Keeping Warm Tips - Japanese Kotatsu
The Keeping Warm This Winter post that I did a couple of weeks ago has been tremendously popular, so I’m going to continue on with some more tips for those of us facing a chilly winter this year due to the expected higher costs in heating fuels. In that original post, a reader by the name of Sean left a comment with a couple of links to other resources. One of those links was to an article from the Jan/Feb 1976 issue of Mother Earth News.
That article, entitled How The Japanese Keep Warm, bears the observations of its author who spent part of her childhood in Japan and how that country’s residents not only deal with the cold of winter, but do it in a culture that still to this day doesn’t believe in building homes with heating.
One of the means by which the Japanese stay warm is with what they call the Kotatsu. Here’s a description from that Mother Earth News article…
A kotatsu is a heater that’s placed on the floor with a low table over it. A special quilt called a kotatsu kakebuton is draped over the top of the table and a second top rests on the quilt. That’s the way poor people do it anyway. Wealthier folks frequently have a special space for their legs recessed into the floor under the table and a second-smaller and deeper-hole for the heater located in the center of the first one.
However it’s constructed, the kotatsu is the center of a Japanese family’s activities during cold weather. When we lived in Japan, we spent most of our time in the winter closely grouped around our little (about three feet by three feet) square table playing footsie in the kotatsu and being careful not to lift the accompanying kakebuton so as to let a draft of cold air underneath.
Traditionally, the kotatsu’s were heated with charcoal heaters, but in current times, most folks have moved to electrical means. Not really off-the-grid, but for those of us facing a cold winter, this type of set-up could offer a more affordable method to stay warm.
In doing some Googling on the kotatsu, I also came across this article written by Bill Stonehill at Davidap.com on his perspectives as a westerner living in the Orient. Bill not only provides a great description on the kotatsu method used by the Japanese, but also compares it to how other cultures in the region deal with the cold.
Those of us in the west can sometimes forget that there are many other cultures around the globe that have to deal with the same issues that we do and can offer interesting solutions to those problems.
Stay warm, everybody!
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POSTED IN: Conservation, Education, General
5 opinions for Keeping Warm Tips - Japanese Kotatsu
sean
Nov 4, 2005 at 7:21 pm
My home has awful ventilation so any form of heat is bad for the air. I plan to wear layers and let my food keep me warm.
The most pleasant, and efficient, source of heat is found from a companion. Sucks being single in the winter.
John K
Nov 5, 2005 at 3:39 am
I have a “kosatsu” setup that was inspired by the Mother Earth News article. It’s a 60 watt lightbulb that I keep near my feet, under my desk. If it gets cold, a blanket covers it all. The air temp gets very warm, and the stray light is nice and dim.
Kevin Humphrey
Nov 6, 2005 at 1:59 pm
Sean - Have you thought of getting a cat or dog? You get the heat source AND a little companionship at the same time. Could be cheaper than a girlfriend, too! ;)
John - That sounds like a cool idea. My problem is that with 5 cats in my house, such a setup would soon be overtaken by them and there wouldn’t be any room left for my legs.
David & Kyoki
Dec 31, 2006 at 9:59 am
I would love to have a Kotatsu. the Problem is they are just about impossible to find here in Michigan and online they cost more than a couple months rent! Making one mydself would be easier but i want a safe heating element ( lightbulbs are too dangerous) for me and Kyoki. Any one have a spare one they want to get rid of?
Armando Gascón
Nov 4, 2008 at 11:52 am
Very similar to Spain. People have a ‘calentapies’ electric footwarmer under a table with a long tablecloth. The family play cards or parchesi or watch TV. Everyone is warmly dressed. Poorer people may use a brazier, slow burning coal: that’s very dangerous, it releases carbon monoxide. David/Kyoki may find it easier to buy a calentapies from Mexico or a mail order store.
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