Jeanne in MN Posted October 17, 2009 Share Posted October 17, 2009 We are seriously interested in buying a house built in 1906. One of our concerns is there is no ductwork upstairs, only the floor vents to allow heat up there. How comfortable will those upstairs bedrooms be? We live in Minnesota and have plenty of cold weather here. Thanks for your help! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
specialmama Posted October 17, 2009 Share Posted October 17, 2009 Well, we lived in a house that old in Canada, eh! It was fine. Heat rises. The grill was in the hall floor with 3 bedrooms and a bath all around it. We learned to put an extra blanket on the bed, carpet on the floors, and close the doors you can on the main level. I guess what I mean by that last part is to try to direct the heat on the main floor to the room where the grill is. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laughing lioness Posted October 17, 2009 Share Posted October 17, 2009 We live in an 80 + yr old house in SD and our primary heat source is wood. We "shrink wrap" the house each fall and that's been the best way to keep the house warm. We get the window plastic and do both inside and out, both floors, and duct tape the cracks on the inside of the windows first. We have a large front porch and put builders grade plastic all around. It acts as a passive solar collector so it's actually quite warm on sunny, non-windy days (south facing). We also do builder's grade plastic on the west side door porch. We dress warmly for sleeping and don't drain warm shower/tub water right away (heats the air). It's a pretty warm house (now), but we are used to it, drink a lot of hot tea and dress warmly during the winter. When it's really cold we use floor heaters as well as the wood burning furnace. It's the north west rooms that are the coldest. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LauraGB Posted October 17, 2009 Share Posted October 17, 2009 We are seriously interested in buying a house built in 1906. One of our concerns is there is no ductwork upstairs, only the floor vents to allow heat up there. How comfortable will those upstairs bedrooms be? We live in Minnesota and have plenty of cold weather here. Thanks for your help! What is the heat source? Forced air, fireplaces, both? Hot water heat or something else? Does each room upstairs have at least 1 grate? We lived in a house like that when the kids were born. For the most part, if we wrapped the windows and otherwise helped stop other drafts, the upstairs was not toasty, but acceptable. We also switched all the ceiling fans on the main floor to turn the opposite way (dh's dad said to this and we did. I think the idea was to help blow the air up instead of down). On the really cold days, I mean the 20-30-40 + below days, we used a small oil space heater in the hallway upstairs and left all the doors open. I hope you buy the old house - I would love to go back to an old house! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harriet Vane Posted October 17, 2009 Share Posted October 17, 2009 I have a 100+yo fixer-upper. We have radiators to heat the first and second floors. We are in northern Illinois. We have an unheated attic that has three really leaky old windows. We have found that if we just leave the attic door open it warms up nicely there and is quite comfortable. As such, I think the house you are considering has a fighting chance at being warm enough. The number one factor in keeping this house warm is dealing with the drafts. We usually put plastic on the windows in the winter, and we dream of the day we can replace these leaky old single-pane windows with something of better quality. We have found that it's the first floor that is cold, and have actually started just living on the second floor most of the winter. We use one of the bedrooms as an office/schoolroom, so we only go downstairs to eat. We also have learned the value of wearing good quality slippers and of wearing an extra layer of insulation in the house. I either wrap a small blanket around my waist like a sarong or wear a light pair of nylon, windbreaker-style pants over my pants in the house. I am convinced that the house would be much warmer if the windows were not so leaky. Before worrying about heating ducts I would put a lot of energy into making sure the windows are good ones (though the concern about the heating is valid too). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LauraGB Posted October 17, 2009 Share Posted October 17, 2009 Another thing I just thought of was to put rolled up towels or cute looking "draft stoppers" in front of all outside doors. The wind would actually howl through the floor gap in our front door! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SonshineLearner Posted October 17, 2009 Share Posted October 17, 2009 We have an old house and I wouldn't suggest you thinking about it... unless... you like to sleep cold... or you have enough money for duct work to be put in... AND you can afford some insulation. You can add this paper mulch insulation. Our wood stove is great though and keeps our downstairs warm.... and sometimes the upstairs. My husband has fans that we have to reverse each day... warm one way... cool the other way... And then bringing in wood each day.... and those little heaters in the wall to be warm... We are always going to be broke due to our house. (can't get out of it... can't afford to really "fix" it) $5000 for plumbing... a couple summers ago... 3000 for water heating... no insulation in most of it... all electrical needs to be rerun... breaker box needs to be really "redone". Wood floors are yucky and uneven... Bathroom toilets have to be.. redone.... shower leaks... Carrie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Firefly Posted October 17, 2009 Share Posted October 17, 2009 We live in a 200/300 year old farmhouse (we've been given discrepant dates, so we're not exactly sure-- the earliest date we have is 1690, the oldest 1789... but I digress... ;)). It IS cold, and drafty at times! Usually only on the coldest, most blustery days of winter though. I am stubborn and refuse to give up the old crackly-glass windows. We have insulated the heck out of it though and managed other draft issues. . We have a wood stove in one of the central chimney fireplaces and once that huge chimney heats up, it's amazing... the house on the level stays surprisingly comfortable. The kitchen, family room and dining room (where we spend most of our time in the winter) are nice and toasty. The sleeping areas have cast iron heaters that we run a bit first thing in the a.m. and before bed to make changing and showering comfortable, but during the day we keep the thermostat low in those areas. The heat will find it's way upstairs to your bedrooms, but it will probably be quite a bit cooler up there. Personally I like a cool room for sleeping, though! IMO an old house is a wonderful thing; I wouldn't trade mine for anything. Good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnandtinagilbert Posted October 17, 2009 Share Posted October 17, 2009 I just want you all to know how much I enjoyed reading this thread. I would love to live in an old house and enjoy the "real" living of days gone by. Oddly, we actually just shut our a/c off last night, as FL has its first truly chilly day (at least for us Floridians). Our goal is usually the opposite...how to keep cool without a rocketing electric bill. We did well this year...we didn't turn the a/c on until the week before August! Keep warm old home dwellers! Enjoy the beauty of your well loved places! