Keeping your home warm this winter
“Energy Crisis” – a fairly common phrase over the past six months and one that doesn’t look to be going away any time soon. Gas prices are at all-time highs worldwide and coupled with international decade high inflation rates, we are being encouraged to turn down the dial and reduce our energy needs this winter.
So what strategies can you take at home to achieve that goal of keeping your home warm without spending a fortune on your gas bill?
Simple measures you can take include:
Servicing your gas boiler
If your boiler hasn’t seen a service for a little while, it may be advisable to get a technician to review and service it. It may not be working as efficiently as it could. Without an efficient boiler, the fundamental and underlying basics of keeping your home warm may be out the door before it has even reached you. Ultimately a modern boiler is more efficient and cheaper to run, however a new boiler can incur quite a cost. So if you are wanting to keep your funds for something better, then a service of your boiler may be the best of money spent especially with Christmas goodies just around the corner.
Updating your thermostat
Following the same theme as above, it’s worth checking on your thermostat every so often to ensure its good continued performance and functionality. This is important as the thermostat communicates with your boiler, thereby telling it when to switch on, when to switch off and what temperature it should be operating at. This also facilitates different temperatures at different times of the day. Without stating the obvious, operating your boiler overnight is cheaper than in the day and if your home is designed to hold the heat in, you will wake up to a nice warm home early morning. Also rather than have it on all day, you can give the warmth in your home a boost before you get home, after your day’s activities. More recently, smart meters have become more popular allowing you to control house or room temperature from your phone. This is another way to control the thermostat efficiently and easily.
Layers
Whilst this isn’t directly related to keeping your house warm, it certainly can help keep you and your family warm. The first thing I say to my dear wife before she ups the ante on the thermostat, is put on a jumper, two if need be! There are always a few winter clothes stacked away that would feel very happy about being put to use. Other options are to buy a higher tog duvet or double up your duvets as two in one within your duvet cover. Warm blankets on the arm of your chair or the end of your couch add some vibrancy, colour and style to whichever room you choose, and pulling that over yourself will keep you nice and warm while watching those repeat Christmas specials without needing to pump that heating. And don’t forget those socks and slippers to keep your toes nice and warm.
Windows
If you have some savings stashed away, and you have an older home, a great investment is new windows, from frame to glass. Replacing your window frames can make a drastic difference for your home in order to maintain warmth, reduce drafts and even reduce noise from outside. Double or triple glazing can also add to the energy efficiency. Not only does this sort of investment support you in maintaining warmth in your home but in the long run it can help reduce your bills by there being less of a need to turn up that thermostat and reduce the period of time you need to have your boiler on.
Insulation & Carpet Underlay
Whether it be your house walls, your loft or even your boiler, insulating them, much like windows, will retain warmth, reduce drafts and ultimately reduce your costs. Insulating your loft for instance can be effective for up to 40 years. Even though insulation could cost a fair bit now, given the term of its effectiveness, you will make your money back. So no matter what, it will do wonders for your home and warmth maintenance. The same goes for replacing carpet in your home. Having a high quality underlay below your carpet, maintains insulation and warmth.
Curtains vs. Blinds
whilst you may choose one over the other for personality and style, curtains bring far greater benefits when it comes to maintaining warmth versus that of blinds. A heavy curtain can work wonders in retaining heat, particularly if you also select thermal lining.