An Elizabethan mansion's secrets for staying warm

Post by karim79 » Sun, Jan 18, 2026, 5:37 AM UTC

keiferski wrote: post #150

karim79 wrote: post #147

This just reminds me of a random discussion I had with a very close German friend. He pointed out that Tado (who do smart radiator valves) noted from a study, which drew from their data, that the UK sucks at insulation, losing heat up to three times faster than other European neighbours[0]. [0] https://www.tado.com/en-gb/press/uk-homes-losing-heat-up-to-... Disclaimer: I'm not affiliated nor am I a customer of Tado.…

Now it makes sense to me. I live in central continental Europe but spent a month or so in the UK a couple years ago, and one of my immediate impressions was how much colder it felt inside buildings. The buildings themselves seemed thinner and made of less dense materials as well.

Post by wincy » Sun, Jan 18, 2026, 6:43 AM UTC

ahartmetz wrote: post #126

sandworm101 wrote: post #116

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If it has a flue or chimney, it isnt really an open fire. Look at an ancient long house, or farmer's thatched cottage from say 400 years ago. They had a fire on a stone circle on the floor in the middle of the room, and a high roof sometimes with a hole but often not. It was smoky, but kept everyone warm.

It gave people lung cancer, too. Maybe genetic adaptation to that (pretty toxic) environment is why smoking doesn't kill people more quickly.

Post by onion2k » Sun, Jan 18, 2026, 8:02 AM UTC

walthamstow wrote: post #154

onion2k wrote: post #152

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I wonder if that correlates with the average age of houses. The UK has a lot of buildings that are well over 100 years old that can only be insulated by stuffing cavity walls full of an insulating material. My house is 126 years old, and despite my best efforts it's still terrible.

I'm very surprised to hear that such an old house has cavity walls. I would expect solid brick walls in Flemish bond. My house is 1970 and has them, they were much more common after the war.

Post by yborg » Sun, Jan 18, 2026, 8:55 AM UTC

0xbadcafebee wrote: post #89

The castles and mansions were relatively modern. Most people didn't have "good" home design, they had older, practical architecture. Their homes had thin walls, were drafty, and had no chimneys; there was a hole in the roof where the smoke from your fire would go, so your attic was filled with smoke (where you'd smoke meats for winter). You're better served by looking to 19th century lower and middle class architectu…

Post by cenamus » Sun, Jan 18, 2026, 10:07 AM UTC

b112 wrote: post #148

dmd wrote: post #136

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What does 'lifetime' mean? Mine are nearly all original.

Windows last hundreds of years because glass lasts hundreds of years. Modern windows don't last very long, because the seals leak, and the argon gas or whatever leaks out. The glass is still good, but the insulative quality is gone. The parent poster didn't realize that if you don't have double pane windows, you have single pane windows, which have no gas to leak.