A warm and comfortable home will make your house feel cozy and inviting this holiday season. That comfort will make your house a better place to be for you, your family, and for invited guests during holiday events. The best way to ensure wintertime comfort is to take the necessary measures now to winterize your home. There are some rather simple and inexpensive things you can do that will make a big difference in how comfortable your house is this winter.
The trick is to keep the heat that you pay for in and the cold out. This not only results in a cozier place to live, but you will also notice a savings on your utility bills.
Insulation
There’s no better way to stave off the cold than to insulate your home. Although this can have a pricey upfront cost, the long term benefits make it a worthwhile investment. Most homeowners opt to install insulation on a DIY basis, but you can also hire professionals to install it. One way to determine if you need more insulation is to take a quick look in your attic space. If you can see boards showing through the insulation you probably should add more.
Caulking
Doors and windows are notorious for leaks – which mean you will feel drafts in your home. You can easily check for these pockets of air leaks with a candle. Just hold the candle around the window or door frame. If the flame flickers or moves you know there is a draft or leak in that area and you need to add caulking. You may also find weather-stripping that will work for some areas around exterior doors.
Ceiling Fans
Warm air rises and that can make ceiling fans very useful in the winter months. When you use them to push the warm air back down you ensure that the warm air is not wasted in the higher spaces where no one is at.
Thermostat
Although you want your home to be comfortable, it is a good idea to keep the temperature as low as you are comfortable with. In addition, a programmable thermostat can be programmed to ‘warm the house up’ just before you arrive home from work and the temperature can be lowered while you are away. In fact, some people program their thermostats to keep a lower temperature throughout the night while they sleep. The idea is to use the settings for your convenience as well as to save money.
Gutters
Cleaning the gutters may not have an immediate impact on the warmth of your home, but if they are clogged with leaves and other debris problems can develop. When snow melts and drains into the clogged gutters the water can freeze, which can result in increased weight and pressure on the gutters and on the anchors that support them. The gutters may eventually be torn away from your house.
Pleasant Thoughts
Envision this, the kids are happily discussing their Christmas countdown calendar while you and hubby talk about how much you saved on the month’s utility bill – and how handy that savings is – just before Christmas! Kind of makes you want to get busy with those winterization projects doesn’t it?
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