Winter Heating

[Teamedup]

I live in the Alps and we certainly need to heat our property all of the winter months, and certainly most of autumn and a lot of spring time too.

I have heard on here how cold the Dordogne can be in winter......... which surprised me, but I live and learn.

So is there anywhere in France that manages to avoid winter heating bills. Maybe La Corse, there again, I think it has been established recently that there doesn't seem to be any posters who live there.

Our gas and electricity for the year comes to over £1000.

[Val_2]

Well here on the north west coast of Finistère it very rarely gets below 0°C in the depths of winter and frosts are quite rare although if you go perhaps two miles up the road they are evident when the winds come down from the North. Last winter we went from Morlaix down to Carhaix and the temperature dropped nearly 5°,so the centre of Brittany does get cold. I've not worn a big winter coat since that last deep snow of 1997. What we do get though, are very strong gales and a lot of rain which does bring the temperature down somewhat,but usually just under one corde of wood is sufficient to keep us warm from about mid November through to beg of March and that is with having a lighted stove nearly every day for a few hours as these old houses with one metre thick walls retain the heat for days on end along with lots of insulation and double glazing. You have my sympathys for having to spend such a lot of money on keeping warm as this was about what it used to cost us back in the Uk with 24/7 gas heating for about five months of the year.

[zeb]

I'm surprised TeamedUp! I would have thought that after living in France for so long, you would have known that the temperature drops during the winter months throughout France - doubt anyone can do without some form of heating.

If you want winter warmth maybe you should move to Spain or further south.

I think you will get cold in Newcastle!

regards......helen

 

[letrangere]

Haven't lived permanently but have spent time on Cote d'Azur in winter and it can be quite damp as well as cold.  Inland, obviously, it gets very cold as it gets higher and lots of snow too not that far from the coast.  And most of the Vaucluse, even the lower parts, can be freezing.  Shall never forget getting off TGV at Avignon one December and finding it far colder (though drier) than Paris.

Ideal level of warmth is a very personal thing but to get reliable winter weather - without the winter rain of the western Mediterranean, even parts of north Africa - I would suspect you have to go a long way east, ie to Cyprus, which IMHO has a perfect climate.

Few residents will admit this but the Dordogne can be positively miserable in winter, not only cold but rains like mad too for weeks on end.

M

[Miki]

Few residents will admit this but the Dordogne can be positively miserable in winter, not only cold but rains like mad too for weeks on end.

If they didn't admit that fact, then they would not only be suffering blue noses Margaret but they would be the size of Pinnochio's as well !!

We used to get absolutely cheesed off with the length of the dark cold, wet days and nights of winter when we lived there.

Undeniably beautiful region but spot on for observance about winter though.

[letrangere]

Miki, you brave man!  I agree, one of the most beautiful parts of France.  For me the view from the battlements of Beynac Chateau is one of the best on earth.  But I can't help smiling when permanent resident friends wax lyrical about the weather.  Was standing in a girlfriend's salon one morning in late February, despite the central heating and the beautiful, though totally worthless open fire, it was so cold I could see my breath.  Outside it was bucketing down with rain, had to borrow a pair of wellies later to get to the car.  Rain pouring down the lane nearly carrying the dog off in its wake, and it didn't stop for the entire ten days.  Guess that's why it's so green though.  M

[Quillan]

You should try it down here (Aude). We live in the foothills of the Pyrenees (the mountains start to rise about 100M from our house). Loads of Brits come down this way thinking it will be nice and warm then when winter comes with the snow, rain and ice they then talk about moving to Spain although this last winter it was not much better there either.

 

The winters are shorter but we don’t get off that easily, we get much the some as every one else it’s just crammed in to a shorter time scale. The other side of the coin is that we have had about 5 hours of rain since May. We are lucky to have the river and irrigate the garden by pumps although all the grass is brown at the moment. If you like cepe (spelling wrong I think) mushrooms expect to pay a lot this year as there are none at the moment.

[opas]

Do you think my neighbour knows something I don`t? I am sat here having 1/2 an hour with my mates(you lot!) when a waggon turns up.......can you tell I`ve settled into village life? so I have to have a nosey.....Its the Fioul tanker, cant even think of having a pair of jeans on never mind a fire! Still could be worse,spoke with my dad last night, Asda have got the Christmas stock on the shelves

[Val_2]

[quote]Do you think my neighbour knows something I don`t? I am sat here having 1/2 an hour with my mates(you lot!) when a waggon turns up.......can you tell I`ve settled into village life? so I have to have ...[/quote]

You have to be kidding - xmas stuff already!! Don't know about anyone else but since living in France each year dramatically gets less and less commercial and more "home made" and traditional with less money going on presents each year and instead buying good quality food and wine along with celebrating like we did when we were little and there wasn't 24hr TV and satellite which means more games and own entertainments.

[letrangere]

Absolutely true, Val, apparently.  I read that Harrods opened its Christmas hall in mid-August.  M

[Richard-R]

[quote]Absolutely true, Val, apparently. I read that Harrods opened its Christmas hall in mid-August. M[/quote]

Christmas comes but once a year...but now lasts for 4-5 months. Where i live in Aude it can get a little chilly in winter but last year it never dropped below 0c TG. Windows open from may till october for fresh air. Soon as the temp drops below 20c on go the the rads and petrole heater...hate the cold and dressing for it. Only good thing about the cold weather is that i use less fuel in the car running the aircon.

