Top Home Improvement Tips to Help Save on Heating Costs
The costs of heating and cooling a home are some of the top costs homeowners regularly face. In areas where the weather is routinely so extreme that dialing the thermostat back isn’t an option, it makes improving the efficiency of your air conditioning and heater a top priority.
The good news is that there are a few things you can do to minimize the amount of air with a comfortable temperature that escapes your house with just a few home improvements.
Top Home Improvement Tips to Help Save on Heating Costs
1) Seal Any Leaky Windows
According to OneReverseMortgage.com, windows that leak air are the biggest culprit of hot or cold air.
The reason that windows can tend to leak resides with the rubber strip that outlines them. Homeowners tend to let the weather strips of their windows become old, which makes them brittle and unable to seal the window as well.
If replacing the weather strips around your window doesn’t work, then the glass component of the window may be damaged. You may also need to have the window sealed by a professional in the event that you have double-pane windows that leak air.
According to the window installation pros at Jayhawk Exteriors Inc, “Most homeowners replacing windows will notice the difference in their residence, including the energy savings reduction of approximately 10 percent.”
2) Take Care of Your Doors
Windows aren’t the only thing in your home that can become drafty. Doors are the next most common cause of an inefficient heating and air system. Fixing drafty doors can be as simple as adding a weather strip or seal around your door so that air doesn’t escape when it’s closed. If that doesn’t work, you may have severe foundation problems that have caused your door’s frame to lose its natural seal. This might require you to seek the help of a professional to repair your home’s foundation.
3) Opt for a Programmable Thermostat
Programmable thermostats
4) Seal Your Chimney
Your chimney’s flue will allow air to escape even when it’s closed. This can cost you hundreds of dollars a year when it comes to heating or cooling costs. A low-cost solution to this problem is to purchase an inflatable chimney balloon
5) Seal Your Ducts
Whether it’s a result of the people who put your HVAC system in or simply a side effect of wear, the ducts of your HVAC system will begin to leak air as they age. Sealing HVAC ducts can be done by using duct sealing tape. You can then wrap your ducts in insulation to further increase the efficiency of your heating and air system.
6) Tune Up Your HVAC System
Components of your heating and cooling can lose efficiency as they wear. Simple tuning up by professionals, which includes things like refilling your condenser line with coolant and sealing any leaks, can make your heating and cooling system more efficient.
7) Maintain Your HVAC System
Paying a professional to clean your HVAC system once a year is a money-saving idea. Your heating element and cooling coils both need to be cleaned to ensure that they have a long, efficient life while providing an even temperature distribution in your home.
Top Home Improvement Tips to Help Save on Heating Costs – Video
Too lazy to read all of this? I made a YouTube video to walk you through it!
Check it out below 🙂
Top Home Improvement Tips to Help Save on Heating Costs – Final Thoughts
These are just some quick home improvement tips to help save on heating costs. The more you can reduce air flow out of your home, the lower your bill will be. I know we seem to constantly have a small crack around the sealing strip at the bottom of our front door. This year, I plan to take care of this and save!
Check and seal any leaky windows, in this way you can make sure that you can save on heating costs. And I totally agree with you that it’s better to pay a professional to clean your HVAC system even once a year.
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Yeah, I’ve never paid for that but I think it’s probably a good investment to have a professional come out to check things out.
A programmable thermostat is awesome. No need to have the heater blasting all through the winter and during the night when you are warm in bed. Also get out a hoodie and a blanket and drop the thermostat a few degrees and enjoy extra money off the bill each month.
Lance @ HWI recently posted…Oh No! The Stock Market is Going On Sale
Lance,
I admit we used to keep our house arctic cold when we were younger. We had oil heat and those $400 – $500 tank refills really hit the wallet hard.
Programmable thermostats really are awesome – I’m sure ours has saved us hundreds over the years on heating and cooling costs.
I’d never heard of a chimney balloon before: what a nifty idea. We have an open fireplace in our house but I had never considered blocking the flue.
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Yeah,
I thought it was a joke until I started researching them. Who would have thought?!?
If your energy bills are too high, then it is a good idea to get the audit done for insulation. Proper insulation will reduce your energy bills and also keep your home warm.
