remember the phone numbers...
Mine also has a little piece of mesh to repair a tent screen, and duct tape, horseshoe nails, some wire, shrink tubing, and of course, one of those ultra thin feminine protection pads.
Some of the kids have mini flat wrenches for bicycle repairs in theirs, a few coins…
My grandmother kept one in her vehicle all the time, with trouting flies and lures in it, although I didn’t realize it until after she had passed.
So, I guess the bottom line is this: one of those inexpensive tins is only about the size of a deck of cards, but especially with a few tiny plastic bags from the craft store, they can keep all repair and emergency essentials organized right on hand to get a person out of a terrible bind, and are completely customizable. I think the most expensive thing in mine is Swiss Army knife, and it pays for itself time and time again.
I usually put a few elastics around mine, and of light I’ve discovered that the earbud pouches that I can get at the dollar store or just the right size to fit my tins, so each one gets zipped securely into attend before getting tossed into a bag.
Another excellent, but moisture-proof option for emergency supplies is one of those little pill cases that goes on the keychain; if you’re lucky you can find it in steel.
I hope this helps someone to have the stuff on hand to get more time out of their gear, and to be on themselves out of a bind. Mine has saved eyewear, fixed ripped leather boots, and so much more, saving hundreds of dollars. And the truth of the matter is, even if I wanted to spend all that money, in some of the situation where the repairs needed to be made, there was no place around in which to spend the money. The items could not be replaced, so making a repair was absolutely essential.
Great ideal! Thx. You!
Awesome share, thank you Daphne. That’s horrible about the heating pad. I NEVER put mine on high, it gets too hot, so I’ve never had an issue. I’ve had that pad for a very long time. It’s a great reminder to be extremely careful with something that has a heating element.
You're amazing. Thank you
@@PracticalPreparedness : That’s a good point. It’s been enough time that has elapsed since that happened, that I don’t remember the setting on which I had it.
All I’m certain about is that I was comfortable enough on it when I put my back on it that I fell asleep. It’s certain that I would’ve turned back the heat setting if I had been burned by it when I first used it.
That I could be burned like that, without even knowing it, and feeling no pain although I was not under the influence of any substance, was disconcerting in the extreme.
The whole thought that it could’ve happened before I fell asleep it’s really disconcerting, and I’ll always be grateful to that friend for her uncharacteristic persistence on that day; she never once was persistent like that before that day and never once since that time. If she had not been persistent on that day, I think there’s a chance that I may not have lived or been left so debilitated that there would have been no quality of life left for me.
Given that there are other people that live in very close proximity to my residence, it could’ve been an outright catastrophe all around.
From that, I would suggest that a hot water bottle is much safer option, or perhaps one of those salt-based reusable heating packs with the little coin-type crystalizer in it would be the way to go.
Another option, cook with charcoal outside. Put some stones in with the charcoal fire. Then, you can bring back hot food and hot stones, for warmth to your house.
Nice thinking, thanks for sharing the thought!
I live Off Grid in a 24 ft camper ,I installed a small antique washroom stove . I learned this installation process from Mother Earth News decade's ago to make any wood stove, in any size structure more efficient and safer .
Cut a hole in the back and upper part of the ash pan , 1 inch hole for mine . ( a drill wood cutter like for door knobs , they come in many sizes)
Cut same size hole through exterior wall . Run metal pipe through exterior wall, add a shut off valve and then add pipe that sticks an inch inside ash pan of stove. Shut off valve is used to adjust air flow from outside. Fire gets oxygen from outside to burn , it stops drafts in home and burns and heats much more efficiently.
P.S. my wood stove uses 9 inch logs and I only burn 2 sticks at a time .
✌️💖☺️
Why the heck is this not being shared elsewhere? I need to look into this, seems too simple to be true, but it makes complete sense! Thank you Maddcow!!!
Also shut off your water at the source where it comes in and open your taps to drain your tank. That will stop the lines from freezing and busting. Also the same for your toliet. Both very expensive to fix and replace, causes a lot of damage when it warms up. So you need another source of water where you are sleeping so it does not freeze and makeshift toliet you can seal in another room. Gas lines can freeze so should be insulated by wrapping. I grew up in a house where my mom sealed off my bedroom from heating during the winter. You will have hoar frost covering inside windows and down the walls. even across the floor You may want to clean up your winter boots so you can wear them inside. Not the high healed ones as you will probably slip and fall. Just good rubber soled flat boots Put a few plants in your warmed room as they produce O2 and take in CO2 alternately.
Great advice, thanks Janice
Snake plants (aka sword/mother-in-law's-tongue) produce so much oxygen that experts have estimated just 10 full size ones would be enough to keep you alive in a sealed coffin. Of course you'd go mad real quick, but you wouldn't suffocate.
