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One pick per budget
A 2-litre hot water bottle with a cover
Everyone, immediately
The best pound-for-warmth purchase in Britain. Look for the BS 1970 mark, fill it from a flask, and replace it every couple of years because rubber perishes.
Heat Holders thermal blanket
The sofa
From the people who make the absurdly warm socks. A fleece throw this thick over a jumper does more than you’d think.
Silentnight heated throw
Cold snaps, and power cuts if you own a power station
Uses about as much electricity as an old light bulb, so it costs around 3p an hour to run at current capped rates. In a cut, a mid-sized power station will run one all evening.
Vango Nitestar Alpha 350 sleeping bag
Nights without heating
A three-season bag on top of the bed turns an unheated bedroom from an ordeal into camping, which children regard as a treat.
What more money buys. Not much, and that’s the good news. Warmth is the cheapest thing on this site to sort out.
What to skip. Foil “space blankets” as a main plan. Fine in the car, noisy and miserable on the sofa.
The free bits
- Close the curtains at dusk and shut every internal door.
- Wear a hat indoors. You’ll look daft and feel marvellous.
- Layers beat one thick jumper. Thermal socks are the single best upgrade.
- Draught excluder tape costs a few pounds and works all winter, power cut or not.
- Check on older neighbours. Cold is harder on them than on you.
What about a gas heater?
Portable gas cabinet heaters are made for indoor use and plenty of people rely on them. They also need a ventilated room, a carbon monoxide alarm and a 15kg cylinder that you’ll be collecting from a forecourt, not Amazon. I’m not going to pick one for you. If you buy one, read the manual twice and never use it in a bedroom.
Paraffin heaters, patio heaters and anything designed for outdoors stay outdoors.