Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with cold

winterize my house in the green mountains

herbplarfegan — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 06:48:18 -0800

need help winterizing house! the house is not horribly inslated, but it has a lot of windows and very very high ceilings. my aim is to insulate the windows as much as possible, and whatever else. what I'm looking for is materials, brand names, and methods. heat is from Rinnai propane heater and a wood stove.

I saw AskMe discussions on this, sorry.. but I want really to get as specific as possible. my landlord lives out of state and just says "take care of it, send receipt to comp rent" about everything, and I've always just passed this kind of stuff off to landlords.

right now the Rinnai is on 'low' and the wood stove is loaded and burning, but the Rinnai is still huffing loudly to get heat into the place (cha ching$-- bad news.)

last year I lived in a summer-house all winter, also with a Rinnai heater, and it was $300+ a month.

I live in Vermont, at a high elevation. The temperature right at this moment is 1F / -17c. I've lived in Vermont all my life-- I can take the cold; it's my wallet that has a problem with it.

Or I could just hibernate

Ziggy500 — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 03:23:46 -0800

Please help me keep warm at home! The single-glazed flat I live in is rubbish at keeping heat in and has a funny timed heating system which kicks in about 2-3am and goes on all night; but you can't switch it on before that. So that means that the flat is absolutely FREEZING in the evenings before the heating kicks in.

What are some cheap ways of keeping warm that would be effective immediately? I don't mean structural changes to the flat which would be more a medium-to-long term solution. I just mean simple tricks to stay warm. Right now, I wear multiple-layers of clothing and take really hot showers. Does the hivemind have any other tips that don't involve spending money?

What to do when it's really cold?

leahwrenn — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 12:24:32 -0800

Cool things to do when it's 40 below? Moved to Fairbanks Alaska. It's cold here. Are there interesting things I can do that take advantage of lots of access to really cold temperatures?

Ideally, this would be kitchen-sciency stuff that doesn't actually require me to spend a lot of time in the cold, like the you-tube videos of taking hot water outside and turning it into ice fog. Or, if you fill up a balloon with water and put it outside it turns into an ice sphere, good for using in holiday punch.

How do I adjust from sunny LA to freezing cold Virginia?

invisible ink — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 20:30:15 -0800

Have you ever moved from a warm, mild climate like Los Angeles, to one that experiences four seasons - and did you do so in the dead of winter? What was it like? What do you wish you had known beforehand? In other words, what am I, a native Angeleno currently taking for granted? A compelling job offer has me seriously considering moving from Los Angeles to Arlington, VA. I will most likely be relocating mid-January 2010. Unfortunately, I have never lived in a four-season climate, much less moved myself and all of my belongings to one.

I found this thread, but am hoping more LA transplants can respond.

Long, diverse, rambling responses are most welcome - I really want to know the kind of impact a rapid shift in climate can make in peoples' lives. Thanks in advance:-)

Older car, cold weather?

Richat — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 08:12:40 -0800

My car's getting older, and I have recently moved to a new place with no garage. I'm worried about it starting in cold weather. More details inside! I've got a 2000 VW Golf, gasoline, not diesel. I've had a garage for years, and so never bothered with a block heater, which is pretty standard issue hardware in Northern Ontario.

I'm wondering, I suppose, if there is a better approach to the old block heater idea, which warms the oil in most I've seen. My battery is orginal as well. So far, at -15 celsius, the car's starting ok, but beginning to sound like it's not liking it too much.

Up here...we'll hit -25 to -35 Celsius (which is down to -31 F) eventually. Part of me would like to avoid a solution that means sucking electricity all night.

Any ideas?

Baby, it's COLD inside...

Spyder's Game — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 13:51:12 -0800

Thermostat seems to work fine. Except at night. When it gets cold. Quick background info: We bought this house a year ago. Yay! Ran into this same problem almost immediately. The heat works fine. Sometimes.

