The ‘Beast From The East’ has well and truly landed in the UK. Vast swathes of snow, travel chaos and freezing temperatures are hitting the headlines, and if you’re trying to co-ordinate family live with school and nursery closures, travel delays and all being cooped up indoors, you may feel as if you could do with some help. So, how do you beat the chill, stay warm, safe and entertained in extreme weather conditions? Here’s how you can minimise the misery and keep toasty:
Assemble a Car Emergency Kit
In extreme weather, you should keep a close on the Highways Agency website for news of accidents and road closures, and if you don’t have to travel for essential reasons, try to reschedule it – or you may find yourself stranded like motorists on the M80 this week. If it cannot be helped, make sure that you assemble an emergency kit to keep in the car. This should include; a shovel in case your car becomes stuck in a drift, an LED torch with spare batteries, bottled water, blankets or a sleeping bag, jump leads in case of battery failure, a charger lead or battery pack for your phone, non-perishable snacks such as a pack of cereal bars, a waterproof coat and boots, and a tow rope. Carrying a bag of cat litter can also be useful if you need tyre friction.
Protect Your Water Supply
If you don’t want to leave the heating on all the time, there are other steps you can take to protect your pipes and stop your home’s water supply from freezing. After all, there’s nothing worse than waking up to find there’s no water! Letting your hot and cold taps drip overnight can keep the flow going, and opening up cabinet doors to let the heating get to uninsulated pipes stowed under the sink can also be a good preventative measure. If you don’t already know, make sure that you located the water mains in your home, so that you know where to shut off the supply if a pipe bursts or there’s a water emergency.
Keep Your Home Warm
Cosying up at home required an adequately heated space to be comfortable in – but many families worry about the increased cost of energy bills a cold snap can bring. Luckily, modern smart energy systems can let you have the best of both worlds – a toasty home when you need it, and savings on your bill. A smart meter system lets you track exactly how much energy is being consumed in real time. Paired with an app on your smartphone, some suppliers will now allow you to top up remotely if you’re a metered customer. You can also control your heating remotely with some systems and even compare your usage to similar homes. There are some suppliers in England, and Pinergy offer a similar service in Ireland.
Keep Your Kids Warm and Dry
Playing outside can be tempting when there’s sledging and snowballing on offer, and a little time outdoors is a good cure for cabin fever when your kids have been trapped indoors or school is closed. However, you need to ensure that kids are properly equipped for extreme weather. Otherwise you risk illness and injury. Children are more at risk from the cold than adults – their smaller bodies lose heat more rapidly. They may also be less aware of getting too cold, especially if they are running around. Keep them safe by ensuring they have the correct clothing – waterproof all-in-one snowsuit, a hat and mittens and wellington boots that fit correctly over thick socks. Wearing several thin layers underneath will help keep damp and cold away from their bodies. If they do get wet, bring them inside and change their clothes straight away. Make sure they are taking regular breaks indoors between playing outside as well.
Don’t Leave Your Car Unattended
With windscreen defrosts a daily occurrence over the past week or so, did you know it’s actually illegal now in the UK to leave your car engine running unattended to defrost the windscreen? Not only could you be landed with a fine, but any opportunistic thieves may seize their moment – and it’s unlikely that an insurance company would pay out on a loss of this kind. To avoid delays in the morning rush while you de-ice, you can soak an old towel in a solution of water and table salt, or one part water and two parts alcohol and place it over the windscreen at night.
Indulge In Some Warming Recipes
It’s the perfect time to make some warming traditional dishes such as soups, stews, casseroles and pies. If kids are cooped up at home, involve them in choosing and cooking some recipes. Eating the right foods – such as healthy fats – can also help by revving up your metabolism and keeping you warm. A slow cooker is a brilliant family tool for making sure you always have a nourishing home cooked meal ready to serve. Find some healthy slow cooker recipes, prep your ingredients, load the cooker and sit back with a box set!
Keep The Family Entertained
Extreme weather often means school closures, and if you want to avoid kids spending the whole day glued to their tablets, you may want a few tricks up your sleeve for keeping them entertained when it’s freezing outside. Try to think beyond movie marathons and Minecraft, It’s time to wheel out the craft box, encourage them to write and direct a play complete with costumes or find some simple cake recipes you can make together. Have an indoor picnic on the living room carpet followed by an afternoon of board games. Outside, food colouring can be mixed with snow for an imaginative play session. Put their pyjamas in the tumble drier for 10 minutes before they come back in to make sure they have something warm to pop on and then make deluxe hot chocolates to finish the day before they wind down with a bedtime story.
*This is a collaborative post*