Heating Bub's Room In Winter - Advice Needed!

[MrsMiggins]

Luckily where we live it doesn't tend to get too cold for too long during winter. We usually only need to have the heater on for a week or two at night at the most.

But this is our first winter with bub & I am wondering what everyone does to keep their baby/ies warm during the colder months.

I would really love to put a heater in her room, but her room is at the opposite end of the house to ours & one of my biggest fears is a fire starting in her room during the night. Yes, we have smoke alarms, but frankly I would prefer not to have a fire in the first place!!

Is it safe to have a heater in there? What sort of heater would be the safest? It's not really an option to put a heater on just to warm the room up before going to bed, then turning it off, as it gets the coldest around 3-4am.

We do have an electric fan heater (a good one which I feel is reasonably safe), that has a timer on it. Do you think it would be safe to set it to turn on for an hour or two from 3am or so??

I am a bit of a nervous mum!

[aardvark]

We have ducted heating, but if we didn't, I'd get an oil column heater for baby's room.

They take a while to warm up, but they are very effective. We borrowed one from one of the mum's at DD#2's creche when our ducted heating unit died during a cold snap a few years back, and it was really good.

[Kat =^.^=]

I WOULDN'T use a fan heater in a baby's room - it takes all the moisture out of the air and can lead to respiratory troubles and dry eyes etc.

Get an oil/column heater (doesn't need to be big) but make sure it has a thermometer and timer on it. If you're super nervous make sure you have a surge guard at the power point. Set the timer and temp and you'll be sweet.

Just don't ever leave anything draped over it.

We still use this method for my little girls room. And plan on using it for the baby too.

[MumsieMel]

We use the oil heaters, only small ones and you can set the thermo stat also.

And if your really worried, you can turn it on when they go to bed and off when you go to bed. :thumbsup:

[MamaSage]

We have one of these in our daughters room
http://www.econoheatsa.com.au/econoheatpanels.html
We leave it on all night, perfectly safe. They use them in some nursing homes and leave them on all winter. We did not notice any difference to our power bill either.

[ETsMum]

I would say get a little oil heater, but don't put it close to her bed/cot/curtains etc. And I would probably leave the door open or half open (not sure what others would say about this) for air circulation.

We have a thermometer in DS room, so we can see how cold it actually is... sometimes it feels colder than it really is when you've just jumped out of a nice warm bed. Ours is just on a shelf, but if you get one don't put it on a wall/shelf up against the external wall, cause then the readings could be wrong.

Have you thought about using sleeping bags - if you aren't already, so she can't kick off the covers?

If you are worried about the room drying out, you could just put a glass of water somewhere in the room to add a bit of moisture. That is what I've heard people who are in aircon for a long time should do. Prob work the same way in a warm room.

[Jax Tellers Old Lady]

I use a oli heater in my sons room and its really good as he wont keep his blankets on so with the heater he stays warm. If you use one i suggest that you put a bowl of water in the room so that the air doesnt get to dry. I do this and leave his door open a wee bit and it works well

[MrsMiggins]

Thanks all! I'm going to have to look into it.

Our monitor has a built in digital thermometer (which I find utterly invaluable!) so we know what the temp is like all day/night long. It also displays the temp on the parent's unit so we know what the temp is without even going in there. (And I think you are spot-on about the temps feeling warmer/cooler than it actually is sometimes, Len! I've noticed that a lot!)

Claire does kick the covers off 100% of the time :rolleyes: so I always try to dress her warmly (difficult when it's still warm at the time I put her to bed though ~ sigh!) and I've thought about those sleeping bags, but I'm not sure how she'd go as she always got very frustrated being wrapped.

[ETsMum]

That sounds like a great monitor... I am always getting up to see how cold DS room is... :)

[MrsMiggins]

Oh, it's the best!!! I wanted this particular one, but couldn't get my hands on it. I was tempted several times over to buy a different one, but in the end I was so glad I held out!