Last night my wife came home after I'd already gotten in bed. She said "it's freezing in here!" and I suddenly realized it was pretty cold. Temp had been falling steadily since I'd gone to bed at ten or so. So, rough night and two grumpy toddlers later, we were trying to figure out what happened. Then the heat (the glorious HEAT!) came on. And all was good. Last night it got cold again.

The thermostat seems to be the problem. Says the temp is 66 degrees. Says it SHOULD be 74. Fan is on AUTO and blows continuously, cool to (cold!) room temp air. It seems like it's TRYING to heat, but it has no heat to give. The next day, all is good again. What is it about cold winter nights (we had this problem last year right after we bought the house and muddled through the rest of the winter after the thing seemed to auto-correct itself.)

If I didn't know better, I'd think we had accidently programmed the thing to cool down to 66 at night. But we checked the programs. Daily and weekly. The temporary override feature also says it's working to bring the temp up, but it stubbornly stays at 66. I mean, a SOLID 66. Which is why I think the thermostat is to blame.

When it does heat, it blazes like the noonday sun, and does a great job. But at night, it's a different story. Anyone have an explanation for this? Similar problem that you fixed? We thought about calling a technician, but we're afraid he'll just come and charge us $150 to show us how to program our thermostat. But we're tired of shivering under the covers at night.

Here is the manual for the thermostat. It's the 5000 model.

Baby, it's cold outside. And inside.

dayintoday — Sun, 29 Nov 2009 18:00:51 -0800

How can I improve my tolerance for cold? (Cold weather, cold hands, etc.) I'm cold in almost every restaurant I go to. I'm cold at work in an office building that others are comfortable in. I live in New England and dread the winter. I recoil when my boyfriend touches me with even slightly cold hands. I swear I feel even the slightest breezes or drafts.

Sure, there are plenty of ways to warm up temporarily, but I would like to improve my overall tolerance for cold temperatures so I'm not as cranky about being cold. I would like to feel like a normal person who doesn't need to wear a jacket in a restaurant or fingerless gloves at work.

(Btw, I don't believe there's a medical problem such as poor circulation behind my issues with cold.)

Are there any tricks for improving one's tolerance for cold? (Or even for temperatures that others seem to find comfortable?)

Help me stay warm with a broken furnace.

Stewriffic — Sun, 29 Nov 2009 07:16:27 -0800

Yesterday I woke up to my furnace screeching like a banshee. Turned it off, and called for service, but they won't be able to get out for a while. I'm not sure when, because the service will be through my home warranty. I have a fireplace and wood, south facing windows that let in lots of sun, and a very small, not-so-awesome electric space heater. I have some questions about the combination of heating sources I should use until the furnace gets repaired. I live in North Carolina, US, so it's relatively mild, but it is getting down near freezing at night.

Today will be fine; it's getting up to 67ºF/19ºC this afternoon. However, here's a question about today specifically. Which will give the better bang for the buck: opening up the house, or using passive solar to warm it up without opening windows?

Secondly, the forecast for the rest of the week is going to alternate between sunny and rainy, with typical temperatures of about 54º-56ºF/12º-14ºC for the high and lows kind of all over the place, from 32ºF/0ºC to 47ºF/8ºC. See here for the full forecast.

I'm planning on closing off unused rooms, but I have a pretty large space consisting of the kitchen and two living spaces (one of which has the fireplace) that are all open to each other.

What combination of fire, space heater and sunlight will maximize heat gain and minimize heat loss for me until the furnace is repaired?

Also, any other suggestions about keeping the house warm will be gratefully accepted!

Ice Ice Ipod, too cold? Too cold?

arniec — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 08:15:32 -0800

How bad is it for me to leave my iPod classic in the car all the time? I live in the Midwest where in the coldest parts of winter temperatures average about 17 degrees F (although they can and do drop below zero regularly) and our highs in the hottest months average in the mid 80s though we do have our post 100 degree days.

