How to stay warm while bugging in?

Sharp Eye

Sharp Eye

Joined
Feb 21, 2008
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The situation over in Europe, with thousands of homes without heat due to natural gas shortages, has gotten me to thinking.
I live in a home that is heated with natural gas and has no fireplace.
If we lost our gas, how would I keep even a part of our house warm?
Are there any camp heaters that I should consider?
Is it worth getting a wood stove? What about one of the portable wood stoves that people use in tents?
I haven't come up with a good solution yet.
I am looking to you ingenious and creative people to help me find a way to be prepared.
As always, thanks for sharing your wisdom with me
 
you could get one of those heaters that some hunters use, they are a fixture that attaches to a propane tank and they emit alot of radiant heat.

i can't find any example online right now, but someone that knows what they are properly called should be along shortly...
 
You're in PA, then drive over to Hamburg,PA to Cabela's and buy yourself a 'Big Buddy' propane heater, with the proper 'bulk tank hose'. They can be run off the green, 1lb propane cylinders that you see all over for sale in pairs. Or you can get 20lb tanks, like you'd use for your BBQ, and with the proper hose use the bulk tank for extended needs. There is the 'Mr Buddy', but that is the smaller version without the fan to distribute the hot air. Works great in the house or shop with a cracked window for ventelation. Best way to have 'independant heat' during prolonged emergencies IME.
 
If you still have electricity, you could always use an electric radiator. They get pretty toasty although you may need a few if you want to heat up a large area fast. As long as the area is will insulated, even one can get a fairly large room warm enough.
 
small woodfire in a metal trashcan? Probably what I would do. Or use my hunting heater. I've got one of the elcheapo models that screws onto the canisters. One note though, if you're using a Big Buddy with a bulk tank you need to use a filter as well, we've found this necessary at deer camp in the last few years. Guys suddenly stopped having any trouble with their heaters.
 
this is what pops used to do in the winter, to conserve heat:

- shut all doors to any rooms your not using and block the bottom opening with rolled up towels. Tape the doors with masking tape to prevent drafts. Consider hanging plastic & taping off a hallway and restricting heat to the kitchen and bathroom and one bedroom. Basically create a smaller space to heat. A candle will do fine for warming up a small space.

- in the summer, consider adding more insulation to the house, esp the roof. If you have a basement or crawl space , insulate the cieling (belew the main floor of the house) to prevent cold from seeping upwards....

- staple heavy plastic on the outside of all the windows, and tape heavy plastic on the insides. One can add cardboard on the inside too.

- keep a rolled up towel by the main doors, by the gap under the door, prevents drafts. Tape the mailbox slot on the door with heavy plastic.

- wear thick boots or slippers indoors, with heavy warm socks.
- wear a wool hat and extra sweater or fleece
- eat hi fat content foods, fat is a VERY good longterm energy and heat source in winter. You'' burn it off.
- eat a big oatmeal breaky with eggs/toast/jam etc etc rib sticking and provides energy for the day.

eat a big meal right before bed, it will keep you warm all night, and if its chili, it will keep everyone warm...toot tooot tooooot :)

- pile on the blankets onto the bed, both beneath you and above. Find the wife, GF, Mistress , dog or cat or all 5 (hahaha) and pile into the bed. Toasty warm! :D
 
Zip, I am assuming that I am going to be a week or two without gas, water or electricity.
I have the water taken care of and I have enough flashlights and candles for light.
However, we are going to have a stretch of coolish weather (highs in the lower 20's) in the next few days.
I am looking to be able to keep one room warm while we wait for things to become more normal.

Tracker1 and Siguy,
Thanks for the suggestions. Those heaters might be something that would work.

Does anyone else have any ideas?
 
"Is it worth getting a wood stove?"

Heck yes!!! Installing a wood stove can be a fairly easy and cheap process. And the peace of mind pays for itself. Stack a few cords of wood, and you'll really feel set for anything.

I love my stove, it is all we have to heat our home. And its a real moral booster when we lose power for extended periods of time. We've even cooked on it before. Its always relaxing to stare at it also.
 
As has been said before, even just blocking off bedrooms, and having everyone in the main living area/ kitchen helps a lot. if it drops to near freezing it is a good idea to drain your houses system as much as possible and take measures to keep pipes from freezing.
Always remember to have fresh air coming in, carbon monoxide is not something to mess with and even people that know better get in trouble. remember that CO does not dissipate and your body does not expel it very well, so even running a heater "for just a little while" can be fatal.
 
Sharp Eye said:
Zip, I am assuming that I am going to be a week or two without gas, water or electricity.
I have the water taken care of and I have enough flashlights and candles for light.
However, we are going to have a stretch of coolish weather (highs in the lower 20's) in the next few days.
I am looking to be able to keep one room warm while we wait for things to become more normal.

Tracker1 and Siguy,
Thanks for the suggestions. Those heaters might be something that would work.

Does anyone else have any ideas?
Click to expand...


Good thought heat one room to live in and use any others as necessary. Of course the most interior room that you have would be the best bet. Let the outer rooms of the house act as a buffer between the cold outside and your inner warm room.

