# A question for the ladies....(of a certain age)



## Katenbill (Jun 11, 2018)

I have a question which might seem trivial, but is important to me:-

Being hormonally challenged I can’t regulate my temperature very well.
What sort of duvet tog is required during the winter? (I’ll be in Viñuela).
As I’ve only ever been in Spain during the summer and not needed a duvet, would the ladies recommend a 4.5 or a 10 tog or none at all?
The one on our bed here is about 13 tog but is far too warm for me and if its not necessary I will leave it behind and get a thinner one when we arrive.
I know its a subjective personal question but any advice/recommendation would be appreciated.

My cats have all gone to new homes, my husband is working away and i’m feeling a bit low, surrounded by boxes and end of year self assessment tax forms - so looking forward and dealing with the practical side of our big move is quite therapeutic.

Cheers in advance
Kate


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## stevesainty (Jan 7, 2011)

We have 3 x 4.5 tog duvets that we add or subtract as the temperatures change. EG 1 sheet July/August, duvet cover only June/Sept and 1, 2, or 3 x 4.5 tog duvets inside the cover, Velcro´ed at the corners to stop slippage, during the other months.


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

Don't forget that unless you have a very modern triple glazed, underfloor or fully centrally heated property, you'll almost certainly find that indoors in a Spanish home in the winter is MUCH colder than indoors during a UK winter. 

Even that ultra modern property will probably not be as warm as a UK house - fitted carpets make a huge difference!


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## Pesky Wesky (May 10, 2009)

UK or Spain, layering is the answer for me. At the moment i have a light tog duvet on the bed (not synthetic which seem to have a "cooking" effect), with a light bedspread. These can be kicked off during the night. Pijamas can be added to the mix - or not! Later on I'll put a thicker duvet on. I have a system like Steve Sainty's

Pijamas and dressing gown are great for being in the house in spring/ autumn where it's very likely to be colder than the outside temp.
All this and I do have a fully central heated house, but I do live in the Comunidad de Madrid


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## Overandout (Nov 10, 2012)

xabiachica said:


> Don't forget that unless you have a very modern triple glazed, underfloor or fully centrally heated property, you'll almost certainly find that indoors in a Spanish home in the winter is MUCH colder than indoors during a UK winter.
> 
> Even that ultra modern property will probably not be as warm as a UK house - fitted carpets make a huge difference!


That is assuming that the OP lives in a detached house of course. In apartment buildings these problems are not usual.


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## davexf (Jan 26, 2009)

Hola 

I have an electric duvet; not an electric blanket but a duvet that can be adjusted from 0 through 9. I like to go to a "toasty" bed so put it on half an hour before I go to bed and turn it down to 2 or 3 when get in. It keeps me at the same temperature all night 

Davexf


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## xabiaxica (Jun 23, 2009)

Overandout said:


> That is assuming that the OP lives in a detached house of course. In apartment buildings these problems are not usual.


Very true - for most the 'dream home in the sun' is a detached house with a pool though. That does tend to change after you've lived here for a while  

I live in an apartment in an old building. We have double glazing, but no heating nor aircon - we use moveable gas heaters & fans.

Last winter we hardly used the heaters, though this summer we did need a fan in each bedroom at night & in whichever room we were using during the day. 

My electricity bill was only very slightly higher this summer than last winter.


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## Overandout (Nov 10, 2012)

xabiachica said:


> Very true - for most the 'dream home in the sun' is a detached house with a pool though. That does tend to change after you've lived here for a while
> 
> I live in an apartment in an old building. We have double glazing, but no heating nor aircon - we use moveable gas heaters & fans.
> 
> ...


You are lucky that you have control over your energy spend and heating.

My flat is in a block with an antiquated central system (no regulation for individual radiators / apartments) which gets turned on in autumn and turned off in spring. We spend most of the winter in flip-flops and bermudas with the windows open :mad2:


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## Lynn R (Feb 21, 2014)

davexf said:


> Hola
> 
> I have an electric duvet; not an electric blanket but a duvet that can be adjusted from 0 through 9. I like to go to a "toasty" bed so put it on half an hour before I go to bed and turn it down to 2 or 3 when get in. It keeps me at the same temperature all night
> 
> Davexf


Yes! We have one of these too, one of the best household purchases we ever made. I never need to leave it on all night, though.

