10 Affordable Ways To Winterize Your Home Cont.

Posted on Tuesday, November 15th, 2011

This article is a continuation of 10 Affordable Ways To Winterize Your Home, a three part series for homeowners who would like to boost their winter efficiency and lower their energy bills. If you have already been through the 6 Free Ways To Winterize your home, then covered the top 3 Affordable Ways To Winterize Your Home, all that is left is a few minor tweaks.

Affordable Winterizing

4) Insulate your water heater and piping.
Have you ever let your faucet run for like 2 minutes prior to the water feeling warm? During that time, all the water was doing was heating your pipes. After you received some of the heated water, 99% of the rest went down the drain.

It’s a pretty inefficient system, but there are improvements that can be made. You can insulate your old water heater and piping which leads to better heat transfer and less wasted water. You can also install a heat recovery drain to squeeze as much heat out of the water before it heads down to sewage.

5) Use plastic films to cover your windows.
Old windows can be drafty making it is for air to flow out. Plastic films don’t add insulation in the traditional sense. Their primary role is to prevent air movement that would lose valuable heat. While it isn’t an optimal solution, it certainly is a better one than nothing at all.

6) Install low flow shower and faucet heads.
Since 99% of your heated water goes down the drain with no use at all, you might as well minimize how much you are losing. Installing a low flow shower head will save you money on both water and energy.

7) Install a smart thermostat.
If you forget to turn down your heat before leaving for work and before bed, you might want to consider a programmable thermostat. They are only $30 to $80 and they will save you much more than they cost. With a smart thermostat, you can set it and forget it.

8) Change your air filter.
Most people are pretty good about changing their air filters, but if you aren’t you should be. Air filters only cost a few bucks, yet they will save you much more in energy and furnace repairs. When your furnace struggles to get a clean intake of air, it will work harder, use more energy, and break down more often.

9) Clean and tune your gas furnace systems every 2 years.
Most people have gas or electrical heating systems installed in their home. To make sure they are running at their optimal performance, they need maintenance. Regular maintenance will keep your furnace clean so that it produces heat using the smallest amount of energy possible.

10) Add another layer of insulation to your attic.
Cellulose insulation can easily be blown into the rafters of your attic to provide a boost of heat retention. While you are up there, look for black areas on the walls, that’s dust due to air flow. Make sure you seal those areas off so that you aren’t losing heat in your walls.

The Next Step

So far in this series, you’ve learned 6 free, and 10 affordable ways you can boost energy efficiency without breaking the piggy bank, but if certain parts of your home are degrading, it might take a larger investment. You can continue reading the final part of our home winterizing series, Investments In Winter Home Efficiency.

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