Dean,
We were just out there during the day. Once the sun started to go down we were off the ice. We stayed at a resort on the the lake. We had a nice three bedroom, two bath house to enjoy ourselves in the evening. The resort also cleaned our fish, for a nominal fee. There was plenty of time for socializing after the fishing was done for the day and we took advantage of all of it.
The smaller houses are used to stay mobile on the ice. Since you are fishing through an 8" or 10" hole in the ice you need to be able to move if the fish aren't biting. This is easy to do with a boat but not if you are in a large ice house. The portable houses fold up quickly, are lightweight, are very compact and we can move the whole bunch in less than ten minutes. The main purpose of being out there is to catch fish.
While we're out on the ice we don't spend all of our time in the ice houses, there is plenty of time spent outside. Three of the five houses were two man houses and we also do a lot of "house jumping" and socializing. We also cook on the ice, using propane stoves. We also use small "sunflower" type, propane heaters that keep things quite warm. I also have a large propane heater that keeps the shelter very warm. My house was nicknamed "the sauna."
Most of the time I used my small "sunflower" heater. It gets it's name because it looks like a sunflower when lit.
I have done overnight fishing in stationary houses and while it is a fun time with the guys you are also at the mercy of the fish. If the fish aren't there you are out of luck and you end up playing cards, drinking and coming home empty handed. While some folks like this, it isn't the main reason we go fishing. Coming home empty handed also happens when you are mobile but you have the option of moving to other spots where they
may be fish and not be at the mercy of the elements.
Take care,
Mike