We hope you have been staying warm this season! There is just something about December that makes staying in with family and loved ones incredibly comforting and cozy. Hopefully, your furnace has been working great and not causing any issues for you. However, suppose it has, and you’ve noticed that your home just doesn’t seem to be staying as warm and cozy as you would like? Perhaps you saw that your furnace has been running nonstop, and you just have a hunch that all that good warm air your furnace is working on blowing out isn’t staying inside your home. Well, we are glad to be the bearers of good tidings and let you know that you experts at Eastland Heating & Cooling have put together a few points you can skim through to help you winterize your home and help your furnace out!
Seal Cracks & Gaps
Have you ever noticed any cracks or gaps on the exterior of your house when doing yardwork this past summer or fall? If they weren’t threatening the foundation of the home, then you may not have paid too much attention to them. But now is the time to make any necessary repairs. Cold air can come in through these minor cracks and gaps, no matter how small. You will want to use a high-quality caulk or sealant to fix these issues. Check the windows too and inspect any outside hose faucets as well. Gaps can happen around them. Once you have completed the outside, you should check the walls and windows on the inside of your home.
Hang Insulated Window Treatments
Window treatments are a great solution to winterizing your windows! It’s as simple as changing your curtains – no DIY work or projects are required! Suppose you have storm windows in your home. Thermal blackout curtains or quilted drapes will still help to keep as much warm air inside the home as possible. However, even the best storm windows draw in a bit of cold air on the coldest days.
Install a Programmable Thermostat
Programmable thermostats are optimal when it comes to customizing settings for your heat. While any thermostat does the job, a programmable one can help you set the temperature level so your furnace won’t run at all times. In addition, programmable thermostats raise or lower temperatures depending on the time of day you set. So if you are gone for a good portion during the workweek, you can set it to coordinate with those timeframes. Doing this, of course, will save you money on your bill. If you are interested in having one installed in your home, you can call Eastland Heating & Cooling; we will send out one of our NATE-certified technicians to get you taken care of!
Replace the Door Weather Stripping
If it has been a while since you examined the weather stripping surrounding your doors, now is the time to do so. Ripped or missing stripping will allow cold air to seep into your home. In addition, it would help if you inspected all four sides of each exterior door in your home. If there are any gaps or missing pieces, it is time to replace those.
Use Reverse Ceiling Fans
Most people only use their ceiling fans in the warm months. But you have thought to use them in the cold months? When a ceiling fan is used on its standard-setting, the blades rotate counterclockwise, blowing the cold air downwards. Check if your ceiling fan has the option to turn in reverse. The switch would be located either on the remote control or on the motor housing itself. Doing this will change the fan/s direction upwards, which then forces the warm air that has risen to your ceiling to circulate back down where it can keep you and your family warm.
Go through these adjustments one step at a time. Minor changes here and there will add up and prove beneficial in the long run. It can be overwhelming to try and accomplish all these at once. Keep in mind that an adequately winterized home still needs a functioning furnace. So if you have noticed your furnace has been acting up at all, your service professionals at Eastland Heating & Cooling would be more than happy to come and diagnose the issue for you.
Call Eastland Heating & Cooling today at (614) 861-5203, or schedule an appointment now by clicking here!
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