10 Hacks To Keep Your House Warm And Costs Low In The Winter

10 Hacks To Keep Your House Warm and Costs Low This Winter –  Slash your utility bill by using these 10 genius hacks to keep your house toasty warm this winter. Keeping your house warm doesn’t have to cost a fortune. Here are 10 beyond efficient ways to keep your house nice and warm and your utility bill down.

Fall is upon us folks.

So, accordingly we’ve been busy winterizing our home in anticipation of our harsh eastern Canadian winter.

Temperatures regularly drop to minus 40 or below around here!

And, in an effort to keep our utility bills as low as possible we apply some cheap effective hacks to keep our home warm during the winter months.

Heating costs account for a substantial portion of our monthly expenditures.

So, although we’re on a budget plan (equalized payments determined by 12 months of previous consumption) we opt to do whatever we can to help keep our home warm and our costs low.

As it stands more than 60% of our yearly total utility costs are attributed to the excess energy we consume during the winter months.

Interestingly enough, we’ve been able to compare the cost of heating this home to the cost accrued by the previous owner.

And, I’m happy to report that our consumption is down more than 25%.

This means that our cheap effective hacks to keep this home warm during the winter do in fact work folks!

So, here’s how we do it!

10 Hacks To Keep Your House Warm And Costs Low In The Winter

Save on utilities by dropping the temperature at night

During daytime hours we keep our thermostats at around 69 degrees which keeps our home comfortably warm.

It’s not hot by any means but with layered clothing, warm slippers and regular daytime activities happening in the house we are reasonably warm and comfortable.

Setting your thermostat too high actually encourages heat loss.

Warm air tends to be lost quickly too!

So, keeping your home in the range of 69-72 degrees decreases the rate of thermal energy loss through windows, doors and leaky spots throughout your home.

At 8pm, we drop our thermostats to 66 degrees and a timer kicks on at 6am to warm the house back to 69. Digital thermostats are a lifesaver!

Save on utilities by heating only the rooms you use

Most people use the same areas of their homes on a day to day basis.

Our home is a 2 floor cottage which means that my small family spends the majority of our waking hours on the main floor in our open concept kitchen and living room.

When we’re downstairs we avoid heating the upper floor and drop the temp to a cool 60 degrees with the use of programmable digital thermostats.

We’re not up there to enjoy the warmth and to save cash we opt to heat it minimally.

We also don’t heat our office, garage and storage rooms despite having baseboard heaters installed in each of those.

These rooms although “cold” are sufficiently warm  as a result of heating the commonly used areas of our home.

This prevents damage to walls, pipes and other household fittings that could potentially be damaged by extreme cold.

Save on utilities by drop the temp when you’re out

When we head out we’ve made it a habit to drop the temp in our home. This saves us a ton of cash.

Why heat your home if you aren’t there to enjoy it?

If you work outside the home and are out of the house for 6+ hours per day you can potentially save a heap of money by turning down your thermostats.

Ideally, dropping the temp somewhere between 58-62 degrees will protect your home from damage and save your a ton of money in the process.

Keep your home warm by harnessing the power of the sun

The sun is incredibly powerful and simply opening up the curtains in all rooms provides you with a free heat source.

Make it a point to leave the curtains open on cold sunny days to help raise the temperature in your home without forcing your heating source.

Keep your home warm by keeping curtains closed at night

At sun down shut those curtains to provide a barrier for heat loss.

We’ve actually invested some money into thicker winter curtains that we swap with light and airy summer curtains.

The thick material helps contain the warmth inside the home and prevents heat from escaping through cold windows.

Keep your home warm by moving furniture away from heat sources

If you’ve got furniture placed in front of your heat sources you may want to consider moving them to other areas of your home.

Blocking heat sources with couches, shelving or other household pieces of furniture blocks warm air from circulating causing your home to feel colder than it should.

Keep your home warm by sealing any leaks

Windows, doors and exposed piping are notorious for cold air leaks.

By investing in some inexpensive caulking or insulation spray foam you can prevent warm air from escaping your home.

Recently, Mer re-caulked our front windows in anticipation of the cold weather setting in.

A 10$ investment is going to save us a ton of cash on heating this winter.

Keep your home warm by layer up your floors

If you’ve got rugs in your bedrooms, office spaces or other areas of your home that you don’t use all that regularly you might want to consider moving them to the common areas of your home.

Layering the floor with rugs and carpets helps maintain the temperature and warmth of a room.

Keep yourself warm

Dressing appropriately is key to staying warm and comfortable without spending a fortune on heating costs.

We live in a cold climate where the weather regularly hits minus 40 or below.

To keep extra warm on those extra frigid nights layer clothing, wear warm socks and invest in a good warm pair of slippers to keep your feet toasty.

Instead of cranking up the thermostat or furnace to keep warm adjust what you’re wearing to warm yourself up!

This principle applies to sleeping as well. Instead of heating your room with extra energy try layering blankets to keep warm and cozy while you sleep!

Keep your home warm by using your oven

Winter is the best time to use your oven regularly.

Cooking and baking is an incredible and free way to distribute heat throughout your house.

Using the oven to prepare meals not only accomplishes feeding your family delicious food but it helps warm up your living space in the process. Win win am I right?

Even more This Tiny Blue House posts you might enjoy

• 99 Crazy Easy Ways To Save Money Every Day
• 12 Realistic Expenses You Should Cut Out Of Your Budget
• 20 Free Budget Printables You Need To Use To Save Money
• 10 Ways You Can Start Living A More Frugal Lifestyle Right Now

I want to hear from you!

How do YOU stay warm in the winter?