Heating your house can be a large part of your monthly budget. You don’t want to break the bank but you do want to make sure you and your family and comfortable during the cold Canadian winters. A balance can be hard to find so here are some easy tips you can implement in your home to take the edge off your heating budget while staying cosy while the winter weather lasts.
1. Check your house for drafts
Particularly around windows and doors, to see if heat may be escaping. Install weather stripping on doors and clear plastic on windows if needed.
2. Check your furnace flame
An oil heat flame should burn blue, if it’s orange it may indicate it’s time to have your furnace checked over by a technician to make sure it’s working optimally.
3. Maintain your furnace
A clean furnace is an efficient furnace. Have your furnace inspected and cleaning at least once a year to keep it working efficiently.
4. Energy Efficient Furnaces
Is it time to replace your furnace? Consider investing in a newer energy efficient furnace, which can reach up for 97% efficiency rates. It will save you money in the long term! Many cities and towns in Nova Scotia offer rebates or special financing to households who want to upgrade their heating equipment.
5. Kitchen trick
Baking or roasting something in the oven? Leave the oven door open after you’re done for an extra blast of heat in the kitchen!
6. Automate your heat
A programmable thermostat can automate when the heat is turned up and down in your house so you won’t forget to turn it down when you go to bed or leave for the day.
7. Don’t over ventilate
Those bathroom and kitchen fans are great for ventilation but in just sixty minutes they can pull out the majority of the heat in your house and leave you freezing.
8. Bundle Up!
Heat yourself first and then the house. Try bundling up with warm socks, sweaters and blankets before turning up the heat. Then you can leave the thermostat at a lower temperature while still feeling comfortable.
9. Use free heat from the sun
Close your curtains at night to keep the heat in and open them during the day to take advantage of warmth from the sun coming in through the windows.
10. Fireplace escape hatch
Have a fireplace? Don’t forget to close the flue when it’s not in use to keep heat from escaping up the chimney.
11. How well is your home insulated?
Here’s a good trick to find out. Next time it snows take a look at your roof. Does the snow melt or stay? If the snow stays then your roof is well insulated. If it melts from underneath you’re losing heat.
12. Ceiling fans aren’t just for the summer.
Heat rises and a fan can help push it back down to your level to keep you warm.
13. Don’t heat an empty house.
Even if you have pets their fur coats will keep them warm. You can safely turn down the heat to 15 degrees in an empty house.
14. Don’t heat a sleeping house.
The same as an empty house you don’t need to crank the heat when you’re in bed wrapped up in blankets. Turn the heat down before you hit the hay to save.
15. Don’t heat rooms you’re not using
Turn down the heat in unused rooms and close them off to keep the heat where you need it most.