Things Anyone Can Do
This winter across America, heating oil will be an average of 43% higher, 47% higher for propane, and 20% higher for natural gas. This is on top of already significant increases. Many are already feeling the price increases of electricity. Additionally, Europe and the UK are looking at some very challenging times ahead in regards to their energy supply being reduced. It will be crucial, especially this winter, to keep costs down in this time of incredible inflationary pressure. This blog is as straightforward as it gets. We will outline nine hacks and fixes you can use right now to save money and stay warm this winter. With even one successful implementation, you are almost guaranteed to use less energy and save more money. Let’s take a look…
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1) TUNE IT UP & TURN IT DOWN
The easiest way to save through the winter is to turn your thermostat and water heater settings down. The Department of Energy estimates that you can save 1% for each degree of thermostat adjustment per 8 hours. Setting your thermostat 7-10 degrees lower in the winter for 8 hours per day will allow you to attain an annual savings of up to 10%. Turning down your water heater and insulating it, which we will cover later, will also save you money. Your hot water heater accounts for nearly 20% of your entire energy bill annually, so stop this blog right now and go turn that down. The optimal temperature for your hot water tank is 120 Fahrenheit or 48 Celsius. This is a comfortable, and sanitary temperature yet does not significantly increase your energy costs. You can measure the temperature of the water coming out of the faucet, adjust the temperature on the heater itself if you have a digital readout, or simply set it at a lower setting. If you find it is too cold after your initial adjustment, you can always turn it back up.
We lead with this because making your systems perform optimally and setting them lower will guarantee you between 10 and 20% savings on your utility bills. The average person hasn’t ever looked at the current settings on their water heater.
2) GET ENERGY EFFICIENT
Switch to a smart thermostat. These have become so well integrated and easy to install yourself that some power companies will give you a discount for simply installing one. After we installed one in our home last year, the next winter, our electricity bill was significantly lower. Never again will you leave the house and forget to set your thermostat to a lower temperature when you leave home. Additionally, with a smart thermostat, you can just log in to it on your smartphone and set it to a temperature where only your furry pets will be comfortable.
Put your holiday lights or lights you sometimes forget to turn off on a timer or a smart plug. This will allow you to turn them off even when you are not home. Trust us. We have Christmas lights that plug into an outside socket. It’s much easier to turn them off when it’s raining with a voice command from inside my warm and dry home than it is to venture out in the cold rain. Leverage technology to become more energy efficient in your daily life. These efficiencies may only save you a few cents or dollars here and there, but that can add up to huge savings over time.
3) LAYER UP
You can also wear a scarf and fingerless gloves when it comes to your clothing. Whatever is comfortable for you. We know some people cannot stand to wear layers indoors, but even a plush robe can make a world of difference.
4) FIX YOUR LEAKS
Even small spaces under doors can bring a flood of cold air into a room or house. Indoor weather stripping, seal foam tape, and under-door draft stoppers can all be purchased for just a few dollars, but they will save you tens or hundreds of dollars over a whole winter if you can fix leaks and drafts with them. A hole the size of a one-inch door undercut will allow airflow of about 60 cubic feet per minute. By that calculation, a ten-foot square room could completely exchange the warm air inside with the cold air outside in just 13 minutes.
It isn’t just the outside doors and windows that can make it challenging to keep your home warm. If you have colder and warmer areas of your house, they are constantly trying to exchange their air, and the temperature will drop. Your heater will work extra hard. Close off the HVAC vents and insulate under the doors of any rooms you rarely or never use. Make sure the vents you do rely upon are open and unobstructed. Having a draft stop under your bedroom door can keep the warm air in your bedroom while you sleep, even as the other rooms get very chilly.
When it comes to windows, make sure you open the curtains and let the sun in during the day but keep them closed once the sun goes down. Even a few extra degrees can help.
5) INSULATE
Foam core insulation sheets can quickly insulate garage and basement walls or even add a layer more to attic spaces. It comes in various sizes, so you can get a size that is right for you, even to cover windows entirely. Insulation isn’t just for the winter, by the way. You can also save on your cooling bill if you use it right and use it strategically. When saving money, you will also want to ensure you have an insulation blanket wrapped around your water heater. They make these specific for water heaters of all sizes. The less your water heater has to work to maintain water temperature, the more money you will save. Finally, insulate your pipes. Pipe insulation looks like a pool noodle with a slit down the center. It’s easy to install. It will protect your pipes from freezing and, depending upon the insulative rating, will lock in the warm temperatures of your warm water pipes.
6) CEILING FANS
7) ELECTRIC BLANKET OR HEATING PAD
When it comes to blankets, wool is one of the warmest, but there are many different plush blankets made from many other materials. When you don’t want to turn the thermostat up, put a blanket down. It’s one of the oldest and easiest methods to keep warm. You can also use a personal heating pad next to you and under a blanket to stay even warmer. Using a classic hot water bottle can accomplish the same thing without electricity.
8) PUT A POT ON
You can sip on hot cocoa, warm cinnamon and turmeric milk, or even a hot toddy at night. One alcohol drink can have a skin-flushing effect, making you feel warmer. Any more than that, and you are probably dehydrating yourself more than you are helping, and hydration is also critical to keeping your internal thermostat functioning at maximum efficiency.
9) STOKE YOUR FURNACE
Putting on the stove a hearty beef stew and slow cooking it through the day will gently warm your home as well. Pull out a cookbook and make a stew, chicken soup, minestrone, or other easily digestible, warming food with good carbs and fat, and keep it warm throughout the day on your stovetop. Just thinking about it will probably keep you feeling warm. You can also start your day with slow-cooked cereal grains. Complex carbohydrates give your body just what it needs to regulate your internal temperature.
Conclusion
A few things are almost certain this winter. It’s going to be cold, and the cost of heating your home will be higher than it may have ever been before. Knowing these things to be true, you should be planning your winter prepping right now while it is still warm. These are just nine simple suggestions to keep costs down and the temperature up in your home. Some of these will also help you save money in the summer months. If you implement each of these suggestions, you will keep your costs down and still stay warm through the winter. If you have a power outage during winter, as has become a frequent occurrence for some in recent years, you will be glad you took these steps now.
As always, stay safe and warm.
LINKS
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Thermal Clothes: https://amzn.to/3raMnkv
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Other tips:
Another method is large pieces of cardboard painted black on the outer, sun-facing side. With a quarter size hole at the top and a dime-sized hole at the bottom, the sun will heat the black surface and the air between. Cold air will flow in the bottom and out the top. There are many options for do-it-yourself solar window heaters. These can save you on your heating bill during the winter and provide warmth even when the power is out. Even in freezing temperatures, we leave at least one window cracked a 1/4 inch to allow some air to exchange. This will also help keep fireplace smoke moving up and out of the chimney.