The following contribution is from another author.
As the cold snap starts to bite each year, it’s important that your house retains the heat within it and stays warm as long as possible. Many homeowners don’t realize they waste money on their energy bills because they haven’t made sure their properties are good at keeping in the heat!
Fortunately, there are some practical steps you can take to ensure your home stays warmer for longer without wasting energy. Take a look at these six clever examples to give you some inspiration and be better prepared for the colder months of the year.
1. Upgrade to energy-efficient windows
Does your house have old sash windows? Perhaps it has newer-style ones but they are looking a lot like they’ve passed their best? Did you know that if you consider changing your house windows to energy-efficient ones, you could save several hundred dollars a year on your energy bills?
2. Fit thick curtains to your windows
Did you know that thick curtains serve two purposes in any home? The first is that they are brilliant at keeping out sunlight; a useful feature when fitted to bedroom windows, for instance. And, the second purpose is they help your house to retain the heat generated from within it!
3. Place tin foil behind radiators
If you have wall-mounted radiators in each room of your house, here’s a low-tech and low-cost way of keeping your home warmer for longer. All you need to do is place a sheet of tin foil behind each radiator. Doing so will reflect any heat back into the room, rather than letting it disappear through the wall.
4. Close the doors to unused rooms
The benefit of having a house with several rooms is also its undoing in this case. When you have your heating system running, it can take a long time to feel its effects. What that means is if it has to heat up all the rooms in your home, it’ll take you and other inhabitants longer to feel warm. By closing the doors to unused rooms, you concentrate the heat in a smaller area.
5. Consider fitting carpets to bare floors
Few house owners know that around 10% or so of any heat generated in your home will disappear through your floors! One of the simplest ways to overcome that problem is by fitting carpets to bare floors. If you would rather not do so, you should at least consider spreading a large wool rug across each bare floor.
6. Insulate your attic
We all know that heat rises. What happens if the heat in your home rises and escapes out of the roof via your attic? If you are finding that happens to your house, it could be that you don’t have the right insulation in your attic. You might not even have any insulation at all! The good news is that insulation material doesn’t cost much to buy. Plus, it’s something you can lay down yourself on a day off from work! While you’re up there, check for loose tiles and other weaknesses that might be contributing to the escape of warm air. The likes of Mr Roof can correct these issues and leave you with a much more energy-efficient home. The benefits of this will be felt not only in the warmer house but also in the cheaper energy bills.
