10 Effective Ways to Keep Your Home Warmer for Longer

10 Effective Ways to Keep Your Home Warmer for Longer

When the cold winter months come back around, you'll likely struggle with keeping your home warm. Fortunately, there are some things that you can do to effectively keep your home warmer for an extended period of time.

Give Your Radiators Space

To keep your home warmer, you should start by assessing the state of your radiators. More specifically, you want to check their surrounding area to see if any major items are blocking the heat that your radiators put off. If you have furniture in front of your radiator, move it to a different section of the room. You want to leave a good couple of feet surrounding your radiators to allow them to naturally off-put their heat.

Use a Reflective Backdrop

If your radiator is situated against an exterior wall, the heat coming off of the back of your radiator is escaping. You can save this heat by using a reflective backdrop-like foil to force the heat back towards the interior of the room.

Reverse Your Ceiling Fans

In the wintertime, you want to reverse your ceiling fans so that they're moving clockwise. This method slowly forces the air at the top of the room out towards the walls and back down to the floor. Having it in a reverse motion can help reduce the risk of feeling a breeze when using the fan.

Add Insulation

Insulation is a useful barrier between the cold weather outside and the warm temperature inside your home. When you lack proper insulation in the Antioch or Chicago area, you'll notice that your heating bills will be more expensive than they need to be. By adding some additional insulation to your home to increase its overall r-value, you can keep more of the warmth created in your house inside.

Weatherize Your Home

Mini-drafts from windows and doors can be detrimental during the winter months. Do yourself a favor and take steps to weatherize any drafting areas. Weatherstripping is the perfect tool to address those mini-drafts with ease.

Use a Programmable Thermostat

Programmable thermostats allow you to set different desired home temperatures based on the time of day and the day of the week. This means that you can set the temperature lower in the daytime hours when you're at work. Then, you can program the temperature to increase just before you arrive back home. This helps save money on your energy bill and ensures that your home stays warm when you plan to be home.

Let the Sunlight In

There's an entirely natural way to help heat the inside of your home: the sun, and it is free for everyone to use. Do yourself a favor and open up those curtains and blinds when the sun reaches your windows and doors. The natural UV rays will help heat the inside of your home by up to 10 degrees.

Install Door Sweeps

One of the most common areas that let unwanted cold air into your home is just below your door. While you may initially address this with a door snake, it can be very tedious to keep up with over time. Instead, opt for investing in door sweeps. These attach to the bottom edge of your door and block out the cold air.

Change Your Furnace Filter Regularly

Your furnace filter is a crucial part of your system that removes harmful airborne pollutants and debris from the air inside of your home. However, when your filter reaches the end of its lifespan, it will become clogged. This will slow down the airflow through the filter and make it harder to force hot air throughout your home. Be sure to check the state of your furnace filter at least once a month and change it when you can no longer see through it.

Make Sure Your Vents Are Uncovered

If your home has a forced-air heating system, then you have a series of vents that run throughout your home. Blocking any one of these vents can significantly reduce the ability of your furnace to heat your home. It's best to walk around your home and move any items blocking your vents so that air can flow freely in and out of them.

Contact Us Today

If you're still struggling with keeping your home warm during the colder winter months, it's time to get professional assistance. Call us at Command Service Center to schedule a consultation with one of our expert HVAC technicians.