USB blanket for low-cost warmth
What could be nicer than climbing into a warm bed on a cold, damp night?
Normally that means heating the room, but you could perfectly well heat the bed for a couple of hours just before sleep, for only a few cents.
The humble Electric blanket
(click here for UK version), was a staple of middle-class homes in the 1950s and 1960s, but has since fallen out of favour as central heating was installed, and after a string of fatalities.
Modern Electric blankets
(UK version)
must pass stringent safety rules, and there is a wide range to choose from. This one in UK is only £11.50.
A battery like this onein USA and this one
in the UK, will power the blanket for up to 6 hours via the USB. The battery can be recharged the next day – this can be with a 200-watt solar panel
for the USA version – or here
in the UK.
Or plug into the mains – if you can find a live socket at a friend’s house!
Street lights can also be used as a power supply (but only when connected by a qualified electrician). And you could pay for charging at a local garage or anywhere you can find with a power supply.
Sweet Dreams – and remember to switch off the blanket before sleep, although you can switch it back on again if you wake up cold.…