Save money on winter heating costs
October 3, 2009 by Jennifer Chait
Filed under Seasonal Savings
It’s getting seriously cold in Oregon – of course I’m a cold wimp, but still! If it’s getting cold where you are you may be frustrated with how expensive it gets in the winter to heat your home, but no worries you can cut costs.
- Lowering your thermostat by just a couple of numbers can save you a lot. If it’s cold put a sweater on first then gauge how warm you actually need the thermostat set at. For each degree you turn the heat down, you could save 1% which sounds like nothing, until you turn it down 5 numbers each day, all winter long. It adds up fast.
- See if you qualify for a Home Weatherization Assistance Program – which is FREE if you do qualify but will save you scads of cash.
- Seal gaps or cracked seams in or around exposed ducts, doors, windows, baseboards, outlets, and so on. Each crack in your home lets that cold air in.
- Place window shrink wrap on older windows. Consider using this year’s tax refund for newer better windows that will keep out the cold.
- When you leave, turn off the heat! There’s no need to pay to heat an empty house – unless you have pets – don’t leave the heat on all the way, but it’s not cool to freeze them.
P.S. plant some evergreens – it won’t help right away but could help a lot later on.
[image via stock.xchng]
In really cold weather it’s not advised to completely turn off your heat. You risk the pipes freezing and bursting if you do. Happens a lot here in Blacksburg. Students go home for the holiday break with the heat off in their apartment, and come home to a hefty repair bill. No good :0
Blacksburg, VA?
Yeah
a great place to check if you’re paying too much for oil and propane is lowermyheat.com – it checks your per gallon price against department of energy state averages and compares it to others in your area.
Great post! I just blogged on this too — there are home energy scammers taking advantage of homeowners looking to go green. I found NRDC’s site had a ton of great tips for saving money/making your home more energy efficient.