Thoughts on the winters heating issues

So, it seems like not much has changed lately….inflation? Check. Russia doing Russia things because theyre Russia? Check. Dementia-addled President? Check. Gas still being insane? Check.

This is not the New Normal I was promised.

But…it is what it is, as the kids say. Now that July is here it is time to start thinking about fall and winter. If inflation, ‘supply chain issues’, and fuel prices don’t stop what they are currently doing, I can see this being an uncomfortably cold winter for many folks. Might be a lot of people turning the thermostats down a bit lower than they might do otherwise.

I always keep a cold house in the winter, so it’s no big deal to me. I usually keep the thermostat around 63-65 in the winter. But if you’re one of those people that needs 72 degrees all the time….well… this winter might be the one where youre eyes jump out of your skull likein a Tom-n-Jerry cartoon when you see your heating bill.

Years ago I signed up for ‘budget billing’ with my utility company. Basically, they take the entire previous years worth of utility charges, add them up, divide by twelve, and the result is what they bill you for each month regardless of your usage. At the end of the year you either owe them or you have a credit built up with them. Advantage? Predictable payments every month. In the summer, my heating bill is only a few bucks but in the winter it can be around $150+ per month. (Natural gas, in case youre curious.) But by the time the cold weather rolls around I’ve usually built up enough padding over the summer that the higher winter bills are mitigated by the credits from ‘overpaying’ over the summer. From a monthly budget standpoint, this is the way.

Given the proven adage of there beingno problem that can’t be made worse by having .gov get involved, I can see the Biden people ‘doing something’ to ‘keep Americans warm’ this winter. Tax credits? Price controls? Moratoriums on service disconnections for unpaid bills? Dare I say it….nationalization? Who knows? But what I do know is that now is the time to be making plans for bizarre inflation-adjusted, scarcity-affected heating costs this winter….not five minute after the mercury dips into freezing.

Get the window insulation, weather stripping, electric space  heaters, propane/kero heaters now because a) theyre only going to be more expensive in the fall and b) they won’t be available in the fall. Or, easier and less work, start socking away money now to be ready to pay for the increased heating costs that are virtually guaranteed to be coming this winter.

 

17 thoughts on “Thoughts on the winters heating issues

  1. Things that can help keep warm on a budget (beyond the add layers idea). You can be comfortable with the thermostat much lower with a little bit of planning ahead and a few helpful gadgets.
    Electric blanket: lower electrical consumption than a space heater because it heats you/your bed, instead of the whole room.
    Battery powered heated clothing (gloves, jacket, sweater, socks etc): same as above, except mobile and can charge a phone on the go if you want to.
    Insulated floor mat or heated floor mat: lots of heat lost if your floor is concrete or not well insulated, low electrical cost to heat your feat and you feel a lot warmer. Insulated mat can work well too for less monies and greater durability

    • yep. about 15 years ago I picked up a cheapo Vogelzang boxwood stove from Ace Hardware and have used it every winter since. Mostly burn old oak pallets I find for free and love it, the part where I don’t pay the gas company as much.

    • Now that the epa is basically kaput outdoor wood fired boilers should be the new thing. Just burn about anything in there…

    • Yep, and it heats you five times depending on how many times you touch it 🙂

      Once when you fell the tree, once when you buck it into rounds, once when you split it, once when you stack it, and finally another time when you burn it. Pretty go return on your investment in my book. Been heating exclusively with it for over 30 years now. My power bills are always very reasonable.

      I expect at some point the powers that should not be trying to ban wood burning stoves.

  2. I know missoula has an ordnance against wood stoves but I’m thinking if I were you I’d have one tucked away along with the needed pipe. If things get bad bad you can still stay warm and not many code enforcement officers will be out.

    When I built 5 years ago I was told no woodstove. Its been my primary heat for 5 years. My greenhouse even has one.

    I’m looking into eden pure heaters. They don’t use much power and I’m pretty sure I could heat my utility shed on summer days off excess solar power. I normally only keep that shed above freezing using a propane mr heater. My batteries are typically fully charged by 1-2pm so from then till 4ish the charge controllers basically shut down. I’ll have my ranch hand monitor it and turn the heat up to 70-80 using the electric heater in the 10′-14′ shed then in theory should be able to coast thru the night. We’ll see. On a normal winter I use 3-5 100pound tanks.

    • Missoula bans wood stoves? Jebus. How the eff do they expect people to keep warm in Montana?

  3. I use wood only. Small house. Have 7 face cord left from last year. I will bring in 3 truck loads. At 2.5 face per truck load. So roughly I’ll have 15 more or less. From the signs I’m seeing we may well.have a mild winter again in the great Lakes. The forecast from the weather guesses and the almanac was way the he’ll off. I did buy a new kerosine heater. Have to get a new wick and lay in about 40 gallons of fuel for that. Should be good.

  4. Yep, wood. Warms you 3 times; once when cutting it, once when splitting it, and once when burning it. I realize that not everyone is able to make use of that resource, but if you can, now is the time to gather. Firewood’s still free around here; lots of folks doing fire mitigation, and I stay a year ahead, in case I get injured or something else comes up. Sure beats paying the increased costs of gas or electricity.

    • Or the city version, once when you steal the furniture, once when you break it into pieces and again when you burn it (and maybe your apartment too).

  5. I was wondering if the power companies will declare the fuel prices a reason for contract breaking as re: budget billing.

  6. i had three large hazardous oak trees cut down and spent the last hot week cutting, splitting, and stacking. winter warmth, check. muscles, check. cardio, check. wood warms three times. good thing i cut those trees too. one was completely dead inside and just waiting for a windstorm, and we got one hell of a wind storm a week after i cut it. thank you Lord.

  7. Finally got the kero heater,have only about 20gal stored,need much more. Anyone know how high steel kero cans can stack(limited floor space),have wood between layers(3-5?)

  8. My electric company has told us the bill will be going up. It was $.04853 a kilowatt hour it is now $.12 a kilowatt hour. That’s a 274.??% increase.

  9. I bought a brand-new home last year and the insulation is shockingly better than anything else I have ever experienced. That goes a long way in controlling your heating and cooling bills for sure. With two small kids in the house I’ll eat the extra cost to make sure everyone is comfortable, nothing crazy, usually 68 or 69 in the winter and 73 or 74 in the summer.

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