I park my car outdoors in the sunshine during the day, indoors in a standard garage during the night. In the garage items like bottled water and soda rarely freeze, but have on a few occasions. (Likewise soda stupidly left in the trunk of my car has frozen and left me some burst cans full of slush).

Given all of this, how bad is it for my iPod to be left in the car at all times? My iPod is a hard drive based iPod classic that I only use in my car. My dock for the iPod is in my glove box and it's somewhat inconvenient to remove from the car regularly, and I only take the iPod with me when I want to update the music.

But I am a computer guy and part of me knows that it's unsafe to use devices that have been in the cold, and that I should worry about condensation as the item warms up, etc, etc, etc. Of course, that being said, condensation is also likely to form as I take it from warm buildings to cold outdoors to a cold but rapidly heating car, right?

If the problem is specific to the hard drive would I be better off getting an iPod Nano or something not hard drive based? Or is the problem to the electronics?

Thanks in advance for settling this issue between my wife and I (she is constantly taking it out of the car, and thus constantly leaving me music-less as I don't expect to go to the car and my iPod to be missing)

I like not catching colds, but I also like kissing my wife

ManInSuit — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 19:42:13 -0800

If your spouse catches a cold, how likely are you to catch it from them? When your spouse gets a cold, what, if anything, do you do to avoid catching that cold, and why?

I wonder about this every time Mrs ManInSuit gets sick. I want to be nice to her, and enjoy her company. I also don’t want to get that cold. I wish I had a better sense of what the real risks are. So, say your spouse starts having cold symptoms (and you don’t have any). Here are some imagined possibilities of what that means:

Imagined Possibility #1 – By the time your spouse shows symptoms, you’ve already been exposed like crazy to their cold. If you haven’t caught it by now, it means you’re immune to that particular strain. So, like, don’t worry about it.

Imagined Possibility #2 – The fact that haven’t caught your spouse’s cold so far just just means you’ve been very lucky. If you want to avoid that cold, you should start being careful: keep your distance, don’t share cutlery, wash your hands a lot, etc. Otherwise, you’re pretty likely to get that cold.

Imagined Possibility #3 – Cold transmission is a pretty unpredictable and unreliable thing. For each day you spend with your spouse, there’s a chance you’ll get sick. But even if you’re totally incautious, the odds are you still won’t get that cold.

Can anyone shed light on which, if any, of these are most accurate. I suspect the truth is some complicated combination or in-between of all the above, but I’d like whatever insights the green might offer. Insights backed with reliable scientific sources or expertise are epecially helpful...

Can a cold cause confusion?

Anonymous — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 18:17:32 -0800

Can allergies or a cold cause confusion? You're not my doctor, obviously, but here goes:

I've been sick for the past 4-5 days with a mild cold. I haven't had a fever, and have been getting plenty of rest. Right now my only symptoms are some nasal pressure, post-nasal drip, a headache, and some sneezing. The only thing I can think of that I've been doing wrong is that I haven't been focused on drinking a ton of fluids.

For the past 3-4 days I've had recurring episodes of what I can only call confusion, for lack of a better word. I feel slightly disoriented, light-headed, a little dizzy, and--this may sound silly--really really dumb. It feels as though my brain isn't working at full capacity and I'm unable to make decisions (although I still know who and where I am).

The first time this happened was at the supermarket with my boyfriend. On the way there I realized I'd suddenly become really grumpy for no apparent reason. Inside, I was anxious with other people, and really frustrated with myself for not being able to think clearly. Anytime my boyfriend would put his arm around me or try to comfort me it would drive me crazy. I would stare at an aisle of food and not be able to figure out what I needed to pick up. I basically felt like a really irratable zombie.

The past two days, I've had the same thing happen, but a little less severe. It's usually when I'm standing up, and usually accompanied by anxiety. It's strange, though, because I feel lethargic (not "anxious" in the typical sense of the word). It's more like I'm really frustrated that I can't think clearly.

