As winter approaches, it’s important to ensure that your home is warm and comfortable. There are several effective strategies for winterizing a house. Here are five tips to consider.
1. Add More Insulation
The most straightforward way to keep your home warm is to simply add more insulation to the building. It’s especially important to focus on insulating your attic, as heat rises, and a poorly insulated attic will make it easy for heat to escape your home. Blown-in attic insulations are effective all year round, and multi-layer attic insulations can help reduce ice dams.
2. Use Your Thermostat Wisely
If you’re feeling cold inside your house, your first instinct is likely to turn up the thermostat. However, heating your home too much can cause your energy bills to skyrocket. Consider upgrading to a programmable thermostat. This will enable you to set your thermostat on a schedule and avoid wasting energy when you’re not home.
3. Cover Your Windows
Windows can provide easy entry points for cold air and easy exit points for warm air. In fact, according to Energy Saver, a typical home loses about 30% of its heating energy through its windows. In addition to making sure that your windows don’t have any cracks and removing any air conditioning units, it helps to add an extra layer of covering. Shutters, shades, and blinds can all help to insulate a window and keep your house warm.
4. Add Storm Doors
Every time you open your door, you let cold air in and warm air out. A storm door can provide an extra layer of protection to keep your house warm. Storm doors are additional exterior doors installed on the outside of a home, usually made from wood, plastic, or aluminum.
5. Use a Draft Stopper
A draft stopper, also known as a draft snake, is a long tube that you can place under a door or around a window to keep drafts out. These tools are made from fabric stuffed with a material like rice or beans. These are super useful for keeping out any drafty breezes you may experience.
Home insulation should always be done with professional help. Discount Window and Door can help you prepare your home for winter with a wide selection of exterior and interior doors and a variety of window types, all at an affordable price. Let us help you get started on winterizing your home.