5 Ways to Reduce Your Heating Bill

Have your teeth have been chattering a bit more than usual this winter? If so, you may be wondering how to heat your home more efficiently. Fortunately, there are many energy saving tips you can follow to warm your home that won’t break the bank. Here are just a few.

If your home doesn’t have adequate insulation, your heating unit is working much harder than it needs to, with much less effect. Unless you bought your house new, built it, or remodeled it yourself, you probably don’t know what kind of insulation you have, or how much. You can perform your own inspection by following an online tutorial like this one, or hire a professional insulation company. If you find that you have too little insulation—and many older homes do—adding some can greatly reduce your heating bill.

A major way to conserve heat is by covering your windows, especially in the winter. Bubble wrap and packing foam are both cost-friendly alternatives to more expensive insulation blinds. About 25% of heat escapes though uncovered glass windows, so even though you might not want to view the world through bubble wrap, this is a great way to reduce your energy bill.

You’d be surprised how much energy can slip through an uncovered keyhole, or the cracks beneath the doors. This is because no matter what you do, the cold outside will suck the heat out of the house—a process known as heat transfer—and attempt to infiltrate through every little crack and gap. You can test for drafts by exploring your house with either your hand or a lit candle. Once you’ve identified gaps, you can cover them up with tape or other materials.

Some areas of your home might be left untouched until visitors arrive. If you have extra, unused spaces like guest bathrooms or attics, close off their vents so that your heating unit can redirect heat into areas you use the most. The most important part of this step? Remember to re-open the vents in the guest room when grandma comes to visit!

The floor alone is responsible for up to 10% of home heat loss, so it’s important to keep it as covered as possible. If your floor is uncarpeted, and you plan on spending a few decades in your home, carpeting might be an investment that eventually pays for itself. You can also buy some big oriental rugs, or make like a Lannister and buy that bearskin rug you’ve secretly always wanted. (Sorry, we had to.)

Sunlight is 100% free, so try to make the most of it. When you notice that the sun is especially bright in a certain window, open the curtains or blinds to let it steam through. Once the sun goes down, close the curtains again to keep the heat from escaping through the windows.

We hope these energy saving tips help you in the future! Do you need supplies to help insure your home is fully insulated? SSI Packaging has a wide selection of bubble, foam, and tape products