@@PracticalPreparedness .
To prevent toilet from freezing: drain/siphon as much fresh water as possible from the tank; pour 1 & 1/2 cup of winter temp windshield washer fluid in tank and bowl.
I grew up in the mid 70s to mid 80s, and my grandmother had a couple of bed warmers, one was made out of cast iron and another that was made out of brass and porcelain. you would put coals or hot rocks or bricks from the fireplace in it and the place it in the bed for about 15 minutes before going to bed. some of my best memories were sleeping at her place during the winter and having a warm cozy bed that had been heated with one to sleep in.
Great idea, I can't imagine how much better that would have been compared to the how water "bag" that my mom would put in my bed. Awesome feeling crawling in regardless though
Bless the LORD, 🌸🌼🌺🌈🌺🌸🌼🌷🔥💜 for precious memories , stay safe and warm this winter.
@@suzannenapolitano5480 Thank you Suzanne, I grew up in very rural area, my parents split when i was 7, so i spent a lot of time with my grandparents, both of which grew up in the depression. so, i learn a lot about being self-reliant from them, being a rural area, the power grid was always going down in the dead of winter, so the only real reliable heat source was wood. I am lucky that i own a house that has a wood fireplace, my new green deal, hippy neighbors are going to lose their minds this winter when I use it to stay warm when it's cold out or the power is out. also, you can cook in a wood fireplace if you need to, I use pine to start the fire and oak or aspen or other hard woods to keep it burning all night. hot dogs, tin fil pack diners, Dutch oven stews can all be cooked in a wood fireplace if you are out of power or gas. in fact, you can cook almost anything in a Dutch oven, next to a fireplace. you just have to rotate it more frequently and use less coals, since there is not wind or area for the heat to escape, so it run hotter than it would outside.
Outdoor sidewalk guide solar lights can be charged in the day for light. You can put them in a flower vase. Take one or 2 when you need to go to the bathroom. Also, you can sleep in the day when the sun warms the house and be active at night.
Buy a few dollar store thermometers and find out which is the warmest room/area of your house under normal conditions. In an emergency that will not change. For layers, my mom used to tell how her grandparents would wrap their legs with newspaper to insulate them against the cold.
Get a double skin cotton ridge tent for the yard/garden if you run out of fuel (that will keep you warmer than the house as it will use body heat). Get a good hollowfibre sleeping bag which will wash. Get outdoor clothes. Get a woodstove or kerosine or LPG heater. Get a self inflating matress to keep you off the ground. Seal up doors between the rooms with tap so as to use as draught excluders. Get a multifuel stove for cooking and heating water to keep you warm.
Great idea!
I live in a warm climate area, California , so this is so 🌞 sunny and warm .
You can cover your wool blanket with a flannel duvet. Keeps it softer and cleaner because you can wash the duvet more frequently......
Very good idea! Thanks Amanda!
Not related to this video, but for cooking, a fondue set is safe. You can get either the type with an alcohol burner or that works with a candle.
Love it, great tip Annie!
I found a fondue set in my attic a unused wedding present I had forgotten about for 18 years 🫣 it’s perfect for heating tinned foods and boiling water and things so will be fab if there are blackouts
@@Houseatnumber9 I cooked a cup of rice in mine and it worked well. Stir fry, not so much... it really needs water, I think.
@@Houseatnumber9 of course, the one I have uses an alcohol burner. If you only have a candle, it doesn't really cook, it warms liquid, but is still good in a pinch.
Thank you so much for this video, such a comprehensive list you have compiled and I’m so grateful. Very reassuring to see there are so many options even if we face the worst case scenario here in Europe this winter. Keep up the amazing work.
Thank you. Really hope folks find it useful
@@PracticalPreparedness I’m sure we will!
Hoping for the best for all of you.
Gas water heater is a second furnace, it got us through 5 days of Christmas to New Years of a broken furnace and power outage. Just fill the tub, laundry tube and sinks every few hours. Kept our house in the 50° range during sub zero weather. Replaced the old one recently with another tank gas heater instead of a tankless one for just this potenciality. The heater itself radiates heat as do the hot water pipes throughout the house.Note also that it's vented so no co or co2 buildup. No electricity needed either as in a tankless.
You were discussing the heating pads, those too can overheat and cause a fire if you lay on them. What I did one winter was to sew pouches on the outside of a sleeping bag and placed the heating pads in them. One for the feet area, one for the waist and one for the chest, the heat radiated through the bag and kept these areas warm. Another thought would be an electric blanket. Our heater went out during a really bad cold front, I pitched an "A" frame type shelter with a king sized electric blanket, used a tarp folded with a quilt between and quilts on top to lay on. Tossed in 2 sleeping bags, one for me one for kitty, and it kept us warm enough to get a comfortable sleep. For the windows, I bought some pool noodles and 1x1 dowels, cut them to fit the windows and wrapped them in Saran Wrap. The noodles help seal around the frame and kept a majority of the drafts out, the wrap did help holding in the heat. I have 2 solar batteries so that helped a lot.