I've written it off as being a symptom of the cold and told myself that it's normal to feel fuzzy-headed, but I can't find anything online about this. I have only taken half a Zyrtec twice for the nasal stuff. I don't have any chronic medical conditions that I know of (it's been a while since I've seen a doctor). I'm 25, female, and in relatively good health otherwise.

The only thing I can come up with is that I'm possibly anemic and this is the first I've noticed any symptoms. But it seems far more likely to be the result of my cold, considering they happened at the same time. Does anyone else get this way when they're sick? Is it normal? Should I be concerned?

How can I kill a cough that lingers for a month?

joshrholloway — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 04:50:12 -0800

Why do I always have a cough that lingers for about a month after I've had a cold, and how can I get rid of it? For as long as I can remember, after I've had a cold, I still have a hacking cough for about a month afterward, which tends to finally go away abruptly. The cough is the only symptom that lingers after everything else goes away, and I feel fine otherwise. I've had asthma since I was a kid, which I'm assuming is the cause of (or at least a large contributor to) this problem.

This is a dry cough. I don't ever cough up any phlegm or anything like that. If it gets really bad, I can use my rescue inhaler and it will help me for a few minutes. Cough drops also help, but not a lot. The weird thing is that I never have any other real problems with my asthma besides this.

I've talked to multiple doctors about this and they have all kind of shrugged it off and implied that it's just something I have to deal with. While I can deal with it, it's just annoying to have to explain to people that this terrible hacking cough is just my asthma acting up and that I'm not contagious.

So has anyone else ever dealt with anything like this? Do you have any recommendations on how to kill this stupid cough without waiting a month?

Can I take this expired cough syrup? Just for tonight?

tastybrains — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 21:25:25 -0800

Terrible cough, too late to leave the house in search of remedies -- can I take this expired (expired April 2009) prescription Tussionex cough syrup or is there a better solution in my house? It's after midnight and the shiny new cough I developed today has gone from irritating and annoying (earlier this afternoon) to the kind of hacking cough that hurts my whole body. It's too late to go to the drugstore, and I can't even lay down for 5 minutes comfortably.

I have most of the bottle of Tussionex from when I had a horrible chest cold around my sister's wedding last April ... so it's about 18 months old. Do you think the medication itself is still safe to take?

Other things I have tried so far....

- Hot toddies this afternoon.
- Decaf tea with lemon & honey (and now I'm out of lemon).
- Neti pot (since there is also some sinus crap going on).
- Ran hot water into a plugged sink with a towel over my head and the sink and breathed the steam for 10 minutes.
- Mucinex (guaifenesin).
- Cough drops.
- Willing myself to stop coughing.

Most thing (except the last) have been soothing but I'm still coughing like crazy and can't rest. What to do?

Tomorrow I plan to go to the pharmacy to see if I can get something better, though I think the best I'll do is get some "original" NyQuil so I can be knocked unconscious at night.

Should I attempt a long bike ride even though I'm sick?

misskaz — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 13:45:27 -0800

I had plans to ride my bike from Chicago to Milwaukee tomorrow with my husband and two friends (about 100 miles). Now I've come down with a pretty bad cold. Should I cancel or try to power through? Have you ever done a lot of physical activity while recovering from a cold, and how did you fare? Pros:
I really, really, really want to go on this ride. We've been planning on it as a capstone to our season all year. I think it will be fun, and it would be a nice accomplishment (my first century). I rode a metric century a couple weeks ago and other than being sick, feel fairly well prepared. We are planning to take it easy anyway as not everyone has really trained as much as would be ideal for such a long ride. Although we'd like to make it before sundown, we can take as much time as we need to complete the ride. We've already made the hotel reservations to stay in Milwaukee overnight and bought the Amtrak tickets to get back home the next day.