The heaters are a good suggestion. Be sure that the one you choose can be used in an enclosed area. Some of them are not a carbon monoxide danger but they can consume oxygen during the combustion of fuel and leave the air with low oxygen levels.
 
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I have been thinking about this as well because I have the same problem.

I would like to put a small wood stove in someday but it is not in the cards for now.

I am afraid that a portable tent type wood stove would be to dangerous due to carbon monoxide.

Kerosene would be an option but I think a propane heater would be cleaner and safer. I think the 'Big Buddy' propane heater that Tracker mentioned would be a good option because it has safety sensors. It says it will heat 400 square feet. Not a lot of room but it is better than nothing. You can find bigger less portable propane heaters. They should heat a bigger area but they use a lot more gas and would be less versatile for other needs. I would make sure that they don't need AC to run and that they have Oxygen sensor.
 
Sharp Eye said:
I am assuming that I am going to be a week or two without gas, water or electricity.
Click to expand...

A few months ago, the remnants of a hurricane knocked out the electricity at the powernoodle compound for a week. We got by just fine with a generator and candles. The generator was chained to a fixed object outside, and we ran a couple of heavy gauge lines into the house to power everything necessary. Had spare capacity to keep the old lady next door going too.

The time to buy a generator - which is spendy - is when you do not need it. When disaster strikes, they disappear fast.

And keep several 5 gallon cans of gas on hand. The generator is pretty useless without them.
 
If you can afford a regular wood or pellet stove, these would be ideal. (Pellets are limited in that they require power to run the hopper, but are nice in that they can burn all night.)

If you can't do that right now, having a hunter's woodstove made for a wall tent would sure beat freexing. Many times, these stoves are rigged so the stovepipe exits the tent at an angle through a sidewall, rather than through the roof. For a home/apartment application, you could fabricate a piece of plywood with a hole in it to fit a window. Building a good fire should cause it to draw properly. Still, it might be best if you let it die out before everyone goes to sleep. HEY! Now I have another reason to buy that stove I wanted!!!

Edited to add: A collapsable woodstove and telescoping stovepipe (and wood!) wouldn't take up much room in your garage, and would provide a lot of heat for your home. You still might have to close off part of the house, but if it gets too warm you can always open part abck up.

-- FLIX
 
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If you can heat water, use hot water bottles. Nalgene bottles can hold boiling hot water without damage. Tuck one or two in the bed at night. Tuck one into your down vest during the day. Put one between your thighs if you're sitting.

Drink hot chocolate.

Physical labor. Chop wood.

My late father-in-law could tolerate great heat or cold. He said that the secret was to just not mind it. It was all mental.
 
I have a Hibachi. It's not a grill corner but a charcoal pot like this.
2008.03.08.R0014844.JPG

As you can see, we can bake some food on it, or boil small amount of water.

Definitely, comes short to heat whole house but quite enough for small room.
 
Do what the Chukchi do - enclose a small space inside your home and heat it with a candle. Blankets draped over a table would work. Yaranga is the name for a Chukchi dwelling made of skins - inside is another tent of hanging skins. No sleeping bag, no blankets, just a candle. The inner tent is warm at minus 60 degrees outside.

It's all about the efficiency of heating small spaces - with something that doesn't produce too much carbon monoxide! :eek:
 
Did I miss something? You need heat inside, right? I think some of the previous suggestions will need ventilation. Watch out for carbon monoxide poisoning.

Personally, I would invest in a wood stove.

If you get caught in a pinch...
- I would seal off a south facing room with a low ceiling in my house, hopefully it will have a window to which you will recieve some solar radiation during the day. Drape it or cover it with plastic when the sun isn't out.
- Make a micro climate in that room to sleep. A tent out of blankets, fort out of the sofa cushions, whatever. Don't sleep on the floor if you can help it.
- If you can have a fire outside, I would heat reasonably large rocks during the day and then bring them in the sealed room for the radiant heat at night. You will need a system to move them and place them as they will be HOT! But that's what you want. Wood and rocks is something you can procure now in case you need them later.

Good luck!
 
I was wondering if this russian gas situation was causing an increase in axe, or chainsaw sales in the effected areas? The pellet stove idea sounds good to me.
 
A wood stove is the way to go. A tiny one can keep things toasty for a couple rooms. Add a few fans and you can circulate heat into other areas.

If you have electricity available, that is the way to go. The radiator types aren't bad and are safe. We keep a couple 1500 watt "milk house" style heaters around that are fan driven and one will heat up our living room pretty quick.

If you have an electric stove, that will work too. Incandescent electric lamps are heat sources as well. 100 watts is 100 watts-- light is heat. It's an old boater's trick to keep a light burning in the boat to keep air currents moving and reduce mildew, etc. Turning on the computer, TV and stereo will generate a little heat too.

Unventilated kerosene heaters are trouble. You can't seal a room up tight and use one: they still produce carbon monoxide and CO2 and you can burn off the oxygen in a tightly sealed room. See http://www.cdc.gov/nasd/docs/d000801-d000900/d000884/d000884.html for recommendations.
 
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