It's the Tomy Walkabout Premier Digital. A bit on the pricey side, but well worth every cent!

[kylie80]

try Grobag baby sleeping bags. babies can not kick off any covers and stay warm all night. Grobag also do a Egg digital thermometer which is great. You can go to www.bumpto3.com.au to view all there products I have bought lots of stuff from there.

[annsam]

I have a delongi bambino heater - it has rounded sides for the bub so they dont cut themselves if they fall into it, its small, thermostat controlled and oil filled bar heater.

My DS likes the cold though so I have a couple of quilted full body suites and hes rather happy if his body is snug but his head is cold.

[Imsooverit]

Hey sweetie.

I've got a small fan heater (Delongi) which I bought last year. It seems to have a built in thermometer because I can put it on low and it will shut itself off when it gets to a certain temperature and start back up when the temperature drops.

Anyway, I've put a bowl of water at the end of Jazz's cot so there is still moisture in the air. I leave the heater in the hall out side Jazz's room but facing towards her room. I usually wake during the early hours and turn the heater on. Usually about 3ish. If I don't wake, she'll wake me!:D

I also put her in either a sleeping bag or polar fleece jump suit with a tshirt underneath (she won't keep the blankets on either). As it is warmer up here, I usually put the fan on when she goes to bed and turn it off when I go to bed.

Is that understandable???

[annb]

I can thoroughly recommend the snugtime blanket sleepers if you dont want to use the grow bags, they mean the baby can move their legs around a lot easier, and you can get 2 thicknesses, one single layer or a double layer for when its really cool and plus they can stay in them in the morning to run around when its still cold
i have one of those as well as an oil filled colum heater which is on a timer to come on around 4am when the temperature usually dips

[LucyE]

We used sleeping bags for DS until this summer when it was too hot for anything and now he won't use one anymore :( They are good for bubs who don't like being wrapped and constricted because they can still kick their legs freely. I liked the Grobag brand ones because they are a higher quality than most others on the market and we also have a very luxurious goose down one that I purcahsed from America (it's Canadian made).

As for heaters - I would go for the new ceramic ones. They heat the air in a different way than traditional heaters so the whole unit stays cool to the touch. You can even leave a tissue on it and it won't ignite! We have a Sunbeam one which has an inbuilt digital thermostat and auto function so I can set it to a certain temp and it will only switch on if the temp falls below that. It also has an auto shut off if the unit gets tipped over. We have a r/c wall unit in DS's room but I purchased this ceramic heater for my parent's house because it was the one I was most comfortable with using around bub. They are also very energy efficient.

[MrsMiggins]

Thanks everyone! This thread has certainly given me some great options to look at. I might go out and have a look around to see what sort of heaters are good. Some of the ones that have been posted on here I didn't even know existed! (Obviously it's been a few years since we last bought a heater!)

annb, I have not heard of the snugtime blanket sleepers. They sound ideal - where can you buy those from?

One question about the sleeping bags - I have been umming & ahhing about buying one, but do any of your bubs have any problems with rolling over in it? Claire rolls around quite a bit & I thought that she might get a bit tangled in it - do you know what I mean?

Storm, I thought about putting the heater in the hallway too, but then I was thinking that we'd have to leave her door open for that (obviously!) and she currently sleeps with the door closed, being such a light sleeper. Good idea about the bowl of water too, so you obviously find this works? We might do that too.

[LucyE]

We have a Snugtime babysleeper but to be honest I'm not very impressed with it. In theory it is great but I wished that they would use better quality materials because I perfer something more natural than polarfleece or something thicker than their velour one. DS was a major wriggler during sleep and was able to roll around without problems in a sleeping bag as well as shuffle up and down the length of the bed.