Cons:
I'm sick. I have a bad cold and feel, frankly, like crap today. I'm congested, going through boxes of tissues, and tired. The ride is just the four of us - bailing mid-way will be difficult, if not impossible. (There are no Amtrak stops mid-way; the only chance to bail is the final Metra stop which I think is in Kenosha.) There's a 30% chance of rain in the morning and it will be fairly cold (high in the upper 40s).

I think I know the smart thing is to stay home and wish the others well, but the idea of it is so disappointing that I would like to know if anyone else has done something like this and survived - and even enjoyed him/herself. Also, any tips for feeling better quickly, riding under such circumstances, etc., would be appreciated. I'm already taking Cold-Eeze and doing the usual rest, chicken soup, and fluids bit.

Most comforting things in the world

mthomps00 — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 11:25:08 -0800

What are the best ways to comfort someone with a bad cold/flu? My boyfriend's been ailing with a miserable flu for the past couple days. He's got constant body aches, a hacky dry cough, occasional fever, and dizziness. We've got him on lots of medication, and last night I made him a good lentil/garlic/curry/tomato stew.

He'll get better in a few days, but in the meantime, what's the absolute most comforting thing I can do for him? I'm thinking less in terms of medicines and remedies and more in terms of pure wondrous comfort - foods, drinks, lullabies, you-name-it.

Whence nosemeat?

Ambrosia Voyeur — Sun, 18 Oct 2009 19:31:00 -0800

I don't think this is, strictly speaking, supposed to happen: meat often comes out of my head when I'm sick. Why? What does it portend? [Warning: so gross.] Sinus tissue, very similar in texture to what you might inadvertently bite off your cheek, detaches in my sinuses and I cough it out. In single, big ol' pieces you would not believe. They're mucousy and sometimes bloody, but not themselves mucous, meat rather. I'm an ovo-lacto vegetarian, I know the difference.

This seems to occur with fever. I almost never have nasal congestion, and am prone to dry sinuses when I travel, including bloody noses. This time, it seems like I have a pretty run-of-the-mill cold, not something I should be panicking over, except this nasal meat-gifting is happening. Only twice. Maybe once daily when I'm feverish.

I know, so gross. I've spared you a photo, though.

Do I have some nose-disease you know of? Does this happen sometimes to people you know? Is it okay? It it my brains? What?

I have a multi-day Scrabble tournament soon and a brand-new cold. Help!

iftheaccidentwill — Sun, 18 Oct 2009 16:04:36 -0800

I have a multi-day Scrabble tournament soon and a brand-new cold. Help! I've searched AskMeFi but haven't had any luck; if I've missed something feel free to point it out and I'll (try to) delete my question.

I can feel a cold coming on (Sunday). I'm congested and have a sore throat. On Wednesday I'm flying half way across the country to play in a multi-day Scrabble tournament. This means 8 hour days of nerding it up.

Generally I do not take cold medicine, so I'm a bit at a loss here. What should I take (day and/or night) so that I can minimize symptoms but, most importantly, not be a zombie. I'm going to need to stay somewhat energized and fairly sharp. Several of my classmates have had a cold recently, and it lasted for quite a long time. No idea if this is the same thing, or something new and improved.

Also, so far as I know, there is no drug-testing program, so if you know a cold medicine that will also give me super-duper powerful anagramming abilities, that'd be peachy.

Need a solution to keep my sisters feet warm in ski boots.

no bueno — Sun, 18 Oct 2009 13:15:48 -0800

Need a solution to keep my sister's feet warm in ski boots. My sister has Raynaud's syndrome so whenever we go skiing she has to take constant breaks to go in and warm up. This year she's trying these Swany mittens that have an insert for handwarmers. We tried footwarmer inserts but her feet suck all the warmth out of them within minutes. I think she's going to need something battery powered but everything I've found online seems like it might be cheap(quality not price). Suggestions. Remember this is for skiing, socks would need to fit in the boots, so I'm guessing insoles might be the best bet?

