Sure is cold in this house

Cold weather is upon us and it is going to cost even more to heat our homes. It is never too late to do some last minute checks where you live to make sure you are able to keep as much of that warmth as possible.

One way to help save some costs is starting with the thermostat. Keeping the temperature on a reasonable setting when you are home, but then turning it down a few degrees when you are not home, will save you money. An easy way to make this happen automatically is to purchase and install a programmable thermostat. We all have different comfort degree settings, but if you even program the temperature to be 5 degrees cooler when you are not there, you could easily save 5% or more on your electric or gas bill. And, with a programmable thermostat, you can have the heat programmed to come on 15 minutes before you arrive home, so your home is warm when you come through the door.

If you rarely go into a room, consider turning the heating vent off in that room and closing the door. No sense in heating a room you don’t use.

Space heaters can be good, but also a fire hazard. Consider turning the heat in the house down at night, but have a small electric space heater in the bedroom. If you do this, please make sure all your smoke detector’s batteries have been changed and are in working order. Never run a space heater unless you are there to monitor it for safety.

Take a look at the windows where you live. Does the caulking have cracks or is it missing? Caulking is pretty inexpensive, but can really help fill the cracks where your heat is escaping. A caulking gun costs around $5 and the caulk is around $4 a tube. While you are looking at the windows, also look at where pipes come into your home from the outside. Sometimes gaps will form and you can fill that area with caulk.

Weather stripping around doors can also be a culprit for heat escaping. There is an area near the bottom of the door and along the edges that can let the cold air in. Weather stripping should be replaced if you can feel a draft. There should be a little bit of resistance when opening and closing the door. That means it is forming a seal. Is your door in good condition? Are there cracks in the door? A new door may also help save money over the long haul.

How is your home’s insulation? Look in the attic and see if there is enough. If not, consider having more installed. Hot air rises and the more you can block that heat from escaping the living part of your home, the better. The insulation in the walls is a harder one to control, unless you want to redo all the walls – which is a huge undertaking.

Do you have a fireplace? When there is no fire or smoke rising, close the air passage way on the fireplace as heated air will rise right out of your home. No sense in heating up the air outside!

Gas and electricity are getting more and more expensive. Doing these simple things will hopefully help save some money during this cold time of the year.