Thanks for reminding M, I never put my pad over medium, but even then, electric components can always fail too.
@@PracticalPreparedness Ahh, the joys of modern inventions like the Jackery! lol Keeping the feet warm is a big plus. Now they have those battery powered hunting socks that keep ones feet warm. Especially for me now, with diabetes, I have to really watch my feet, I also have a pair of fur lined slippers with rubber soles that keep my feet warm.
A couple of years ago I got a little tea candle lantern, you unscrew the bottom and fit the candle in and then screw the bottom back in, it keeps the flame safe and also makes the candle last for much longer than candles out in the open as all the wax is used, also it's made of metal so it heats the whole lantern up, it was only £3 from Dunelm so I highly recommend it.
Checking this out now! Thank you!
@@PracticalPreparedness I checked their website yesterday and couldn't find it. Best to look for any Metal Lantern for tea candles. There's some inexpensive ones out there and some groovy looking modestly priced ones. But they are handy.
We have a smokeless fireplace. As long as natural gas is flowing it will work. You MUST keep the stones perfectly aligned or it doesn't work properly so it can be risky. Important to have a good co2 detector.
Wichita Kansas had an ice storm one winter that took out the electricity for a week during a pretty cold winter. I can tell you that you'll want to make sure your emergency candles are unscented because I only had all my scented decorative candles to burn and that smell was overwhelming. They did help to keep the temperatures for that week in the 50's inside the house. We had a propane hot water heater so I was able to fill all my pots with hot water and scatter them around the house and fill the hot water bottle to take to bed. After about 5 days the basement started to cool down and that made the rest of the house colder. Thank God the lights finally came back on
Good thinking on the hot water. Most likely wouldn't. Also OH NO on the scented candles! Great reminder for folks
Thanks for these tips. It might be helpful to have someone explain how to insulate the water pipes coming into and within the home. Exploding frozen pipes were a big problem in Texas.
Great point! You Jackie will get this video. Thanks for the idea!
Dolla Tree Foam pool noodles, 1.25 each😎😉💯
Years ago we used a heat tape and wrapped around the pipes....you need to plug them in...you'll need a power source.....also...do some research...cheap ones could be a fire hazard and also should not be used with PEX? piping.....
While this is not an immediate emergency solution for most people, it pays to bury the inlet pipes to the proper degree according to your climate. When I bought a nearly ruined (but also almost free) 130-yr-old house with good bones and started to restore it, burying those pipes was one of the first things I did. They should've been 4' down and were barely covered! That was begging trouble! Also had all the interior pipes replaced with pex - it will freeze but not burst. And mine don't get a chance to freeze. A rotating cast of characters had come and gone in this place for decades with nobody spending $ on necessities, just hideously modern and cheap decoration. I put on a heavy duty metal roof that might last a few hundred years, all new windows (21), insulation, new wiring, etc. In fact I spent over twice the auction price on immediate practical upgrades, but the end result is that now I can keep the place warm easily on less than half what previous occupants spent for the privilege of still freezing their tails off. People spending fortunes on new McMansions in gated communities don't have houses half as good as mine imo. A lot of those Texans froze to death in the lap of luxury.
DOUBLE YOUR PIPES WITH PVC AND INSULATION
A huge one not mentioned here. My pickup is diesel. A diesel will idle for a long time with minimal fuel consumption. I keep the tank full and have an extra30 gallons of fuel for it. I installed a power inverter in it to be able to use power tools around the ranch away from the shop. It's only2000 watts, but the inverters up to 5000 watts are reasonably inexpensive. I also installed a 3rd battery in my truck that's A deep problem cycle battery. It will provide lighting and some heat from the lights all night without the engine running. Starting the truck for 20 - 30 minutes recharges in the batteries. On very cold nights, I could leave it idle all night too to run a 1500 watt space heater with minimal fuel consumption. My truck is a mobile, inexpensive generator. Gasoline engines are not nearly as efficient, but would also work. A power inverter, in my opinion, is a must. Even without grid down, they have many uses..like running my air compressor for emergency flat tires, etc.
Thanks for adding all these Skip. I’ve been thinking about a diesel myself. Making the jump to a truck is no biggy at all (country boy), but never had a diesel.
