Clever Ways to Reduce Energy Expenses This Winter

During winter, many people often find themselves spending a lot on energy expenses despite their intentions to practice frugal living. Read on to see five ways in which you can reduce your energy expenses this winter.

Insulate Your Home

To get the most out of the heat you get from your heaters, make sure to insulate your home properly. Doing this will keep the warm air indoors, rather than releasing it to the outdoors and exchanging it with cold drafts. The most important place to start your insulating is in the attic. This is because hotter air rises while cold air sinks lower, so if there is room for the hot air to escape, it will end up outside. You should also consider changing your roof depending on the general climate where you live. For instance, a standard or dark roof can reach up to 150°F or more during summer, while a cool roof will be about 50°F cooler, so the opposite is true. If you have longer and more extreme cold seasons, a great tip for frugal living is to get a warm roof for your home.

Only Heat the Most Used Rooms

If you would like a tip that you can enforce as soon as you're done reading this article, this has to be it. Simply close the rooms that are not being used and heat only the ones with people in them. This will result in less energy spent on keeping the livable spaces toasty and comfortable for everyone as you're not also increasing the temperature of spaces that no one is using. This is especially true for stores and pantries, where people will spend a minimum amount of time even if they do use them, so consider starting with this tip.

Seal Cracks and Gaps

The fact that heat gained and lost through the windows is responsible for about 25% to 30% of the energy used to heat and cool an average home should inspire you to take action immediately. Inspect your windows and the doors as well to see if there are any gaps and cracks that could be letting in the cold air inside. If you find any, seal them with some caulk and also reapply any missing weather stripping. It may seem like a small thing, but it's responsible for a considerable amount of energy loss by the time the cold season ends.

Get a Smart Thermostat

To help you with your plans of frugal living, getting a smart thermostat for your home is essential. It will help you warm your home in an efficient way, making sure that it's not too hot and not too cold at any given time. You can also get one that you can control from an application on your mobile phone or remotely while outside the house on a laptop or other device. While this will call for a sizable expenditure upfront, you will make a lot of savings in the long term.

Keep Curtains Drawn at Night

To make the most of nature during the winter, you can make use of window treatments like shades and curtains. You can expect to reduce heat lost through the windows during the cold weather by about 10% by using most conventional draperies. Open them during the day to let sunlight in and close them at night to keep the cold out, and you will realize you have to use less heat or turn the heat on for a shorter time to maintain a warm house.

The five tips above should help you stay warm while keeping your energy bills reasonable. Enforce the ones you can right away and work on the others for a long-term solution to your heating needs.