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Insulation: First the body, then the home (2011)

lowtechmagazine.com

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Re: Insulation: First the body, then the home (2011)

#291

Post by specialist »

secabeen wrote: post #134
wolverine876 wrote: post #102

I expect people on HN to have already figured out the obvious: It takes much less energy to heat the area under your clothes, using existing heat, than to heat a room or building with artificially generated heat. Your body is 37 deg C. Wearing low-insulation clothing and letting that heat float away, and then heating the entire room or building to warm you up again, is absurd if you understand basic physics and think…

As I get older, I'm finding my extremities are not maintaining circulation/warmth. While I can wear socks no problem, I don't really want to wear gloves indoors. Heating the house more makes it feel cozy and nice, so I can see why some people would make that choice.

I now have chilblains. I wear gloves even while sleeping. I also have to regularly rewarm my hands, using an electric pad.

I hate hats, gloves, scarves, masks, etc. But I got used to it.

Re: Insulation: First the body, then the home (2011)

#292

Post by KozmoNau7 »

bobbiechen wrote: post #63

> It may sound strange to promote the use of synthetic clothing on a blog like Low-tech Magazine. However, both natural and synthetic materials have their advantages and drawbacks, and both can be a sustainable choice - even though synthetic clothes are made from fossil fuels. This is especially true when the clothing is used as a substitute for a heating system; the energy saved by lowering the thermostat is much la…

Still, I would choose merino wool long johns over synthetic ones in just about every situation. The amount of heat that can be conserved with such a thin layer of wool is impressive.

Re: Insulation: First the body, then the home (2011)

#293

Post by KozmoNau7 »

afterwalk wrote: post #4
xcambar wrote: post #3

After 5 winters of Berlin, I have decided to treat myself proper heat tech clothing. The difference in comfort is such that I barely feel any kind of fatigue or depression that the cold temperatures used to put on me. It has changed my perception of winter and I couldn't have spent my money any better. This is a costly investment though, be warned. For the curious, the keyword that started it all: "layered clothing"…

Any specific suggestions on brand/tech/material?

As others have already suggested, wool is king.

I would recommend having a look at https://varusteleka.com, they're the biggest outdoor/surplus store in Europe, and they ship just about anywhere. Their wool flannel shirts and field shirts are the best I've ever owned, as are their worker wool pants, and they have enough merino clothing to layer for any weather.

Aside from the own brands, they often get very good surplus winter gear in, like thick Swiss knitted wool sweaters, Czech parkas, Finnish wool pants and so on.

My current winter outerwear workhorses are a Czech parka and a pair of Finnish M65 wool pants, total cost less than €50. With long johns and a woolen sweater underneath, I have yet to encounter winter weather that would make me uncomfortable.

Re: Insulation: First the body, then the home (2011)

#294

Post by cedex12 »

isbn wrote: post #224
cedex12 wrote: post #190

Related question: What's the best way to ventilate an old european house during winter? I've taken up the habit of letting my bedroom windows (slightly) open at nighttime to have fresh air while sleeping. I'm unsure this is really wise ecologically since outside air == cold air, but at the same time, there is no other way to get fresh air… Any tip, or, better, professional opinion?

https://www.lunos.de/products-from-lunos/e%C2%B260 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VuTV_6-igC0

That's interesting. Thank you!

Re: Insulation: First the body, then the home (2011)

#295

Post by PurpleFoxy »

hyko wrote: post #249
PurpleFoxy wrote: post #240

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This kind of comment gets posted on everything from low tech magazine. I think the authors intention is not to give practical ideas that could be widely deployed to the world but instead to give ideas to people who find enjoyment out of maximising efficiency as a hobby. The author is a person who turns most of the lights off so they can run their office on a solar panel hanging out their apartment window.

Well, live and let live :)

I think it’s pretty cool tbh. I just don’t review the proposals as things to do practically and more for fun to learn about energy

Re: Insulation: First the body, then the home (2011)

#296

Post by KozmoNau7 »

cedex12 wrote: post #190

Related question: What's the best way to ventilate an old european house during winter? I've taken up the habit of letting my bedroom windows (slightly) open at nighttime to have fresh air while sleeping. I'm unsure this is really wise ecologically since outside air == cold air, but at the same time, there is no other way to get fresh air… Any tip, or, better, professional opinion?