[Tam-I-Am]

You can buy the snugtime blanket sleeping bags from most target stores, also a lot of specialist baby shops carry them, and you can buy them online a thttp://www.snugtime.com.au/

[annb]

with the snugtime blanket sleepers get the more expensive one which target dont often have, they most often only sell the single layer ones, i had to get my double layer from myer, they are much warmer than the single one which is really just like a fleece. my little boy moves around a lot and the grobag just didnt allow him that freedom of movement!! tho it was great when he was smaller

[kylie80]

I would never put my child in a snug time as they are not thermal rated. I use Grobags which are thermal rated. and come in 3 different thickness. My son is such a figet and moves around the cot all night and has no problem with tangelling.
Good luck.

[Rockett]

As for heaters - I would go for the new ceramic ones. They heat the air in a different way than traditional heaters so the whole unit stays cool to the touch. You can even leave a tissue on it and it won't ignite! We have a Sunbeam one which has an inbuilt digital thermostat and auto function so I can set it to a certain temp and it will only switch on if the temp falls below that. It also has an auto shut off if the unit gets tipped over. We have a r/c wall unit in DS's room but I purchased this ceramic heater for my parent's house because it was the one I was most comfortable with using around bub. They are also very energy efficient.

Lucy,just wondering where you bought this heater from,and how much it was? Is it a column or fan heater? It sounds good,and I'd like to get one for DD's room.

[LucyE]

We purchased it from Retravision but I have also seem them all over the place - like Clive Peters, Myer, David Jones, Harvey Normal. So basically most electrical stores. It's not like any of the traditional heaters. It's probably best to go into a store and see it for yourself :) I just love how safe they are around my very curious toddler.

[mamachops]

It sounds like I have the same heater as LucyE. Wow it's good. Cost $159 from Myer, but you can get cheaper ceramics. They are much more efficiect than normal fan heaters, but they do still blow the air around.

I set the temp not to warm the room so much, but to prevent it dropping below 18degrees. Otherwise I just tog her up a bit ina grobag.

Only downside is that despite being pretty quiet, it wakes me up when it switches on (DD is still in our room):(

[MrsMiggins]

Ahhhhh.... I never thought about that. DD is a VERY light sleeper. I wonder if it'd wake her up?

[justtwogirls22]

mrs miggins - only just saw this thread & i use an oil heater with a thermostat & that keeps the room nice & warm - also put eliana is a sleeping bag (got ones from big w & best & less) eliana's never had a problem with moving around in fact she walks around in it in the morning!

[Rockett]

Thanks Lucy.I ended up buying an oil/column heater today with a thermostat and timer.So far so good.

But I'm wondering is it safe to leave it on all night? It's quite cold here tonight and I've got it heating the room at 20 degrees and have just dressed bub in a singlet,bonds suit and a fleece sleep suit.I don't use blankets.
I haven't set the timer because she'll get cold when it goes off only being dressed in that much clothing,so have decided to leave it running all night if thats ok to do?


Also a question for anyone who uses heaters....I know it depends where you live but what temp do you set the room to and what do you dress bub in? This is the first time I've used a heater in DD's room and I'm just a tad unsure/nervous of what I should be doing to make sure she doesn't overheat etc.

[cheezelkat]

I use an oil heater and a sleeping bag. I set the heater to high an hour before Ds's bedtime, then turn it down to halfway when he goes to bed (dressed in his sleeping bag). When I go to bed, its turned off completely. When I wake up for a feed and DF wakes up in the morning to go to work, one of us switches it on again, although I should really invest in a timer. I'm too scared to leave it going on allnight just in case, but when I was a teenager I often did it to keep my room nice and toasty (it's very different when you pay the bill though :D )

[nessaw1978]

Last year we used an oil column heater. This year we are getting ducted heating so all rooms in the house are warm - this way we're not taking dd from a warm room into a cold room.

Also a safer option (And more energy efficient) with mobile children.

Vanessa:thumbsup:

[Dannielle]

I ALWAYS make sure I turn off the heater before going to bed!

I used to have an oil heater on low during the night in the girls room but one night I got a shock.:eek: I woke up and thought I could hear a strange noise and found out the heater was sparking.:eek: I still don't know how I could have heard it because their room isn't near our room.