Inexpensive tips for keeping your home warm – from people in some of the coldest towns on Earth
Money Team, by Brad Young
Surviving temperatures of -52C by heating a chainsaw over an open fire is an unfamiliar situation for many Brits.
But Arctic Ranger Josh Spice was desperately trying to warm up a frozen saw blade in front of his barrel stove to cut down enough trees to survive the night in northern Alaska. I was there.
Spice, who patrols the gates of Arctic National Park, where it snows at least eight months of the year and where daylight hours are reduced to six hours a day in the winter, explains what to buy to beat the cold. , gave us some unique tips.
With energy prices soaring and the UK’s winter unstoppable, we spoke to him and Harley Drova, the mayor of International Falls, Minnesota, a town legally trademarked as “America’s Icebox,” to find out how We talked about how to keep warm. cheap…
Makeshift “Arctic Entry”
Spice, who lived in Fairbanks, Alaska, for 16 years, emphasizes the importance of slowing heat loss through the doorways of your home.
At the end of January, temperatures in the suburbs dropped to -41 degrees Celsius, meaning the difference in air inside and outside Mr. Spice’s cabin was 63 degrees Celsius.
“You open the door and…oh my god, the flow of cold air is unbelievable. It’s brutal,” he says.
One solution is to have a dedicated enclosed porch known as an arctic entrance, but a budget alternative is to drape a wool blanket over the doorway to create additional cushioning when the door is opened and closed. It is said that there is.
wrap film window
He says using a hair dryer to apply cling film to the edges of windows can help prevent drafts.
When airtight, the film effectively extends the window pane across the gap.
“Even the smallest air leak that you can’t see in spring, summer, or fall can feel like cold air being blown through a straw in the frigid winter,” he says.
This is very important in Fairbanks because when the cold air comes into contact with the warm air inside, condensation forms on the glass, causing it to freeze.
Wood-burning stove
“Using a wood stove is really important because basically any other form of heat provides warmth, but it also has moisture,” Spice says.
Heat with low humidity dries moisture built up on the skin more effectively, making it harder for heat to escape from the body.
This is especially useful if you have just returned from the cold and are sweating under layers of clothing, or in dry, cold weather, where moisture can be drawn through your skin and into your clothing.
In the extreme temperatures that patrol the arctic gates, that moisture turns to frost, Spice said, “creating ice plates on my face and head.” [the point] Almost invisible.
“It wasn’t just frost, there was actually a thick sheet of ice everywhere but the eyeball.”
International Falls Mayor Drova echoed the ranger’s comments, saying, “We definitely celebrate the cold and we understand the cold, but when it gets really cold, we try to get close to the fireplace.”
buy bigger boots
“For people who are not used to sub-zero temperatures, I highly recommend good boots,” says Drova, whose town recorded a low of -48 degrees Celsius.
International Falls’ lake freezes enough for cars to drive on it every winter, and the cold weather is so integral to the town’s identity that in 2008 the city of Fraser, Colorado, adopted the title “National Icebox.” filed a lawsuit.
Spice agrees that boots are important and advises people to buy larger ones to fit insoles and larger socks without compressing the feet or interfering with the warming effect of normal blood flow. is advising.
And don’t stop at just boots, says Spice:
- Wear liner gloves for dexterous work that requires removing warm mitts.
- In addition to just layering your clothes, make sure to layer clothing that helps trap heat, such as long woolen underwear.
cat test
Cats don’t tolerate anything other than comfort, and are “like canaries in the coal mine” when it comes to determining the cause of a cold, Spice said.
The floor is the most difficult place to heat up, no matter how well insulated your home is.
“If you own a cat like I do, you’ll know that cats definitely don’t like being on hard, uncovered floors during the winter.
“Just placing a blanket or rug on the floor can do wonders. A rug can visibly warm the entire room.”
