Victorian house keep warm life hacks sought!

[slugjelly]

Hello,
First winter in my draughty north facing mid renovation Victorian house looming. I’m already cold. What hacks do you have. Do I need small heaters? Heated blankets? Dehumidifier? There must be some way to make it better apart from hot water bottles. I have central heating, but need to seriously supplement it.
Yours freezingly,
slugjelly

I use wide clear cello tape to tape around the windows. There’s enough drafts and whatnots for ventilation anyway.

Have you got an electric blanket for your bed?

Have you tried draughtex for the floor gaps? My brother did it and made a
difference

The breathing is about ventilation and using the correct materials, to ensure you don’t inadvertently cause condensation issues and related damage. It doesn’t sound like your house is anywhere near well-insulated/‘sealed’ enough to start worrying about that (though I’d be wary of having furniture pushed right up to exterior walls, as you’ll likely get mould behind it). It’s about things like insulating with breathable materials, using clay-based paints and lime plaster. Not sure how doable any of it is on a budget. We’ve insulated some of our walls and we’ve done it ‘wrong’ (used modern insulation materials). I’m just hoping that as it’s not a sealed box, we get away with it by using things like dehumidifiers, opening windows daily etc.

Edited to add - we didn’t do it wrong on purpose, we just didn’t know what we were doing 😬

roll out the rugs- another layer of insulation from the air coming up from the flooor.

thick curtains- you can add fleece blankets to the back of the normal curtain.

dehumindifyer- a damp house takes longer to warm up.

close doors on unused rooms.

invest in a good electric radiator, that can be plugged in near where you’ll be-

thermal wool underwear.
warm socks.
a quilted house coat.

Last year went around all loose windows with this https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0BJFJRYXC?ref_=ppx_hzsearch_conn_dt_b_fed_asin_title_1 which has really helped.
The draughts usually come from under the floorboards as they have better air flow than modern houses which is great for health but in very cold winters a big rug is required - while you are renovating just get a cheap one that covers as much of the floorboards as possible. Another draught hotspot is the chimney and fireplaces. I love an open fire but if I am not using it I have a bar with a heavy curtain across it now to stop the gusts of cold wind!