As the weather begins to cool, it’s time to turn up the heat in your house. Are you concerned about your energy bills coming due at the end of the month? You can save money on your heating expenses by doing a few basic things. Here are some other strategies to keep your house warm during this winter, in addition to boosting insulation and replacing broken window caulks.
Shift Your Sofa
Your favorite couch next to the radiator may feel nice, but it’s trapping heat that could have been heating your home. Help the warm air to move freely by shifting your sofa away from the burner. Pull your curtains up and freshly washed laundry away from the heater to get as much out of your source of heat.
Close Mini Drafts
Pet doors and mail openings may let a lot of warm air out, which is a waste of resources. Keep these places covered if at all feasible. When the temperature dips below freezing, you may use a wool blanket to cover an entrance opening or even old towels to cover a mail pocket.
Change Your Boiler/Furnace
If your boiler is more than ten years old, it’s probably time to upgrade to a newer and more cost-effective and efficient type. Based on your existing boiler and home, a modern boiler or furnace might save you a lot of money by using less energy to provide a similar quantity of heat. Plus, if it’s brand new, you’re less prone to have any problems when the cold weather approaches.
Buy Duct-Booster Fans
If you have forced-air heat, you may use duct booster blowers to improve the flow of heated air via your ducts into a particular chilly room. Duct booster fans that fit within standard-size metal ducts are known as in-line duct booster fans.
Add a pressure switch at the duct output end of the blower, which measures compressed air from the heater and powers on the booster fan when the furnace is turned on. Some in-line duct boosters are hard-wired, while others can operate by plugging into an accessible socket. Because cheaper models might be noisy, it’s better to invest in a high-quality one with a strong, but quiet motor.
Purchase a Programmable Thermostat
Since you don’t need to maintain your house at the same temperature the whole day, a programmable thermostat allows users to set various settings for varying periods of the day. Albeit not recommended for use with heat pumps, a programmable thermostat can save you cash on both heating and air conditioning.
Choose one with a low setting while you’re asleep or out, and a higher setting for the rest of the day to save up to 20% on your utility cost. Some devices may even allow inputs of up to four thermostat settings for the morning, afternoon, evening, and midnight hours.
As temperatures drop throughout the United States, it’s only natural to wonder how you will keep your home warm, all the more so as the expense of living continues to rise. Take it from our list of tips on how to keep your house warm during the winter season, whether you’re attempting to get your boiler repaired or install a programmable thermostat.
Switch to a Coal
Consider making the switch to a coal stove. Not only does it help to effectively keep your house warm during the cold winter, you can also keep your electrical bills low by using Legacy Stoves anthracite coal stoves. Anthracite coal is one of the most cost-effective heating fuels, costing less per million BTUs than other fuel sources. Furthermore, anthracite coal stoves burn more evenly and hotter than wood, pellets, gas, or oil, resulting in more BTUs per pound than most other fuels.