A cool home in the winter does more than make you shiver. You could also waste valuable energy and drive up your monthly bills in the process. You can work with professionals to gain control of your climate, but there are other options as well.
Keep reading to learn our top tips for warming your home without ever touching the thermostat.
1. Use a Space Heater or an Electric Blanket
There are many cases where a specialized space heater can do the trick instead of warming up your entire house. Like a bilge heater from Xtreme Heaters is designed to warm the engine compartment of a boat to protect critical equipment, a space heater can keep the room you’re in warm and keep you protected. You can also use an electric blanket to keep yourself warm without heating the entire room.
2. Seal Your Windows and Doors
A drafty home lets warm air escape and welcomes the cold. One of the best ways to keep your home warm without turning up the heat is to make sure your house is properly sealed around the doors and windows. If you have doors or windows that don’t seal well, your best bet is to invest in replacements, but that’s not always an option.
To take care of your doors and windows, you can also use weather stripping techniques. Lay down sections of peel-and-stick adhesive foam around your window edges and doorframes to seal your drafty areas. You can also lay clear plastic film over your windows and then heat with a hairdryer.
3. Reverse the Direction of Your Ceiling Fan
Your ceiling fan normally works to circulate air throughout your home by moving in a counterclockwise direction. As your ceiling fan forces warm air down, it mixes with the cooler air below.
However, you can also use your ceiling fan to warm your home during the winter months, and most fans are built for this purpose. To do this, you’ll need to switch the direction of your fan, so it’s spinning in a clockwise direction. There should be a direction switch on your fan to make this easy.
Once you’ve flipped the direction of your fan, set it to the lowest setting. This will move the cooler air upwards, which helps the warm air trapped near your ceiling move down into the room. The redistributed warm air will make your space feel more comfortable and cozy.
4. Open Your Oven Door
The winter months are perfect for making delicious home-cooked meals. After you’ve used your oven to make hot food, you can also use it to heat your home. Once you’ve finished cooking your meal, instead of letting your oven cool down like normal, open the door.
The opened oven door will allow all of the extra hot air to escape into your home, heating it in the process. We don’t recommend doing this unless you’re actually cooking a meal; however, when you do cook, take advantage of the extra heat by letting it out when you’re all done.
5. Use Area Rugs
Area rugs do more than just protect your feet from chilly floors. They also act as a layer of insulation for your home and naturally trap heat.
When picking out the best area rug to keep your home warm, you should look for one with a high stitch count. Additionally, thicker and bigger rugs are the best insulators. You should also look for a durable and warm fiber, like wool, if possible, as these insulate well.
