Suggestions for Ways to Save
When the dampness of fall and winter weather hit, there is no denying the chill of the season. Luckily you can retreat indoors and be comfortable and warm. As far as your living expenses go, though, your heating bills represent some of your biggest monthly costs.
The good news is that this is one cost that you can reduce by quite a bit, simply by taking certain steps over the cooler seasons.
Here are some suggestions below.
Schedule Your Furnace Maintenance
A little preventative maintenance goes a long way, and that is especially true when it comes to your furnace and your heating bills. A furnace tune-up can help identify any smaller problems that may have emerged while your system was dormant over the summer. A tune-up will identify these problems and give you the chance to fix them before they develop into something more costly.
Your furnace works by converting energy to heat. By having regular maintenance done, this conversion is made the most efficient possible, which translates into cost savings for you.
Run Ceiling Fans
Don’t turn the ceiling fans off just because it’s cold outside. Running those fans through the fall and winter months helps to circulate the warm air, as long as you run it in reverse.
That moving warm air helps heat your home more evenly, which means that your furnace can take a much-deserved break. More cost savings!
Raise Your Threshold
Warm air will take every opportunity that it can to seep out every nook and cranny it can find. Over time, it is common for a gap to appear between exterior doors and the threshold frame. You can even that out and close the gap by installing a strip of adjustable threshold, which will give it the extra height that it needs. Weather stripping also works well to make your exterior doors more air tight.
How to Make Your Windows Air Tight
As windows get older, their strength to lock warm air inside deteriorates. While replacing your windows is costly, so is letting that expensive warm air escape.
A good cost-effective solution is to apply a simple film over the windows. As a rule, make sure that there are no cracks in the frame inside or out.
Seal those with a caulking gun.
Don’t Forget the Chimney
Leaving your fireplace wide open is like leaving a window open. Think of all the warm air just wafting away. Always close your chimney damper when not in use. You can also use a chimney pillow, which when inserted in the chimney acts as a plug, keeping hot air in and cold air out.
Use the Sun
Leave your curtains open during the day and let the sunshine heat your home naturally. It is amazing how a little bit of natural light can make you much warmer without costing you a cent.