To me, bedclothes are a bit like the clothing solution in Spain. How many clothes you need to wear during a Spanish winter's day is complicated - warm clothes during the early hours before the sun has got up, layers shed progressively throughout the day until the sun starts to go down, then put back on again!

During the summer months we have just a top sheet on the bed - just this week, that has been supplemented by a light fleece blanket . In another few weeks the fleece will be replaced by a quilted bedspread, a few weeks after that the fleece may go back on again underneath the quilted bedspread. By the end of December the bedspread and fleece will be replaced by the electric duvet, which will stay on until about the end of March when the process will start in reverse.

In the coldest months I put on my fleece pjs and dressing gown when I get up, until it's time to have a shower.


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## Katenbill (Jun 11, 2018)

Thanks all
I’m liking the idea of an electric duvet. Will I find one in Eroski?


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## Lynn R (Feb 21, 2014)

Katenbill said:


> Thanks all
> I’m liking the idea of an electric duvet. Will I find one in Eroski?


I've never seen one on sale in Spain. When we first took ours to the local laundry/dry cleaners to be washed, he was amazed as he'd never seen such a thing. He was a bit dubious about washing it until I showed him the label that said it was washable.

If I were you I would buy in the UK and bring it with you - they don't ship to Spain. Ours is one of these:-

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Sleepwell-Percent-Intelliheat-Technology-Control/dp/B005HHUPII


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## Overandout (Nov 10, 2012)

Do they do refrigerated ones?

I spy a potential business opportunity!!


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## Alcalaina (Aug 6, 2010)

Katenbill said:


> I have a question which might seem trivial, but is important to me:-
> 
> Being hormonally challenged I can’t regulate my temperature very well.
> What sort of duvet tog is required during the winter? (I’ll be in Viñuela).
> ...


I would bring the 13 tog. As others have said, it gets very cold indoors during the winter. In summer I just use a sheet.

For spring and autumn, we use an "edredón microfibra", which is very light and soft and doesn't need a cover. You just chuck it in the washing machine. They come in all sorts of lovely colours and you can get them on Amazon.

If you share a bed, two separate single duvets is a good idea. They do this a lot in Germany. So if you get too hot, your husband doesn't freeze!


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## jimenato (Nov 21, 2009)

Alcalaina said:


> I would bring the 13 tog. As others have said, it gets very cold indoors during the winter. In summer I just use a sheet.
> 
> For spring and autumn, we use an "edredón microfibra", which is very light and soft and doesn't need a cover. You just chuck it in the washing machine. They come in all sorts of lovely colours and you can get them on Amazon.
> 
> If you share a bed, two separate single duvets is a good idea. They do this a lot in Germany. So if you get too hot, your husband doesn't freeze!


Yes - it's very tiresome having a hot woman next to you in bed.


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## jimenato (Nov 21, 2009)

Overandout said:


> Do they do refrigerated ones?
> 
> I spy a potential business opportunity!!


Too late...

https://sleepgadgets.io/best-bed-cooling-systems-fans-mattress-pads/


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## Overandout (Nov 10, 2012)

jimenato said:


> Too late...
> 
> https://sleepgadgets.io/best-bed-cooling-systems-fans-mattress-pads/


I quote from the site:

"Designed by ex-NASA engineer, Mark Aramli,"...

Good to see that my ideas are shared by such esteemed professionals!!


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## baldilocks (Mar 7, 2010)

I am 77 and SWMBO is *very slightly* under 60. She is warm blooded, I am cold. During the summer it is either just a sheet or au naturel. As the year progresses it is that addition of one or more very light blankets (IKEA) I think they are made of polyester until the cold arrives. Then the electric blanket goes on the bed for use when needed. I often turn mine on to warm the bed and then turn it off when I get in. At some point I will start to wear pyjamas. 

Yes, it can get cold here. The winter we moved here I got frost-bite!


P.S. Amazon Spain sell the heated duvets https://www.amazon.es/Dreamland-Sle...ntroles/dp/B01N5PA63B/ref=dp_ob_title_kitchen 
but they are currently unavailable (same as in UK)

BTW if you find something on Amazon UK and you want to find out if it is available on Amazon Spain, just change the .co.uk on the web address to .es


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## stevesainty (Jan 7, 2011)

As a retired firefighter I will have to apply due diligence and warn you about electric blankets/duvets. When you buy them the safety notices will almost certainly say that you need to have them tested once a year. There is no one to perform this task, and even if you found someone, the cost would be almost the same as a new purchase.

