Whiny post
Nov. 23rd, 2008 06:28 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
livMy flat is cold.
I have been here two winters before this and I was only ever less than perfectly comfortable for a couple of days in spring when the temperature hovered at exactly 10° for several consecutive days. The global thermostat for the whole area would switch the heating on if the temperature dropped below that, and it would be lovely and cosy inside, and the house is so well insulated that it took several days after the heating was switched off for the inside temperature to equilibrate back to 10°. If it was -20° outside I would be perfectly comfortable indoors, and I'd have to get rid of some bedcovers so I didn't get too warm at night. I was enthusing to all and sundry about how living this far north, with the harsh winters, doesn't matter since buildings are made to decent standards and well heated.
This year there's something wrong. It's not even that cold yet, around freezing and it's been snowing on and off all weekend (it's very pretty outdoors!) It's slightly somewhat warmer indoors than out; wearing several layers of jumpers and thick socks is just about enough to be approximately comfortable, and the air doesn't hurt on my skin. I'm starting to think that this is just an illusion due to the fact that it's sheltered, though. But being constantly on the edge of being unpleasantly cold is making me depressed. Seriously, I'll get home and have the initial pleasure of getting out of the wind and snow and convince myself it's ok now and the place is finally warming up, but after about half an hour I'll need to go and put on most of my outdoor clothes again (I'm stopping short of coat, hat and scarf, but perhaps I should admit defeat and wear those indoors as well). This makes me not want to do anything except sit drinking tea and feeling sorry for myself, which of course makes me even colder. I have a problem with procrastination anyway, but being cold indoors is making it far worse.
I think the heating is partly working; at least, if I touch the radiators they feel slightly warm rather than unpleasantly cold like inert metal around at this temperature, but not enough to restore the feeling in my fingertips. And the few times when it's got really cold, not happening often yet, but a few dips of definitely sub-zero temperatures, the flat's started to warm up a bit. I suspected that partly working radiators indicated airlocks, and mentioned this to my landlord, who dutifully came and bled them. But he reported he couldn't find any airlocks and as far as he could tell the heating is working fine. So my hypotheses are, from most likely to least likely: the thermostat is set too low, (but I don't know which thermostat; if it's the one that controls the whole district, surely other people would have complained by now, and I don't know if there's any thermostat regulating this flat alone). The central heating is working intermittently, and the patterns I seem to see are just psychological noise. There's something wrong with me, my flat is actually perfectly warm but I'm not feeling it for some reason. I am not mechanically minded at all.
I think I need to have another word with my landlord, because I don't really want to put up with this all winter. But I don't quite know what to say to him to convince him that there's actually a problem, when he's looked at it already and declared it ok.
Plus,![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
cartesiandaemon is coming here next weekend and I feel really embarrassed at bringing a guest into an unpleasantly cold flat. And also I'd rather not have to wear several layers of jumpers throughout his visit.
Sorry for whining at everyone; this is getting me down surprisingly much.
I have been here two winters before this and I was only ever less than perfectly comfortable for a couple of days in spring when the temperature hovered at exactly 10° for several consecutive days. The global thermostat for the whole area would switch the heating on if the temperature dropped below that, and it would be lovely and cosy inside, and the house is so well insulated that it took several days after the heating was switched off for the inside temperature to equilibrate back to 10°. If it was -20° outside I would be perfectly comfortable indoors, and I'd have to get rid of some bedcovers so I didn't get too warm at night. I was enthusing to all and sundry about how living this far north, with the harsh winters, doesn't matter since buildings are made to decent standards and well heated.
This year there's something wrong. It's not even that cold yet, around freezing and it's been snowing on and off all weekend (it's very pretty outdoors!) It's slightly somewhat warmer indoors than out; wearing several layers of jumpers and thick socks is just about enough to be approximately comfortable, and the air doesn't hurt on my skin. I'm starting to think that this is just an illusion due to the fact that it's sheltered, though. But being constantly on the edge of being unpleasantly cold is making me depressed. Seriously, I'll get home and have the initial pleasure of getting out of the wind and snow and convince myself it's ok now and the place is finally warming up, but after about half an hour I'll need to go and put on most of my outdoor clothes again (I'm stopping short of coat, hat and scarf, but perhaps I should admit defeat and wear those indoors as well). This makes me not want to do anything except sit drinking tea and feeling sorry for myself, which of course makes me even colder. I have a problem with procrastination anyway, but being cold indoors is making it far worse.
I think the heating is partly working; at least, if I touch the radiators they feel slightly warm rather than unpleasantly cold like inert metal around at this temperature, but not enough to restore the feeling in my fingertips. And the few times when it's got really cold, not happening often yet, but a few dips of definitely sub-zero temperatures, the flat's started to warm up a bit. I suspected that partly working radiators indicated airlocks, and mentioned this to my landlord, who dutifully came and bled them. But he reported he couldn't find any airlocks and as far as he could tell the heating is working fine. So my hypotheses are, from most likely to least likely: the thermostat is set too low, (but I don't know which thermostat; if it's the one that controls the whole district, surely other people would have complained by now, and I don't know if there's any thermostat regulating this flat alone). The central heating is working intermittently, and the patterns I seem to see are just psychological noise. There's something wrong with me, my flat is actually perfectly warm but I'm not feeling it for some reason. I am not mechanically minded at all.
I think I need to have another word with my landlord, because I don't really want to put up with this all winter. But I don't quite know what to say to him to convince him that there's actually a problem, when he's looked at it already and declared it ok.
Plus,
cartesiandaemon is coming here next weekend and I feel really embarrassed at bringing a guest into an unpleasantly cold flat. And also I'd rather not have to wear several layers of jumpers throughout his visit.Sorry for whining at everyone; this is getting me down surprisingly much.
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
(no subject)
Date: 2008-11-24 01:11 am (UTC)Two more ideas - first, your landlord's nice, right? So can you invite them to dinner or something, and thus give them a chance to see how darn cold it is?
Second, you've got a fireplace. Does cartesiandaemon know how to light fires? If not, can you nobble up someone from shul or work? It's okay wanting to be taught, people aren't born knowing these things. Like your peeps and the siddur. Fireplace isn't the same as radiators, I know, but it'd be something.
Oh, and can you ask the other people in the building if they're also cold? This would give you more data, anyway.
Much love.