Are you looking at your utility bills this month and wondering how to lower your heating bills? Winter is hard on the budget! I grew up in New England and the nights got to near-freezing temperatures by November.
I wore footie pajamas in high school just to stay warm at night…along with flannel sheets and really big fuzzy quilts covering the bed! Learning how to conserve heat in your home will save you money and cut back on arguments with cold-blooded family members!
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Lowering Heating Bills is Frugal AND Green
My father was frugal and we had one of those programmable thermostats that automatically dropped the house to 58 degrees at 11 PM. Yes, you read that correctly…it was in the ’50s in my house at night!
No matter how many layers I added, my nose was STILL cold! Oh, how many times I heard the words “If you’re cold, put on a sweater!” from my dad!
30 years ago, my dad cut back on heating costs because it was the smartest thing to do for our family’s budget. However, what is good for the finances is also good for the environment!
Learning how to conserve heat in your home cuts your carbon footprint significantly. So, what can YOU do to save money on heating expenses as the cool weather hovers over us? Here are a few things for you to consider.
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How to Lower Your Heating Bills and Save Money
Lower your thermostat:
There are several ways to cut heating costs this winter. Putting on a sweater and a pair of fuzzy thermal socks is the easiest way to stay warm and lower your heating bills. Drop the temperature on your thermostat by 2 to 3 degrees and add an extra layer. I guess my dad’s advice finally sank in! If you are looking for easy energy-saving tips, this is certainly the simplest.
Lower your water heater:
You probably won’t even notice the difference if you turn down the thermostat on your water heater down 10 degrees or so. 120 degrees should be plenty warm to heat your shower! You should also consider a hot water jacket for your water heater to reduce heating costs.
More Easy Green Living Tips
- How to Save Money So You Can Go Green!
- Wildcrafting Tips: How to Start Foraging for Food in the Wild
- Green New Year Resolutions for a Small Carbon Footprint
- Check out my post about winter energy saving tips for more ways to save.
Consider a programmable thermostat:
When you go to bed at night it is easy enough to put on thermal sheets and a heavy comforter. There is no reason to heat the air when you could be snug and warm under a blanket! Program the heat to come back up 30 minutes or so before your alarm goes off.
Know where your heat is escaping from:
In order to learn how to save on heating costs, you need to know where your heat is actually going. Keep the flue on your fireplace closed, don’t leave the door open when you are running back and forth to the car for your groceries, and put those cute little door draft blockers underneath your doors to keep out the cold.
If you are wondering how to lower your heating bills and are up to a few green home improvements, you have many options. You can look into replacing single-pane windows with double pane or insulating the attic.
Ask your local energy company for a free home energy audit to find out where all your energy leaks are. Ventilation fans are a big source of drafts in the home! Check out my post on doing your own home energy audit for a few tips.
Let your appliances help:
There are a number of activities that we do in our everyday life that generate heat for our homes. Running the dryer, baking cookies, and taking a hot shower can all take that early chill out of the air before the sun comes up and starts helping out our heaters!
When you shower, keep the bathroom door open so the heat spreads to other rooms. Also, don’t turn a ventilation fan on because it will remove the warm air you’ve created. Make sure you stay on top of home appliance maintenance for maximum savings.
Give your heater a checkup:
The price for a home heating system checkup is usually lowest in the off-season. Have someone come out and make sure everything is running smoothly at least once a year. Keep filters clean to maximize efficiency.
If you hit the lottery, you may want to convert your home to geothermal energy or add solar panels to your roof but until you can totally convert to green energy, use these recommendations to help cut your energy costs and save a few pennies! Have any other tips on how to lower your heating bills?
Diane is a professional blogger and nationally certified pharmacy technician at Good Pill Pharmacy. She earned her BS in Microbiology at the University of New Hampshire and has worked in cancer research, academics, and biotechnology. Concern over the growing incidence of human disease and the birth of her children led her to begin living a more natural life. She quickly realized that the information she was learning along the way could be beneficial to many others and started blogging and freelance writing to share this knowledge with others. Learn more about her HERE.