If you’re concerned about your heating bills and the costs you incur over the winter keeping your home and family warm, well, you’re not alone! Millions of people all around the country worry about how they can save money and spend less while still being comfortable at home.
Fortunately, there are quite a few ways you can save money, time, and still stay warm, if you know what you’re doing! So today, let’s review a few simple ways you can save money this winter by keeping the house warm, while you still keep your bank account full:
Turn Down The Thermostat
Sounds obvious, right? Well, it’s a bit more than that – not only do you need to turn it down, you don’t even need to turn it down as much as you may realize! Instead of cranking it down fifteen degrees and freezing all winter, did you know that every time you turn your thermostat down just one degree, you save about 3% on your heating bill? Those single degree turn-downs can add up to big bucks, and without a noticeable change in quality of life!
Is Your Insulation Up To Standards?
Home insulation is unfortunately overlooked in too many homes, especially older ones. But if you’re professionally insulated and safely up to date with insulation, you can save big bucks not having to heat your home as intensely. Work with an insulation specialist to figure out where your home’s strong and weak insulation points are, and fix them – you’ll find your home keeps heat in much better than before, and you have to spend less on heating overall.
Block Those Leaks!
Related to insulation, look through your home for potential leak areas around windows and doors. You’d be surprised just how much heat can leak out (and how much cold air can leak in) when you find very, very small leak areas at the corners of your windows and doors. Air leaking through those access points can add up to big bucks spent on heating, and plugging them can save you 10-15% on a heating bill for the entire house – no small savings!
Embrace the Sunlight!
Finally, use your curtains wisely in the wintertime. Open up curtains to south facing windows to let light shine in on sunny days, even when it’s cold. That sunlight can naturally warm up those areas of the house a little more than you might realize, and it can give you the opportunity to have to heat that area less, while still getting some natural warmth, thereby saving you more money on your heating bill.
In all, it doesn’t require major life changes and you certainly don’t need to be an HVAC expert, but there are simple and straightforward ways you can improve heat circulation and experience in your home, while still saving money on the bill. And no matter where you live this winter, that should be welcome news as you battle cold temperatures and keep your rates down, creating a true win-win situation for your home and family!
I am always surprised as to how the sunlight can warm the house so much. I always try to keep the blinds open for that reason. We re-insullated last year.
We just moved into this house and already see some upgrades that need done. For instance, we need to put weather stripping into some of the windows and doorways. The windows themselves aren’t in bad shape at all, but there are a few places where you can feel cold air coming in. It’s easy to spot those leaks when it’s so freaking cold outside!
Weather proofing the home is so important, even in early fall! We are all about bundling up and multiple layers along with blankets. It doesn’t hurt us at all and helps with the energy bill!
I have some serious work to do on our home in this area. It’s a beautiful house, but it’s old and needs major upgrade to the HVAC system. Thanks for the tips.