5 Proven Ways to Lower Your Winter Heating Bills
Winter in Western Kentucky and Southern Illinois can be unpredictable. One week it's a mild 50 degrees, and the next week an arctic blast drops temperatures into the single digits. When the deep freeze sets in, your furnace works overtime, and the resulting utility bills can be a painful shock to your wallet.
Fortunately, you don't have to choose between freezing in your own home and paying exorbitant energy costs. By taking a proactive approach and implementing a few smart strategies, you can maximize your system's efficiency and keep your heating bills under control.
5 Strategies to Reduce Heating Costs
1. Utilize a Smart or Programmable Thermostat
The easiest way to save money is to stop heating an empty house. If you are still manually adjusting an old dial thermostat, you are wasting energy. Upgrading to a programmable or smart thermostat (like a Nest or Ecobee) allows you to set automated schedules.
The Department of Energy states that dialing your thermostat back by 7 to 10 degrees for 8 hours a day (while you are asleep or away at work) can save you up to 10% a year on your heating bills. Smart thermostats learn your habits and adjust automatically, maximizing savings without sacrificing comfort.
2. Seal Drafts and Add Insulation
The most efficient furnace in the world cannot compensate for a drafty, poorly insulated house. If heat is escaping through the cracks, your furnace will run constantly to keep up.
Take a weekend to inspect the weatherstripping around your exterior doors and use caulk to seal gaps around your windows. Furthermore, check the insulation in your attic. Heat rises, and if your attic is under-insulated, you are literally letting your hard-earned money float away through the roof. Adding blown-in insulation is one of the highest ROI home improvements you can make.
3. Keep Vents and Registers Unblocked
Walk through every room in your home and inspect the supply and return vents. Are they blocked by heavy curtains, rugs, or a large couch? Blocked vents disrupt the carefully balanced airflow of your HVAC system.
When airflow is restricted, the blower motor has to work significantly harder to push air through the ducts, consuming more electricity. It also creates pressure imbalances that can damage the heat exchanger over time. Ensure all vents have at least two feet of clear space around them.
4. Change Your Air Filter Monthly
We say it constantly because it is true: a dirty filter is the enemy of efficiency. A clogged filter restricts the amount of air the furnace can pull in. Less air moving through the system means less hot air coming out of your vents. The furnace will have to run longer cycles to reach the target temperature, burning more gas and electricity in the process. Change standard 1-inch filters every 30 days during peak winter months.
5. Schedule Annual Professional Maintenance
A furnace is a combustion engine. Over time, soot builds up on the burners, gas pressure fluctuates, and sensors get dirty. A poorly tuned furnace does not burn gas efficiently, meaning you get less heat for your money.
Scheduling an annual fall tune-up with Ironclad Comfort Solutions ensures your system is operating at peak efficiency. We clean the burners, calibrate the gas valve, inspect the heat exchanger for safety, and ensure the system is ready to tackle the winter efficiently.
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