I have been to so many incidents started by misuse or faulty electric blankets.

We used to have an annual free testing station at the fire station with experts from the local university. 

At these annual events we confiscated at least 30% as being dangerous and 40% were deemed safe but with signs of internal degradation of the wiring and only 30% deemed OK.


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## Lynn R (Feb 21, 2014)

We might all be getting the duvets out rather sooner than we thought, if the weather forecast is right.

https://elpais.com/politica/2018/10/17/actualidad/1539772317_554932.html


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## Isobella (Oct 16, 2014)

We bought a duvet in Spain from El Corte Ingles which was really two a light one and a winter one. They clipped together easily. I know it's irrational but I am nervous about electric ones. My feet are the problem, never warm under 25C. ha ha.


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## Pesky Wesky (May 10, 2009)

Lynn R said:


> We might all be getting the duvets out rather sooner than we thought, if the weather forecast is right.
> 
> https://elpais.com/politica/2018/10/17/actualidad/1539772317_554932.html


Yes, be careful you people on the East of the country. Apparently that's where it's going to hit hardest. Keep away from rivers and if there are strong winds, away from coastal walks. And I'm not joking! Today they found the body of the 5 year old who was swept away in the floods in Majorca, bringing the total dead to 13


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## davexf (Jan 26, 2009)

stevesainty said:


> As a retired firefighter I will have to apply due diligence and warn you about electric blankets/duvets. When you buy them the safety notices will almost certainly say that you need to have them tested once a year. There is no one to perform this task, and even if you found someone, the cost would be almost the same as a new purchase.
> 
> I have been to so many incidents started by misuse or faulty electric blankets.
> 
> ...


Hola 

I really must take issue with this negative post; the instruction leaflet said that the electric duvet should be returned every THREE years for "service". The cost was very little and I remember a few years ago asking if a single heat control could be changed to dual heat control - the cost was ten pounds extra. 

Further - most electric blankets do not work on 220 volts but 24 volts so spilling a cup of tea etc is not so dangerous. 

If you own an electric blanket or duvet, no matter how old - then return to 
Service Centre,
PO Box 166
Middlewich
Cheshire
CW10 0ZU

I returned an old electric duvet and they offered me a new "bigger better brand new model" at just over half price - I bit their hand off !!! 

Davexf


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## stevesainty (Jan 7, 2011)

davexf said:


> Hola
> 
> I really must take issue with this negative post; the instruction leaflet said that the electric duvet should be returned every THREE years for "service". The cost was very little and I remember a few years ago asking if a single heat control could be changed to dual heat control - the cost was ten pounds extra.
> 
> ...


Hi DaveF, it was not a negative just just a caveat emptor. 

The danger I was referring to was not that of electrocution but of localised heat build up due to misuse or degradation of internal wiring,these are heating appliances after all. 

The fact that the company offered you a big discount proves that the appliance you returned was not economically serviceable. 

The three year service schedule will probably come with a proviso about the careful storage of the appliance during the summer months.

Finally, the fact that these appliances are usually brought here from UK, where the ambient temperatures are much lower, means that the internal wiring may degrade quicker due to the higher temperatures found in Spain.

I have no beef with these appliances, only relating my experiences with them in the past. Personally I would not own one.


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## The Skipper (Nov 26, 2014)

jimenato said:


> Yes - it's very tiresome having a hot woman next to you in bed.


Those were the days!


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## baldilocks (Mar 7, 2010)

stevesainty said:


> Hi DaveF, it was not a negative just just a caveat emptor.
> 
> *The danger I was referring to was not that of electrocution but of localised heat build up due to misuse or degradation of internal wiring,these are heating appliances after all.
> 
> ...


*I think you are clutching at straws on this one.*

*Nothing to do with whether it was economically serviceable - it was just to sell a new one!*
Former electrician.


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## jimenato (Nov 21, 2009)

baldilocks said:


> *I think you are clutching at straws on this one.*
> 
> *Nothing to do with whether it was economically serviceable - it was just to sell a new one!*
> Former electrician.


You've had a fair few job's haven't you Baldi?


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## baldilocks (Mar 7, 2010)

jimenato said:


> You've had a fair few job's haven't you Baldi?


Yep, all on the way to a peaceful retirement in Spain.


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## jimenato (Nov 21, 2009)

jimenato said:


> You've had a fair few job's haven't you Baldi?


Who put an apostrophe in my post?:noidea:


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