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JenninMN Posted October 17, 2009 Share Posted October 17, 2009 How is the insulation in this house? The old house I grew up in was insulated downstairs, but the people who had it before us didn't use the upstairs. So they not only didn't insulate the upstairs--they insulated BETWEEN the floors. Talk about cold bedrooms. And my parents were so worried about fires that they didn't let us use electric blankets until I was in high school. I remember a couple of REALLY cold nights, Mom made us sleep downstairs. I guess she was afraid we'd freeze. ;) Getting ready for bed was great: socks, long underwear, another pair of socks, footy pajamas, bathrobe. aaahh. . .memories One winter I got snow in my room, and it didn't melt until spring. Our next house, however, was well insulated throughout. Those rooms stayed MUCH warmer. They were cool, but not freezing. Jennifer Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Veronica in VA Posted October 17, 2009 Share Posted October 17, 2009 A woodstove works the best for us. We have a propane furnace but that helps only so much - especially since the ceilings are very high. My dh put a blower on the woodstove and that really helps circulate the air - along with the ceiling fans. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tap Posted October 17, 2009 Share Posted October 17, 2009 I grew up in a house from the 1800s. It was made of thick cast-stone and while it took a few days to really warm it up in the winter, the stone was a very good insulator once it was warm. My parents had storm windows put on over all the single pane windows in the winter. The house had huge walls of windows in every room, including the bedrooms. The storm windows made a big difference, and were much less noticeable than plastic. We shut off rooms during the day that weren't needed and closed the vents to redirect heat. We used space heaters in the bathrooms and to warm the downstairs bedrooms before bedtime. We used space heaters to warm the room and electric blankets to warm up the sheets in the upstairs bedrooms because there were no vents upstairs at all and they were closed off all day by a door at the bottom of the stair case. The main living areas of the house were always comfortable. I would call the electric company and find out how much they have been paying for their bills. You may also be able to find out how much gas/oil they have been burning too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeanne in MN Posted October 17, 2009 Author Share Posted October 17, 2009 So many answers, helpful ideas, and lovely memories. :) I'm pleased to hear warming the upstairs bedrooms may not be as difficult as I thought. We will definately be checking windows and insulation today. We know the owners spend about $90/month in heating, but there are only two of them and their bedroom is on the main floor. Don't know if they used the upstairs much or if were gone during the day and turned down heat or if they used the wood stove a lot. (It's in the basement). Lots of variables to consider. Thank you so much for your help! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Starr Posted October 17, 2009 Share Posted October 17, 2009 I would seriously consider how much money you have for utilities. Our house is 150 years old and in pretty good shape. It was updated in the 70s. I hear the sound of dropping coins in my head as the weather gets colder and the furnace is going more often. Also consider how much you want to use the upstairs rooms. Old houses can be grand in concept but not always in reality. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yslek Posted October 17, 2009 Share Posted October 17, 2009 Our house (Craftsman Bungalow) was built in 1910. We have forced air, and each of the two upstairs rooms has a vent near floor-level. Our problem is that the downstairs is rather cold (poor insulation) while the upstairs gets really warm. (Uncomfortably warm in D's room; she sleeps in shorts & tank top while dh & I are wearing sweat pants to bed!) We usually end up putting one of those oil-filled space heaters in the living room in the winter. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lori in tx Posted October 17, 2009 Share Posted October 17, 2009 Our house (Craftsman Bungalow) was built in 1910. We have forced air, and each of the two upstairs rooms has a vent near floor-level. Our problem is that the downstairs is rather cold (poor insulation) while the upstairs gets really warm. (Uncomfortably warm in D's room; she sleeps in shorts & tank top while dh & I are wearing sweat pants to bed!) We usually end up putting one of those oil-filled space heaters in the living room in the winter. We have the same problem... we have brick floors and while they are nice there is a crawl space under the house (where the neighbors feral cats live :001_huh:) and it traps a lot of cold air in the winter time and the downstairs is most of the time colder than outside Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keptwoman Posted October 17, 2009 Share Posted October 17, 2009 By the sound of what others are saying it really does depend on the house. Our last place was 2 storied. There were floor ducts downstairs, and because previous owners had obviously had the same issue, they had installed a completely seperate system in the ceiling up stairs, so perhaps that could be an option for you. We actually seldom needed to turn on the upstairs heating, the downstairs heating warmed both floors except on the really really cold days (which you may get far more of than we did) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeanne in MN Posted October 18, 2009 Author Share Posted October 18, 2009 and I don't think heating the upstairs will be a big issue. Nice, open vents to main downstairs rooms. Cold out today and upstairs felt as nice as the main level. Some windows are new, rest are decent. Thanks again! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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