Low tech method: air out heavily for 5-10 minutes, 2-3 times per day, ie. when you get up, when you eat lunch and just before going to bed. Open all windows and all internal doors, really get the air moving. Because you're airing out so intensely for a short period of time, the furniture and walls don't cool down, so the air warms up quickly afterwards.

Re: Insulation: First the body, then the home (2011)

#297

Post by vinc »

jniedrauer wrote: post #231
vinc wrote: post #155

I live in a 150 years old farm in the middle of a forest that have no heating, it's my third winter here and the temperature goes down to 5C inside for a few months (oceanic climate, it's rarely below 0C outside), especially on cloudy days when the sun can't warm up the stones of the walls. The first winter I didn't have proper clothing and it was really hard. But now I have all the right gear and it feels very comfo…

> The only issue is finding the right gloves for typing on the computer, I haven't found any good ones yet. Have you tried fingerless gloves? During long winter backpacking trips or situations where I'll be living without heat for a while, I take some liner gloves and cut the fingers just past the first knuckle. The gloves stay clean even with prolonged use, and you can still use capacitive touch screens and do dexte…

I only tried cutting regular gloves but I can't touch type efficiently with them. I could indeed try liner gloves, good idea thanks!

Re: Insulation: First the body, then the home (2011)

#298

Post by hyko »

oftenwrong wrote: post #244
hyko wrote: post #232

I can tolerate pretty cold environments, but why should I have to? The outdoors are the reason we invented the indoors. “The potential energy savings are huge; the costs are almost nil.” This is a complete fantasy. What’s actually happening here is, faced with a hard problem (heating indoor spaces in a sustainable way), they have decided to solve a much harder one (changing the behaviour and physiology of everyone on…

It is just the opposite of fantasy: Wearing warm clothing indoors is a technology that exists now and is a completely viable way to reduce energy needs. Clothing is more affordable now than at any other point in history. Heating all buildings to a comfortable temperature at all times in a sustainable way is, as you said, a hard problem - one for which there is currently no solution. Switching the world over to sustai…

convincing people to adjust their thermostats and wardrobe

That’s the missing chasm in the plan: how are we going to convince people to abandon luxury (real or perceived), comfort, and status in the name of efficiency? Especially when we’re talking about something so fundamental as warmth, as expressed as clause two in the phrase safe and warm when describing basic necessities. The image of someone turning down their thermostat and wearing thermals at home evokes images of hardship that will be difficult to dislodge (not to mention all the impracticalities and flat out dangerous aspects others have pointed out).

By comparison (in a technologically advanced capitalist society with a mature consumer culture) the challenges of developing and scaling renewable technology that fulfils people’s wants and needs are child’s play.

Re: Insulation: First the body, then the home (2011)

#299

Post by wolverine876 »

cycomanic wrote: post #212
wolverine876 wrote: post #102

I expect people on HN to have already figured out the obvious: It takes much less energy to heat the area under your clothes, using existing heat, than to heat a room or building with artificially generated heat. Your body is 37 deg C. Wearing low-insulation clothing and letting that heat float away, and then heating the entire room or building to warm you up again, is absurd if you understand basic physics and think…

Well things are not quite so easy, for one you can insulate your house much better than your body. Passive houses for example can keep your house at a comfortable 20 deg all year using only heat from the bodies of the inhabitants and the water heating system. One reason is, that the temperature differential between your body and the surrounding is much larger than between the house and it's surroundings, another that…

> Well things are not quite so easy ...

It's not easy to put on and take off warm clothes to manage your personal temperature?

Re: Insulation: First the body, then the home (2011)

#300

Post by hyko »

PurpleFoxy wrote: post #295
hyko wrote: post #249

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Well, live and let live :)

I think it’s pretty cool tbh. I just don’t review the proposals as things to do practically and more for fun to learn about energy

Yes, I think what you’re saying makes sense.
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