We're in for a COLD winter in this house!

Oh my. It's August and unseasonably chilly. I can deal with that.

What I can't deal with is the drafts coming in through our windows already! We have all the windows in the house closed and you can still see the sheer curtains moving a bit. I'm freezing right now.

We bought the house knowing that the windows were original to 1930 - they are cast-iron swing-outs. The only "newer" windows in the house are the ones in the dining room and kitchen - about 10 years old. We absolutely LOVE the way the windows look and can't imagine replacing them - it would take away from the "charm" of the house.

Aside from replacing the windows, what can we do once it starts to get really cold? I'm also afraid of heating this place!

Re: We're in for a COLD winter in this house!

I would bet that there is a specialist out there who can help you out with the windows, do a refurb or repair job on them. Ask your neighbours (who have the same windows as you) or look in the phone book, call around.

I wouldn't want to change them either!!!

Re: We're in for a COLD winter in this house!

we have two twenty year old aluminum sliding doors in our great room that faces North & looks out over the lake which has a constant freezing wind blowing across it from Dec through march. We don't go in & out through these doors in the winter so here's what we do. First I roll up old towels & lay them in the bottom track because that seems to be a very drafty area & then we put use clear shrink wrap plastic on the inside of the doors, we are pretty god at getting all the wrinkles out now & you can see through it. Last year we finally invested in thermal drapes to go on the doors that made a world of difference.
HTH

Re: We're in for a COLD winter in this house!

I would get that plastic shrink wrap stuff for the windows. It really helps.

Re: We're in for a COLD winter in this house!

Re: We're in for a COLD winter in this house!

I made draft blockers for our door and for my grandfather. You could shut the doors to rooms you won't use and put the draft blockers against them.

Re: We're in for a COLD winter in this house!

Search for info on how to winterize your home. My mother did this with weathering strips around her fron tdoor and a few windows.

Re: We're in for a COLD winter in this house!

All great ideas!

Thank you!

I guess we'll really have to start looking to "winterize" the windows come November. I like the shrink-wrap idea, but every now and then, I like to open the windows to let some fresh air in. I guess we could keep the doors to the rooms closed and just really focus on keeping the living room and our bedroom warm... I'll have to look into the thermal panels also.

So much to do!

I'm going back to being a renter! Too much to think about and pay for with being a homeowner!

Re: We're in for a COLD winter in this house!

I would definitely by lined drapes for all your windows for the winter. We have old windows in our apartment and we were cold last year. So we made sure all the windows were pushed up to the top of the window frame & down and then locked all of them. It helped, but having lined drapes would have helped more, but we didn't want to spend the money being in an apartment for just one winter.

GL!