Bedrooms/ Living areas
Heating. First of all, there are radiators in each room. I know some houses in the States have these too, but it's never something we've lived with. So we can't just set the thermostat at a nice, comfortable temperature and leave it. I know, it's not a big deal. It is a difference though, so I've included it.
We also have fireplaces in each bedroom, the living room, and the dining room, but as far as I know they're no longer functional.
We also have fireplaces in each bedroom, the living room, and the dining room, but as far as I know they're no longer functional.
Cooling. There's also no air conditioning. And no built in fans. You cool your dwelling by opening windows, but there aren't any screens on these windows, so you just have an open hole. We'll see how this goes next summer...
Windows. Speaking of open windows, we have to at least crack them at times all year long. Since we get a good amount of rain, and not a lot of ventilation, mold can grow very easily. So you have to try to keep the house dry. Also, we, like many others around here, have only single glazed windows. Even when the windows are closed, it's chilly and drafty. It's not uncommon for Americans to have astronomical hearing bills when they move here, because we're used to having warm houses. For now we have several throws in the living room to keep the chill off.
No closets. That's right, most places don't have closets at all, not even in the bedrooms (the horror). Fortunately, Miles and Lily's room has a built in wardrobe, and there's another large built in wardrobe in the hallway for Matt and me. Sorry, Clara, you're out of luck.
Kitchen/Bath
Faucets. In the States, we're used to mixer taps, where the hot and cold water flow through one faucet. In the UK, it's not uncommon to have two separate faucets, one for hot and one for cold. So after using the toilet, you get to choose whether you want to wash with over cold or soon to be scalding hot water. All of our rooms have mixer taps except one, so that's nice.
Outlets. There are no outlets (besides shaver outlets) in bathrooms, at least not in any of the places we've stayed. This doesn't bother me, since I rarely use blow dryers and heat styling tools. Another thing is that the outlets each have on/off switches. It took some time to get used to turning on the plug before using it, but now I like this feature since it saves electricity.
Small and slow washing machine. Wait, we're talking about the kitchen, right? Yep, unless there's a utility room (and there usually isn't), washers are located in the kitchen. They don't hold a lot, and are terribly slow. I think mine takes between 1-2 hours to wash a load, which means I'm never caught up. Naturally, this leads us to...
Dryers. Some places (like our apartment) don't have a dryer at all, and most of the places that do have condenser dryers. Instead of blowing hot air over the clothes and expelling the moisture through a vent, all air is sealed in the machine. The air blows through the clothes, and the water condenses into another receptacle. The first time I used one of these, I ran it about 5 times and the clothes never got dry. Matt's been told that a nice dryer can work well, but I'm skeptical. I'll still get one though, since I really dislike crunchy clothes that have been drying all over my kitchen.
Small appliances. Our fridge is a typical UK size, which is between the size of a US refrigerator and a mini fridge, ha. It's been working for us so far, but you can't fit a gallon of milk in the door. It's an adjustment since we were weekly Costco shoppers in Colorado. Also, the oven is very small. The movers forgot to pack our flat pans, like cookie sheets. But it's just as well, since none of them would fit anyway. Basically my 9"x13" plans just fit inside. Thanksgiving will certainly be interesting this year - we may be eating a chicken!
Kitchen sink. I nearly forgot about my least favorite inconvenience (tied with the dryer)! Our kitchen sink is tiny. I can fit my crock pot in it, but washing it is a major pain. But I think the worst part is not having a garbage disposal. I can't stand cleaning slimy stuff out of the little basket thing. Yuck!
And that's a quick tour of the differences within the house. Really none of the difficulties are insurmountable, but it does take some time to get used to a new normal.
No closets. That's right, most places don't have closets at all, not even in the bedrooms (the horror). Fortunately, Miles and Lily's room has a built in wardrobe, and there's another large built in wardrobe in the hallway for Matt and me. Sorry, Clara, you're out of luck.
 |
| This is the one in the hallway |
Kitchen/Bath
Faucets. In the States, we're used to mixer taps, where the hot and cold water flow through one faucet. In the UK, it's not uncommon to have two separate faucets, one for hot and one for cold. So after using the toilet, you get to choose whether you want to wash with over cold or soon to be scalding hot water. All of our rooms have mixer taps except one, so that's nice.
Outlets. There are no outlets (besides shaver outlets) in bathrooms, at least not in any of the places we've stayed. This doesn't bother me, since I rarely use blow dryers and heat styling tools. Another thing is that the outlets each have on/off switches. It took some time to get used to turning on the plug before using it, but now I like this feature since it saves electricity.
Small and slow washing machine. Wait, we're talking about the kitchen, right? Yep, unless there's a utility room (and there usually isn't), washers are located in the kitchen. They don't hold a lot, and are terribly slow. I think mine takes between 1-2 hours to wash a load, which means I'm never caught up. Naturally, this leads us to...
Dryers. Some places (like our apartment) don't have a dryer at all, and most of the places that do have condenser dryers. Instead of blowing hot air over the clothes and expelling the moisture through a vent, all air is sealed in the machine. The air blows through the clothes, and the water condenses into another receptacle. The first time I used one of these, I ran it about 5 times and the clothes never got dry. Matt's been told that a nice dryer can work well, but I'm skeptical. I'll still get one though, since I really dislike crunchy clothes that have been drying all over my kitchen.
Small appliances. Our fridge is a typical UK size, which is between the size of a US refrigerator and a mini fridge, ha. It's been working for us so far, but you can't fit a gallon of milk in the door. It's an adjustment since we were weekly Costco shoppers in Colorado. Also, the oven is very small. The movers forgot to pack our flat pans, like cookie sheets. But it's just as well, since none of them would fit anyway. Basically my 9"x13" plans just fit inside. Thanksgiving will certainly be interesting this year - we may be eating a chicken!
 |
| I had to look up instructions on how to use this online. |
Kitchen sink. I nearly forgot about my least favorite inconvenience (tied with the dryer)! Our kitchen sink is tiny. I can fit my crock pot in it, but washing it is a major pain. But I think the worst part is not having a garbage disposal. I can't stand cleaning slimy stuff out of the little basket thing. Yuck!
And that's a quick tour of the differences within the house. Really none of the difficulties are insurmountable, but it does take some time to get used to a new normal.
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