Thanks for this
We think alike, I have a 2000 watt inverter for my car and got through a 5 day power outage a few years ago. I was able to keep 2 fridges, a chest freezer and my sump pump going by rotating them each through a few times a day. I didnt have to run it constantly but I kept the car running will in use and for a little while after each use and only used a half a tank of gas. Un like old carburetored cars, modern computer controlled, fuel injected cars dont have any trouble idling for long periods. I prefer this system to a gas generator as the car is way quieter and doesn't draw so much attention even though it does use more gas to get the job done. Since then I have upgraded to a pure sine wave inverter which is better for our modern computer controlled appliances. I am Saving for one of the bigger solar generator systems but it's not going to happen for this season.
@@richardelliott9511 I bet most people don't know about inverters. A great choice for the money. Also they do not have to be maintained and don't take up much space. A few years ago we lost our power due to tornadoes. We had a generator but a lot of people didn't and their basements flooded. An inverter and knowing how to use it may have saved the day.
I've heard of people using those catcan isopropyl alcohol stoves on a small, upside down terracotta ceramic pot (so like a hot air balloon only made of ceramic instead of canvas). The pot can withstand the flame, but it'll help give the heat generated by them flame more surface area to disperse around the room
That is less of a healthtrap then thealights.
Hoping this video also helps the dog rescue orgs :)
Thank you again Justin! We're now preparing a microclimate in our home, and I would not have been aware of this practice if not for your videos.
(Also Ireland always seemed like the land of the hot water bottle to me, so this too is now especially good.)
Happy to help! Thanks for the support
I bought hot water bottles that actually came with sweater that fit over them. I bought smooth large 3” rocks in size to put in a pan and put in my gas oven for a short time to heat for the micro climate like you said, a small tent. I also bought down comforters and 0 degree sleeping bags.
I need a couple of those 0 degree bags!
Tips:
1. Space lit 'tea light candles' apart (i.e., not next to or touching each other) to avoid them catching on fire.
2. Alcohol stoves are banned in some areas (for ex. California).
3. Stock up on 'stick matches' and (refillable) butane lighters, because you might them to start a fire easily.
(Without them is like stocking up on canned foods, but not having a 'can opener'.)
I have most of my stuff in my 6x6 pantry. I can sleep my 3 people family in there. Use a solar generator and heating pad for warmth and a small crockpot to cook canned goods. The only thing I need to leave the room for is to use the bathroom
Love it. Nice setup, not many cover the crock pot for cooking, but so great with the low wattage
@@PracticalPreparedness plus it will heat the small room some. I hope I don't have to live in my pantry lol
Aldi and Lidl also sell camping/hiking supplies, jumpers, etc. on the cheap. I've seen cheap tents in there - probably not great on a mountain but perfect for an indoor microclimate.
Cheap tent would work!
Yes it works well,buy a freestanding tent to fit on your bed. Comfort is a must on trying times.take care.
Bubble wrap on your daylight sunshine window is great . Adding insulation,sunlight inside and a some what disruptive view. Use in my RV. Emergency blanket or large aluminum sun shade for cars is great at blocking door heat loss and as a room divider to reduce room footage/ area and to increase heat and live by heat source . I used fishing line with tacks and clothes pins/ metal paper claps to hang a wall of emergency blanket. Worked great.2 weeks of power outage at 5 to 19 degree. 4 days help of a borrowed generator.
I like the blanket wall idea
Pillows, cushions, small beanbags can be really helpful to block unwanted gaps. ..👍🌱🧡
Beanbags would be a great insulator from the ground
@@PracticalPreparedness 👍🧡🌱
I would like to Thank you for your video and everyone else on here that made comments I have snapped a picture of many many different comments I am going to make copies of all your ideas , and make a home made book for my daughter-in-law & son and another one for my other son give it to them for Christmas thank you again and thank all of you for your comments I have learned a lot and appreciate it very much as I have been a single mother for a long time and boys don’t always want to listen.
God Bless You All!!!!😊🙏
Comments are sometimes the best part!
I bought a bunch of those thermal foil blankets. I cut up one into 1ft squares an put 1 square on each foot, tie up around my ankles then put shoes on. Works very well keeping my feet warm. An have one under my blanket to help keep me warm also works well.
Fleece blanket - even the cheap ones - are very warm. Especially if you are indoors. I camp out in the cold weather with 1 fleece in my 40° bag.
Then there's the Life Tent. Reflective mylar tent that is actually very warm. Camped out in 30° weather in a lean to, no fire necessary. Life tent comes with a long cord to make a basic A-frame tent with one open side. Was so warm I used my fleece blanket as a pillow.
Corrugated cardboard is an excellent insulator. I bring 2 large boxes and a moving blanket for my dog Jake when we camp. Form 1 box, second folds for ground insulation, blanket over it all. Jake stays toasty. You can cover drafty windows in an emergency situation to reduce heat loss, or put them on an uncarpeted floor under your bedding to stay warmer.
Awesome share and thanks for the ideas! I need to do more outdoor vids, this reminded me of the same