No one likes to sleep in the cold, and dogs are no exception. But if your dog doesn’t sleep indoors, you need to take extra steps to keep them comfy and cozy outside. Heaters powered by electricity might be the easiest way to do this, but it’s not an option for everyone. So, how do we go about heating a dog house without electricity?
Non-electric dog house heating doesn’t have to be expensive or complicated to install. In this article, we will look at the simplest and most effective ways to heat up your dog house without electricity, ensuring complete warmth and safety overnight.
Placing the House in the Sun’s Path
Although it is almost too painfully obvious to mention, moving your dog’s house into the sun can drastically increase its internal temperature.
In fact, you should be sure to monitor the temperatures after moving it to ensure that it hasn’t become too hot – especially if you live in a sunny location and are only trying to warm your dog’s house a few degrees.
In addition to placing the house in the sun’s path, you’ll want to orient the largest, flattest sides toward the sun to absorb as much light as possible.
Method 3: Physically Adding Heat To The Dog House
Even though we’re limiting the strategies to those which do not require electricity, there are still a few ways to physically add heat to your dog’s house.
Clever readers may argue that these strategies do technically require electricity, but they don’t require you to run electricity to your dog’s house, so we’ll consider that in keeping with the spirit of electricity-free dog house warming.
When you talk about heating your dog’s house, you really mean you want to heat the air. So, why not just siphon off some of the warm air from your house and pipe it into your dog’s house?
You’ll have to be creative to do so, but you won’t have to run wires or anything to your dog’s house. You just need to find a safe place to withdraw warm air from your house and corral it toward your dog’s house via a flexible dryer duct (or something similar).
A fan will help force the air through the duct work, but warm air from your home will still make its way toward the cold air in your dog’s house on its own, albeit slowly.
Although this is a bit of a short-term solution, it does work and is stunningly simple: Chuck a bunch of uncooked rice in an old sock, tie it off and toss it in your microwave for a minute or five (just check it frequently until you figure out the right timing). You want the surface of the sock to be nice and warm, but not hot – you should be able to hold it in your hand indefinitely.
Take the warm sock out of the microwave and put it in your dog’s house. It won’t stay warm for days, but it will keep your dog a bit warmer for several hours, as the rice will retain the heat very effectively.
Note that water bottles will work in a similar fashion. Just heat it up, transfer it to a suitable vessel and move it to your dog’s house.
There are a number of microwaveable cushions on the market, which essentially work like a rice-filled sock does.
They’re a bit more convenient to use, and some will retain heat for longer than the alternative, so they’re worth checking out. The Snuggle Safe Microwaveable Pet Bed is a clear category-leader, so give it a look.
If you want to really spoil your pup with a toasty retreat without using electricity, and you aren’t afraid of an elaborate project, you can plumb warm water into your dog’s house.
This is clearly a very involved project, which is not appropriate for all dog owners, but it is one of the most effective ways to turn your dog’s house into a cozy cottage.
The specifics of the endeavor will depend upon a million factors, but essentially, you’ll need to tap into your home’s hot water lines and run pipes out to your dog’s house and back. The warm water will heat the pipes passing through the house, which will in turn heat the air. Just be sure your dog can’t contact the pipes directly to prevent burns.
In most cases, you’ll want to contact a plumber and have him or her carry out the task, so this will cost you a bit of money. However, it will absolutely warm your pup’s dog house and keep your pooch comfy.
Method 2: Leveraging the Sun’s Natural Warmth
Although the sun’s rays aren’t as warm in the winter, the sun still represents a great way to keep your canine from catching a chill. The following strategies can help maximize the warmth provided by the sun, to keep your dog as warm as is possible.
And unlike the ideas explained earlier, these techniques do, in fact, add heat to your dog’s house.
FAQ
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