How to Ensure a Warmer Home this Winter

Door and window drafts are a major contributor to making your home feel colder and increasing your home heating costs. For just a few dollars and an hour or two of your time, you can install flexible foam weather stripping along the doorjambs and in any gaps between the windows and window sashes to prevent the drafts.

Install a Programmable Thermostat Swap out the old manual thermostat with a smart programmable one, such as a NEST one. The smart programmable ones allow you to set the temperature in your home to various settings throughout the day, and on different days of the week. Thus, you can keep your home colder during the day when no one is home during the work week, and then have it automatically shift to a higher setting an hour before you get home. And on the weekends, when you are presumably home, you can have the thermostat set at a higher setting for the entire day.

In addition, the smart programmable thermostats can be controlled via your smart phone or from another computer or tablet that is connected to the

Install Extra Insulation in Your Attic

The attic is a major source of heat loss. Consequently it is important to ensure that you have sufficient insulation in it. Check your attic to see if it has the proper amount of insulation in it for your region of the country. A properly insulated attic should have at least 9.5 to 12 inches, R-30/R-38 respectively, of attic insulation in it. If your attic is lacking sufficient insulation, purchase rolls of additional fiberglass insulation and place it over the existing attic insulation.

Place a Door Sweep along the Bottom of your Exterior Doors If you feel a draft near the bottom of your exterior doors place a door sweep, or door snake, along the bottom of it to prevent cold drafts from entering the home. Have your Furnace Cleaned and Maintained Regularly A home heating furnace that doesn’t run efficiently will waste home heating fuel and not heat your house as well. Consequently, in the fall make sure to have your furnace cleaned and maintained to make sure it will run efficiently during the cold winter months.

Some energy utility providers offer free annual furnace cleanings so check with them first, before calling an HVAC technician to clean your furnace. The one phone call could save your $150 or more.

Replace the Furnace Filter

If you have a hot air heating system, make sure to change the filter every few months. A clogged filter prevents the furnace from working efficiently and ensuring a warmer home during the cold winter months.

With these six simple steps you can ensure a warmer home this coming winter and save serious money on your monthly home heating bills.