Handy Housing Hints #1 Dubble Glazing

Students can put up with a lot. Mouldy shower – meh. Seven weeks’ worth of bottles stacked outside the front door – no problem. Ten days washing up on the side – c’est la vie. But room temperature of 11 degrees Celsius …. well this is where I draw the line.

Just chilling in my room …

If humans were meant to stroll around happily at anything under 16 degrees, without having to resort to extra layers, they would have been born with fur. As it is my dressing gown and I have developed a very intimate relationship this year, while one housemate treats her hot water bottle like a baby – to be held close to the body at all times with tender, loving care.

Some people may say ‘well if it’s that bloody cold turn on the heating’. Well smart arse we have. Multiple times. But in an old Victorian terrace with ceilings like ball rooms and windows like clingfilm our diddy radiators never had a chance. The Romans invented central heating. Someone should really have told the Victorians about double glazing.

Sun? Who needs sun

In attempt to retain heat my curtains have been tightly drawn for the last two months, but this means a) I don’t get any sunlight while indoors and b) I have to stare at some really fugly curtains all day.

The solution to this problem was suggested by my mum (whether in jest or not I don’t know, but too late – the deed is done). I should cover my window in bubble wrap for extra insulation. Who needs double glazing when you have dubble glazing, right?

Since a massive roll of bubble wrap was only £3 off Amazon I ordered away, rather to the postman’s surprise when he delivered it. Armed with masking tape (N.B. always use masking tape in such operations to avoid ripping off half the paint on your window sill when you leave, and having extortionate amounts being swiped off your damage deposit) I mounted my desk chair and set to work.

Ta da!

Though the odd bits of masking tape aren’t exactly aesthetically pleasing, the bubble wrap itself just looks like (cheap) frosted glass, and as it’s transparent it still lets light through the window. Voila! Instant dubble glazing.

Who needs crystal clear vision? Think of all the extra privacy!

Though drawbacks involve impaired visibility (unless I put my face reaaallly close to the window), and the fact that my friends think it would be hilarious to pop it, dubble glazing has proven to be both a cheap and effective way of racking up the temperature in my room a couple of degrees. Now I’m as snug as a bug in … well, in just a dressing gown instead of a dressing gown and a hoody. This is a student house after all, and I’m not a miracle worker.