Michael,
That’s a very good point. I’ve heard of the infrared audits that can be great for diagnosing insulation issues.
Nice tips Derek! I never know about the chimney and purchasing an inflatable chimney balloon would be a great solution!
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Yeah – that’s a crazy gadget isn’t it?
When we had an energy audit done, we were advised to replace a door, three windows and get the attic insulated. It had a major impact on our heating bills and we literally saved hundreds of dollars the first season after the home improvements. It was amazing.
Wow – those are fantastic results. Thanks for sharing!
A few years ago I made sure to caulk all of my windows. I replaced the insulation around my front door too. I then noticed a draft coming from all places my power outlets! I bought those insulation pieces that fit into the outlet box and the plastic safety plugs to stop kids from sticking things in the unused outlets.
After doing all of this, I did notice a small reduction in my heating costs. Overall, it was well worth it.
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Jon,
That’s strange – I noticed the same exact thing at my old house! I should have thought to try that with the kids plugs. Probably could have saved me a few bucks even though it would have been a little inconvenient 🙂
I didn’t realize that leaky windows could affect your home heating and cooling costs so much. I know that there are at least two windows around my home that don’t have great seals around the edges, and one more has a small crack along one side of the glass. Replacing and repairing those windows will definitely be at the top of my to-do list this summer!
McKayla,
Good luck with the job – that sounds like it will save you quite a bit once you take care of it!
I just got my last heating bill, and for some reason it skyrocketed. I have no idea what happened, but I am assuming that something is wrong with my heater. I will make sure I call someone to come and fix it for me right away. But I want to do all I can to keep those costs down once it is fixed. So thank you for giving me these tips on how to do that! I’ll make sure I start them right away.
Brandon,
Good luck getting to the root cause of the issue.
Re-caulking the windows can definitely help eliminate drafts. I remodeled my bathroom last year, and we replaced the glass window with a new, updated design because it was leaking air. It has saved us a lot on energy costs since then. It also makes the bathroom a more inviting room than it was before.
Ah, good, a video for lazy people like me! Seriously though, I didn’t know that doors where the second most common cause of energy loss. I guess I should get my doors looked at.
As the summary mentioned, the less airflow you have in and out of the house while the heater is running, the more energy efficient your home will be. Cracks under the outside doors is just one way that heat and energy can escape from your house. Replacing doors and windows with more energy efficient, sealed ones can help solve that problem. I appreciate you sharing these tips on how to make your heater more efficient and cost-effective.
With the cold coming in a few month I seriously thought that I was going to need to get a guy in here to check my house for the air leakage. I think I might just need to check my windows and doors. If I am on a budget at the time I could just tape the door gaps.
I like how your last two tips were to tune-up and maintain the HVAC system. It can definitely be annoying to do work on something that is running well, but I don’t think that people realize how much it can help them. If you do periodic maintenance and make small repairs, you can extend the life of the unit quite a bit, and keep big repairs farther apart. Hopefully everything works out well. to ensure that people get all the help they need with things like this.
I am trying to figure out how to fix the crack in my garage foundation. I’m just glad that the crack isn’t in a portion of the house my family lives in. What are the best ways to detect the severity of foundation damage?
That’s a good question Bryan that I will have to research further. We have a couple cracks in our slab foundation that I am concerned about.
I think i might opt for a programmable thermostat. It sometimes gets too cold for the house and I am freezing. I think that programmable thermostat would be great. It would save me money and also keep temperature at the right value.
Getting an programmable thermostat is a great way to help save money. Especially during the winter. I’m a polar bear and could sleep in a freezer. Having the house cooler while people are sleeping is a great way to save money. You can also do some home improvement projects like making sure that your attic has enough insulation to keep warm/cool air in your home.
It is a really good idea to block air flow through your chimney when it isn’t in use. I had no idea that doing that could help save you a lot of money. However, this does seem like a great way to help save ene3rgy. Something like this could also help save you a lot of money in the long run.
Great advice to seal your ducts. I’ve never thought of doing that before but it sounds like it could save you a few bucks on heating costs for sure! Thanks for sharing.