Winter is here and cold temperatures have finally descended upon us. If you’re like many homeowners, you may find that it’s tough to keep your house at a consistently comfortable temperature, no matter how high you crank up the heat. Also, you might see your energy bills skyrocket in the winter as your furnace works overtime to keep your house warm.
It’s hard to keep the warm air in and the cold air out. Even the tiniest crack or gap can cause a draft, making your home less comfortable and draining your energy efficiency. Fortunately, there are steps you can take to keep your home warm all winter.
Here are five effective ways to keep your home toasty and your energy bill low this winter:
Mind your unused chimney.
A fireplace is always a nice touch in a home. Even if you don’t use it very often, a fireplace can be an aesthetic focal point that can tie the room’s design together.
However, an unused fireplace can also be a drain on your energy efficiency. Warm air can drift into the fireplace and escape through the chimney.
You can prevent this in a few ways. First, remember to close the flue when the fireplace isn’t in use. Also keep the doors shut.
If you don’t use your fireplace at all, consider installing a chimney balloon, which blocks all air from escaping through the chimney. Just remember to take the balloon out if you ever decide to have a fire.
Seal your hardwood floor with area rugs.
Believe it or not, your floors can be a significant drain on energy efficiency. That’s especially true with hardwood floors. Warm air can escape through the gaps and cracks between the planks. If you have any pieces of flooring that are broken or out of alignment, consider replacing them to reduce the gaps.
Also, put down area rugs wherever you can. An area rug will cover cracks and prevent warm air from sneaking out. The more area you can cover with rugs, the more warm air you’ll be able to keep in your home.
Put your ceiling fan on winter mode.
Everyone knows hot air rises. But did you know that if you have a ceiling fan, you may be able to push the warm air back down? Some ceiling fans have a winter setting that redistributes warm air throughout the room.
In the summer, the fan runs counter-clockwise, pushing air down and creating the feeling of a breeze. In the winter, you may be able to switch your fan to a clockwise turn. This will draw up air from the center of the room. That pushes the warm air near the ceiling out towards the walls so it can be redistributed.
Open the curtains during the day and close them at night.
Sunlight is your friend during the winter. The more sunlight you can allow in through the windows, the more natural heat you can create.
At night, though, it’s a different story. You want to close your curtains so warm air can’t escape through gaps in the frame. Even better, try to hang heavy curtains, which will prevent air from getting close to the windows.
Inspect your windows for gaps and other defects.
If your windows are out of alignment, have cracks, or just aren’t as efficient as they used to be, you could lose a substantial amount of heat. Do a visual inspection of all the windows in your home and look for any gaps or cracks. Open and close your windows to see if they seal firmly.
If your windows have cracks, if the frames are warped, or if they just don’t seal like they used to, it may be time to replace them. At Jack’s Glass, we welcome the opportunity to inspect your windows for you.
Contact us today and let’s talk about how we can keep your home warm this winter.
