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I went online and discovered a person could make a small "space heater" using a metal bread loaf pan, four little "tea light" candles and a terra cotta (clay) flower pot. I tried it and it actually works ... but just a little. You can go to YouTube and see video domonstrations on how to build one of these.
Keep in mind that the "tea light and candlepot trick" doesn't actually make any more heat that the tea lights alone produce, it just helps you feel more of the heat locally instead of at the ceiling.
As mentioned, tea lights are not free, using tea lights for heat costs about 2x the price of running a small electric space heater, and is much more dangerous than an electric space heater.
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Originally Posted by Rivertowntalk
I use a direct vented Empire wall heater in one part of the house. This heater runs off of propane and requires next to no maintenance. The vent runs straight through the wall. It is about 18 inches wide and maybe 24 inches tall. It heats a very large room and it does not require electricity. It goes easy on propane. It has been great to have when the power is out for several days and it essentially makes no noise. Have had it about 10 years. I ordered it on line and I think it was called a "fish house heater."
Interesting, first I've seen that particular product. Looks like "fish house heaters" use outside air for combustion and exhaust, so are much less likely to kill the user. Empire is the brand I've seen before, doesn't require electricity but does require a slightly open window for fresh air makeup.
Propane is great because it's cheaper than tea lights and doesn't go bad in storage.
You are right. I was lazy this year and only did a second-rate slipshod job insulating the house. I did seal the worst offending windows with clear plastic though ... but in a house with 39 windows I didn't get around putting weather stripping on all of them. Unfortunately some ... uh ... "careless individuals" don't properly close doors, windows, etc. here.
I also live in an old house with 37 drafty windows. We were thinking of replacing them all...that's right it is expensive. We are now thinking of going this route instead.
I also live in an old house with 37 drafty windows. We were thinking of replacing them all...that's right it is expensive. We are now thinking of going this route instead.
Very interesting. I will be looking into this. My house is about 45 years old. The windows are veeeeery old. Single pane, rattle when you walk and they aren't the normal measurements of windows these days. Thanks for sharing.
Very interesting. I will be looking into this. My house is about 45 years old. The windows are veeeeery old. Single pane, rattle when you walk and they aren't the normal measurements of windows these days. Thanks for sharing.
I have the same problem with my circa 1923 home. It was going to be a major investment to replace all of those windows. Since we were planning to say in our home for the remainder of our lives we were willing to go that route. A friend, another old house owner turned us on to this product.
Our plan is to have all of the window professionally cleaned checking and making any repaired needed then have these installed. All in all the cost of going this route is a third of what we would have spent on all new windows.
you can burn wood in a 55 gallon drum, mounted in an angle iron frame, with a 35 gallon drum of water mounted over the wood burner. get the water boiling, put out the fire. radiant heat from the water will warm the room for many hours. Seal off at least the windows and doors with sheet plastic and blue masking tape. Ideally, seal off the entire room, other than your vents DEFINITELY have a CO senser/alarm with such a setup. You can easily and cheaply warm a small room with electic heater this way. Mylar space blanket material works even better than plastic sheeting, but it tears easily. the "heavy duty" stuff is a bit expensive.
You've got to "burn" something...even if it's just your electric bill. You can go with a baseboard electric heater such as Hydro-Sil, but it's had mixed reviews and does use a lot of electricity.
My best advice is to go with something portable. You can get a Mr. Heater "Big Buddy" heater which runs on propane from 20#, 30 # or 40# tanks. I have heard of people running it off 100# tanks using a regulator to reduce the pressure. This unit can be lifted and taken from room to room, if you use the 1 pound small tanks (it will run on one or two). I know that it will heat a 32' camper during a Maine winter as my brother-in-law used one of ours last winter in Maine.
I just discovered another option, the Coleman Black Cat catalytic heater. With 3,000 BTUs (and a low setting as well), this unit has great reviews and will heat up a 4- or 6-man tent in very cold weather. Some people living in their cars use it to keep the car warm while sleeping at night. While that is not recommended, I assume you just wish to heat up a room or two while awake:
I just purchased 2 of these units and can recommend them, as well as the Big Buddy heaters (which I also have 2 of). When you want to stay warm, don't fool with candles. A small CO detector is all you need. I assume your windows are drafty enough for ventilation. If not, crack one open a tad. Electricity is not getting any cheaper, either.
My house is heated by a furnace in the basement that is fueled by #2 oil. This year I'm spending a fortune because oil prices are high, but mostly because we're having a very cold winter. The heat comes in the form of forced hot air through the ornate metal grilles near the baseboards in each room. Even though the furnace is fueled by oil, it is hooked up to electrical power and if there is an electric outage the furnace won't work ... unless there is a manual way to get it to kick on (something I am not aware of.)
You don't have access too natural gas? If you install natural gas the money you'll save in a few years will pay for the installation. Honestly, you're just throwing money away with oil.
There is always coal too and you should have no problem getting it delivered in bulk at all. there is certainly people delivering coal north much further than you are south. You said furnace so I'm assuming forced hot air? You could hook something like this up and keep your oil furnace as backup. e.g. if you need to go somewhere in the middle of winter you can turn the coal off.
Check out the Hyfire II on this page it can be ducted right into an existing setup. This is fairly large, 180KBTU, it's not made to be put into living space but in the basement:
Only issue you might have is ash disposal and if you are worried about the neighbors don't. At most they might get whiff of sulfur on hot and humid days.
You mentioned power outages, if you don't mind the work which is going to be twice a day of reloading it a hand fired stove is an option too.
What should this type of contraptions be called along with the bucket of ice to cool down a room or magnet to increase MPG. Bro Science. Bro Engineering.
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