Comfort foods for the sick around the world?

illenion — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 16:03:29 -0800

What are different cultures' versions of comfort foods that are prepared for people who are sick and feeling under the weather? The dishes I know from firsthand experience are American chicken noodle soup, Japanese okayu (rice porridge), and Italian pasta in bianco (pasta, parmesan, olive oil). I'm curious about what other sick folks around the world are eating.

I'm not crying; it's just raining on my face.

oinopaponton — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 07:17:16 -0800

Cold weather makes me cry-- literally. When it's cold out and I go outside, especially when it's windy, my tear ducts go into overdrive. Often, tears end up just pouring down my face. This is inconvenient because:

1. Ouch, cold.
2. It looks like I'm sobbing every time I go outside, and that's awkward.
3. It screws up my eye makeup, which is a pain to put on in the first place.

I've been dealing by just wearing big sunglasses, but it's kind of a weak solution. I kind of doubt there's anything a doctor can do, but is there anything at all I can do to stop this?

Looking for a keep-feet-warm in bed device (to keep on the bed, not just socks)

lrodman — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 21:44:05 -0800

I want something to put at the foot of my bed to keep feet warm - a throw would work, but something more designed for the purpose perhaps- like a giant "sock" that slips over the end of the comforter that you slip your feet into or something like that. down or equivalent preferable, but post whatever you have!

Good Winter Clothes for Toddlers

puritycontrol — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 08:15:10 -0800

Please recommend good winter clothing for 1-year-olds, especially super warm coats. We're talking months and months of ice and snow here. It's our first midwest winter and we'd love recommendations on coats and clothes to get our 1-year-old boys (well, they turn 1 in a couple of weeks). Online or stores in the Aurora, IL area. Thanks in advance!

What can I do to help my immune system fight against colds/flu since Zicam is no longer available?

spacelux — Sat, 03 Oct 2009 00:47:08 -0800

What can I do to help my immune system fight against colds/flu since Zicam is no longer available? I have successfully used Zicam nose swabs for many years to ward off bugs, and now that it's no longer available, are there any other alternatives that actually work?

Google searches for alternatives lead me to using Sage, which isn't the same thing at all...

Stuffy nose woes

ms.codex — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 20:49:57 -0800

Hit me with your best stuffy-nose remedies. I have a bad cold. I'm past the sore-throat and fever stage and into the stuffy, runny nose and bad sinus pressure stage. Whenever I stay still for more than a few minutes (by, say, sitting and reading), or ESPECIALLY when I lie down, my nasal passages become so impassable that it's impossible to breathe without salivating uncomfortably. I couldn't sleep last night and I probably won't sleep tonight. What can I do, besides taking Sudafed every 4 hours? Any foods, supplements, temperature manipulations, other tricks?

Anosmia - is it forever?

terrierhead — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 11:06:14 -0800

Getting over a lousy cold/flu, can breathe again but can't smell anything. Is this permanent? I'm a 37 y/o female who until recently had an extremely good olfactory ability. My toddler twins brought home the superflu from their daycare last week. After more than a week of illness the whole family's on the mend. I ended up with an ear infection and am being treated with antibiotics.

Two days ago, I noticed that although my stuffy nose was clearing up, I still couldn't smell anything. A sip of wine tasted like acetone, and my toddlers' dirty diapers, which I usually identify from afar by their odor, became imperceptible by scent. My nose is still running today but I'm breathing through it just fine. And I can't smell a thing.

I've looked up information on anosmia (loss of sense of smell) and found that colds and flu can cause this to happen - but from a stuffy nose, which I don't have. I called my doctor's office and the nurse their told me not to worry, but I was still stuffy this morning and am not now. I called a local ask-a-nurse hotline and they freaked the hell out.

I'd like to refrain from freaking for a bit but also would like more information. Has anyone heard of this happening and then going away? Or should I start selling off my perfume collection? (I was a BPAL collector before the kids came along.)