Sleep Warm Without Central Heating
Keeping warm without central heating is easy until the thermostat drops below 15°C, which is when you feel the chill in your bones.
Sadly, many of us are cutting down on our use of central heating due to rocketing energy prices. The government's £2,500 price cap is a generous intervention, but it's still very high compared to the October 2019 price cap of £1,179.
The good news is you can sleep warm without turning on your central heating – although you will need to buy a few things for the best results.
Here are five ways to sleep warm without central heating:
Heat your bedroom with a plug-in PTC heater (the best way to heat small bedrooms!)
With 500 watts of heating power from a 3-pin socket, PTC (positive temperature coefficient) heaters are fantastic for small bedrooms.
A PTC is a small, 3-pin heating device that takes up no more space than a phone charging power brick. You can set timers, and the technology is 100% safe, converting electricity into heat with an automated power supply.
Ten watts of power can heat one square foot, so 500 watts will heat 50 square feet – most double bedrooms are 120 square feet, so you only need two PTC heaters to give your room a healthy temperature boost at a minimal cost.
Heat your bedroom with an electric radiator (the best way to heat large bedrooms!)
While PTC heaters are best for small spaces and gradual heating, electric radiators are better for heating large bedrooms efficiently.
A 2.5kW electric radiator will quickly heat a 200-square-foot bedroom, which is more than enough to banish central heating.
The running cost for an electric radiator is around 68p for four hours, so most people spend less than £21 to keep their bedroom warm every month.
Heat your bed with an electric mattress topper/blanket (the best way to get that warm, cosy feeling when you jump into bed)
Nothing beats a heated mattress topper or blanket on the coldest nights if you want that warm fuzzy feeling when you get into bed.
We love heated mattress toppers because they provide direct heat, warming up the mattress and duvet. Heated blankets are ideal if you want something warm to take with you on trips to the kitchen for midnight snacks.
Electric mattress toppers and blankets cost around 5p per hour to run, so you will hardly notice an increase in your electricity bill.
Buy a proper winter duvet (the best pound-for-pound investment to sleep warm)
Buying a winter duvet is the best investment you can make to stay warm without using any appliance or device to heat your bedroom.
Winter duvets have a tog rating between 13.5 and 15 togs – the higher the tog, the better the heat retention and suitability for cold temperatures.
Most people have an all-season duvet rated between 10.5 and 12 togs, but this isn't enough when temperatures drop below 15°C.
Cut out draughts to trap warmth and eliminate wind chill (the best way to ensure your heating efforts aren't in vain)
Now that you're sleeping warm, we can trap whatever warmth is in your bedroom and ensure draughts don't send a shiver down your spine.
If exposed, cutting out draughts is as easy as sealing windows, doors, and floorboards. Foam insulation strips that fill gaps and seal hinges and joints will significantly reduce how much cold air enters your bedroom.
To find draughts, close windows and doors and run a wet hand/finger around the frames, joints, and gaps – you will feel any draughts. The same goes for floorboards, which you can seal by wedging foam between the boards.
If your windows do not close tight, insulation strips can only do so much to plug gaps because the hinges probably need servicing.
Thermal curtains and made-to-measure blackout blinds that span your window's full width can also cut down draughts.