[letrangere]

"Christmas comes but once a year...but now lasts for 4-5 months"

Ah, but not in France, thankfully, Richard.  Something else that new arrivals wanting to buy their cards and wrapping paper in October (or even late November) should be made aware of.  In fact, I remember thinking my first Christmas that perhaps Christmas didn't happen at all in France, which of course, it doesn't, at least as we know it.  Dare I again say thank goodness? M

[Clarkkent]

"Christmas comes but once a year...but now lasts for 4-5 months"

“Christmas didn't happen at all in France, which of course, it doesn't, at least as we know it.  Dare I again say thank goodness? M”

No, but they have imported Halloween from America – which is about as culturally relevant as Japanese knot weed.

[Miki]

No, but they have imported Halloween from America – which is about as culturally relevant as Japanese knot weed.

..................but a lot more fun than trick or treating with a weed I would have thought and anyway, what is culturally relevant about Xmas?

Halloween is seriously much older than Xmas and in fact is very relevant to our part of France. The Celts celebrated their New Year on November 1st. It was celebrated every year with a festival and marked the end of the "season of the sun" and the beginning of "the season of darkness and cold."......

I have to add, Xmas here is a lot more "in the face" than it was over 15 years ago and come to think of it, so is Easter, never seen so many eggs in the months or more leading up to Pacques!

France always finally catches up with the UK who in turn catch up with the USA,  it is a natural kind of pecking order..........

 

[Isaacsnana]

I have heard on here how cold the Dordogne can be in winter......... (quote)

 

well - I live here, and I fully admit it.  It's rainy, grey and miserable in the winter.  We usually have a cold snap either just before or just after Xmas. Leave a bucket of water outside, and it will freeze, no -not just the top - all of it, you cant remove the mop!! 

However, in the summer (when we get one, discount 2004) it is wonderful, no better place on earth. Likewise, autumn, rivals New England for colour, and spring is heavenly 

[Iceni]

Miki

I thought that christmas had only only hijacked the old winter sostice celebrations so the 25/12 (ish) thing is possibly as old as hallowe'en ?

Neither of us is a christian nor do we see the point of squandering our hard earned loot so that day just passes us by. Now St Stephens Day, with the chance to blast a few birds from the sky was a different matter.  

John

[Boghound]

[quote]Miki I thought that christmas had only only hijacked the old winter sostice celebrations so the 25/12 (ish) thing is possibly as old as hallowe'en ? Neither of us is a christian nor do we see the po...[/quote]

I thought you celebrated the "Festival of Lights" ?

[Nathalie]

Gosh you guys have got me worried now.

I grew up in Boulogne sur Mer and my parents didn't have central heating so our house was cold - no, flipping freezing! - in the winter.  However, my brother's house is perfectly fine (he lives in the same area).

We've just bought a house in Brittany and we're going in November and hopefully for New Year.  It's an old property and has central heating and two fireplaces - but will it be the freezing pile of bricks that some of you seem to suffer?!!  I suppose we'll find out when we get there.  The fact the owner offered to sell us quite a powerful heater is maybe another indication (although they too used it as a holiday home, and they were elderly) but I'm a cold mortal anyway (I'm sitting in an air conditioned office with my coat on!!!) so I'm starting to panic now!!!

Just out of interest, did anyone look into winters and heating etc when they were looking to buy property?  It wasn't something that crossed our minds (especially as the house has central heating installed anyway).

Best get the long johns out, just in case.

Nathalie

[letrangere]

"just out of interest, did anyone look into winters and heating etc when they were looking to buy property"

Most definitely.  That's how we discovered how grim it is in 24 in winter.  Anyway, winter is by far the best time to view properties for you get a warts and all picture.  M

[Miki]

Miki,

I thought that christmas had only only hijacked the old winter sostice celebrations so the 25/12 (ish) thing is possibly as old as hallowe'en ?

I read somewhere that Halloween is thousands of year old and Christmas can't be that old can it!

 

[Dick Smith]

I think most of our Christmas comes from the Roman feast of Saturnalia - this is from the History Channel website:

"In Rome, where winters were not as harsh as those in the far north, Saturnalia—a holiday in honor of Saturn, the god of agriculture—was celebrated. Beginning in the week leading up to the winter solstice and continuing for a full month, Saturnalia was a hedonistic time, when food and drink were plentiful and the normal Roman social order was turned upside down. For a month, slaves would become masters. Peasants were in command of the city. Business and schools were closed so that everyone could join in the fun.

Also around the time of the winter solstice, Romans observed Juvenalia, a feast honoring the children of Rome. In addition, members of the upper classes often celebrated the birthday of Mithras, the god of the unconquerable sun, on December 25."

Sounds quite familiar, doesn't it?

Then there's the Norse Yuletide:

"In Scandinavia, the Norse celebrated Yule from December 21, the winter solstice, through January. In recognition of the return of the sun, fathers and sons would bring home large logs, which they would set on fire. The people would feast until the log burned out, which could take as many as 12 days. The Norse believed that each spark from the fire represented a new pig or calf that would be born during the coming year."

This may suggest older Indo-European festivals which mutated into local variations.

You notice the Mithras similarities? This also passed into the cult of Sol Invictus (which is probably what Constantine believed in and saw Christ as another variant of - shining haloes, son of the sun etc.)

[Dick Smith]

I do like the History Channel!

Here is the Halloween story:

"Halloween's origins date back to the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain (pronounced sow-in). The Celts, who lived 2,000 years ago in the area that is now Ireland, the United Kingdom, and northern France, celebrated their new year on November 1. This day marked the end of summer and the harvest and the beginning of the dark, cold winter, a time of year that was often associated with human death. Celts believed that on the night before the new year, the boundary between the worlds of the living and the dead became blurred. On the night of October 31, they celebrated Samhain, when it was believed that the ghosts of the dead returned to earth."

There is much more at

http://www.historychannel.com/exhibits/halloween/hallowmas.html