Stretching Your Heating Dollar
Identify rooms in your home that you do not use or use very seldom. Close off the vents in these rooms and close the door. There is no sense in heating a room that nobody is using. That small step will save you a few dollars a month. You can also place a towel or something at the bottom of the door to keep drafts out just as you do your exterior doors.
Something many people forget about is their ceiling fan. It is wonderful to have a ceiling fan in the summer, but most fans now have reversible settings which allow for the warm air to be circulated throughout a room instead of cooled. The switch is usually right above the light fixture or on the base of the fan. If you do not have a reversing switch then make sure the ceiling fan is off.
Start taking advantage of all the heat that is created in the kitchen. When you have been cooking something in the oven, leave the oven door open halfway while it is cooling. You might as well enjoy the heat benefits as well as the great tasting food.
Use the stove top ventilator and bathroom fan as little as possible. These two are blowing all your nice warm air and money right out of the house. Be sure that the flue on your fireplace is closed as well when not in use. Having an open flue is just another way of air escaping. It has been said that any of these three alone can empty all the warm air out of a home in less than two hours.
Dress for the weather and set back the thermostat. Go ahead and start wearing your long sleeve shirts and sweaters inside the house. Set your thermostat back about five degrees and watch your bill go down. It’s not summer time so put the shorts away. This is about saving money not making a fashion statement.
The little things we do and small changes we make will stretch our heating dollar. Getting the most for our money will not only leave more in our pocket but will help our environment as we are conserving energy.
