Are you one of the many looking to save cash amid the pandemic? Even if you weathered the storm okay, the events of the past year taught many to get more careful with their cash.
With the cold season here, you probably spend a bundle on keeping your home comfortable. How can you cut costs? Here are eight tips that will help save your family money this winter.
1. Maintain Your HVAC System
According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), you should swap out your home’s air filters every 60 to 90 days, but you might need more frequent changes. Those who smoke or have multiple pets may need to change theirs like clockwork when they make their mortgage or rent payment.
Also, pay attention to signs that your furnace needs to be replaced, particularly if you live in an older home. If your unit is more than 15-years-old, it could start to lose efficiency, costing you money each month. Younger furnaces that needed repair within the past two years may likewise be past their prime.
2. Take Down Your Curtains
During the summer, curtains do a passable job of blocking radiant heat, but they prevent you from taking advantage of passive solar over the winter months. However, window tinting keeps your home warmer in the winter and cooler in the summer, all while reducing UV ray’s damaging effects on your furniture and flooring.
Tossing your window coverings also helps you take advantage of natural light in your home. If you work a nontraditional shift, you can keep your blackout blinds in the bedroom, where cooler temperatures help you sleep more soundly, anyway.
3. Bake at Night
Have you ever read a recipe that specifies what time of day you need to make your dish? If you are preparing a roast or baked sweets, why not wait until the sun sets to let the oven’s heat take some of the burden off your HVAC system?
If nighttime baking holds little appeal, try prepping the day before and getting the oven going first thing in the morning. Temperatures actually dip right after dawn right when your home could use the extra heat.
4. Caulk and Weatherstrip
You shouldn’t feel any colder when you sit by your windows than you do if you plop down in the center of your room. You know you need to seal the gap or bleed cash via higher utility bills if you do.
Ask your hardware store associate for help selecting the correct caulk and weatherstripping. Ensure you seal all cracks where outdoor air can enter. If you still catch a draft, it might be time to replace your windows.
5. Insulate Your Garage
If your toes freeze in one room only, consider the location. The space above your garage can freeze if you don’t insulate it.
Plus, frigid temperatures can harm your vehicle’s engine life. Your car is typically your second-most largest investment shouldn’t you protect it with a bit of the pink stuff?
6. Upgrade Your Teapot
It’s a silly trick, but it works. Even though warm beverages can ironically cool you on hot days, they still increase your sensation of warmth in the winter which could prompt you to lower your thermostat.
Merely curling your fingers around your mug and letting the steam warm your face makes you feel a happy winter glow inside. Once the warm liquid hits your belly, it gently elevates your temperature. Although the effects don’t last long, they’re just enough to get you up and moving, which inspires calorie-burn and increased body heat.
7. Install a Programmable Thermostat
If you still work outside-the-home despite the pandemic, you’re paying a fortune to keep your home cozy for no one if you set and forget your thermostat. Few like coming home to freeze make 2021 the year you finally replace that dinosaur with a programmable thermostat.
You can also use this nifty device to help you sleep more soundly and comfortably. The experts at the Sleep Foundation consider 65 degrees the optimal temperature for slumber. Set your furnace to kick on the heat before you wake up so that you don’t have to scamper to the bathroom with goosebumps.
8. Learn Proper Pipe Care
Please don’t let your zeal for saving money end up costing you big time. Please don’t completely turn your heat off doing so can result in burst pipes and significant water damage.
Unfortunately, there’s no easy answer to where you should keep your furnace set. Everything boils down to where your pipes lie in your home and how well you insulate them. If you travel, keeping the thermostat between 55 and 60-degrees and leaving a dripping faucet should do the trick, although you can go higher if unsure.
Save Your Family Money This Winter With These Tips
Pandemic or no, who doesn’t want to save more of their hard-earned cash? Save your family money this winter with these tips.
I’m a 20-something stay-at-home mother and wife. I have an amazing husband, a beautiful daughter, two loving dogs, and a lazy cat. I wouldn’t change my life for anything! I love to read, listen to music, cook and blog!
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