When the mercury starts to drop, some people can’t wait to pull out their winter clothes and cozying up in front of a roaring fire. Others shudder at the thought of the rising heating bills that come with the colder weather.
Fortunately, there are ways to keep your home warmer in cold weather without breaking the bank. Here are some tips that can help you do just that:
- Seal the Gaps. Doors and windows are often overlooked when it comes to energy efficiency, but these areas are some of the biggest culprits for warm air loss. If there is any space between these two areas and the rest of your home, it’s time to re-caulk or replace your weather stripping. This can restrict air flow and provide substantial savings on heating costs.
- Reverse your ceiling fans so they spin clockwise. This creates an updraft and pushes warm air off the ceiling and back down into the room. To figure out which way your fan rotates, look straight up at it and note which way it turns. If it turns from left to right, it needs to be reversed.
- Get a programmable thermostat for your furnace. This allows you to adjust how high or low you want your house heated when you’re away at work or asleep at night, saving you money on fuel costs all winter long.
- Add Insulation. Insulation is one of the simplest ways to keep your home warm in the winter. You can insulate just about any area of your house and benefit from lower heating costs and a cozier environment — but don’t forget about the obvious places, such as attics and basements!
- Open blinds during the day so that sunlight can enter through the windows and help heat your home (especially on south-facing windows). Close blinds at night to reduce drafts coming through windows from outside.
