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[deleted] t1_j0li6so wrote

Reply to comment by [deleted] in How does high humidity affect perceived temperature in hot and cold environments? by MindTheReddit

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Dr_Vesuvius t1_j0lqxuw wrote

No, I don’t think so.

Firstly the UK’s humidity is one of the reasons why winters are relatively mild compared to Poland (for example).

The reason the UK struggles when snow falls is because we’re not so cold that snow is inevitable. People, business, and the government mostly aren’t prepared for snow and ice.

I’m in London which is one of the warmest parts of the country (southern + eastern + urban heat island) and we haven’t got anywhere close to -10. Our coldest nights might have got as low as -5 but every day has been above 0 except maybe Monday. I’d guess you’re probably in Scotland or Northern Ireland, maybe NW England or North Wales?

If we were like Canada, Northern Europe, or inland US, then local government, railway operators, and motorists would always be prepared for low temperatures and would react accordingly. The UK is not.

I will say that this week’s snow was met by the best response I can remember. There was a big snowstorm about ten years ago (maybe 2010?) that made normal life very difficult. By the time I left the house for work Monday morning, the main roads were clear, the pavements were gritted, trains were running as normal, and most Tube lines were partially open.

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[deleted] t1_j0lrrm0 wrote

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Dr_Vesuvius t1_j0ltj95 wrote

Ah, gotcha.

So I think there are three issues wrt. sensory sentiment.

  1. we’re sheltered by our humidity and the Gulf Stream, so we aren’t toughened against cold the way that Minnesotans (for example) are. We don’t wrap up as warm as those people do. I don’t own thermal underwear or insulated trousers, for example.

  2. our homes are generally poorly insulated. Right now it is 12 degrees in my house. The walls, loft, and floor are not insulated and the curtains have limited thermal properties.

  3. humid air takes longer to warm up. If you are drying laundry inside then you need to run the heater for longer to feel warm.

Suspect if you dropped a British person moaning about the cold somewhere dry and cold, they’d still moan about the cold. We like a very narrow temperature range!

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[deleted] t1_j0lv0kd wrote

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squirlol t1_j0n7ejk wrote

Mate, if you're bothered by the cold at the moment, get yourself some merino thermals/base layers (if you can afford them, smartwool, icebreaker, or similar brands are the best, but there are much cheaper options too). I'm from New Zealand where the weather is even milder than here in the UK (rarely goes below 0), but our houses are even more useless, often completely uninsulated and very draughty. So we're used to indoor temps of below 10 in the winter. When I was a student sometimes it was below 5 degrees, just the same temperature inside and out. Lived in thermals all winter as a matter of course. Now I've just brought that habit along with me to the UK and I'm finding it extremely comfortable here this winter.

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[deleted] t1_j0naeh5 wrote

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squirlol t1_j0nha8q wrote

Yeah, they don't overheat easily, if it's less than about 20 inside they're very comfortable for me, tolerable up to maybe 23. But they still make a huge difference outdoors or when it's cold inside. I wear mine to/at work, we have the office at 19 I believe.

They don't require a lot of washing, they still smell fine after 4-5 wears if you don't, like, exercise in them. Downside is they do need to be washed with wool detergent rather than normal laundry powder/liquid, but that's not a huge deal.

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