How You Can Help Minimize the Heat Leaving Your Home

With the colder weather settling in, the last thing you should have anxiety over is keeping a comfortable home. In an ideal world, you would be able to relax in a warm home and not thinking twice about what’s taking place outside. Of course, it may not be that easy, and there are a few things that could be taking place in your home that might result in a need for furnace repair or an unnecessary increase in your utility costs.

There are a variety of causes for higher utility bills, but these are three of the more common ones we typically hear about at.

1. Heat is getting out through the glass of your windows – when the warm air in your home reaches windows that are cold from the outdoor air, that air loses some of its heat. One way to help reduce the loss of heat is to make sure you’re closing your drapes during the evening hours and only opening drapes on windows receiving light during the day.
2. Lack of attic insulation – if you live in an older home there’s a likelihood that there is a lack of insulation. This means you could be losing heat through your attic, which forces your furnace to work harder to keep up, and may eventually result in furnace repair. It’s not hard to determine if you have enough insulation, take a look and see if the insulation is below or even with the joists. When the insulation is even or below the joists, you’ll likely want to add some more insulation.
3. Gaps in windows and doors – it’s not always easy to tell by just taking a quick look if there are large gaps. Be sure to thoroughly look at all of your windows and doors to determine whether it requires weather stripping to take care of those gaps. Just like it is with attic insulation, window and door gaps can require your heating system to work harder, increasing the chance of furnace repair down the line.

These are just a few tips to help you determine any potential problem areas in your house that could cause heat loss. If you have any questions about furnaces, furnace repair or other ways to combat heat-loss, give us a call at 918-212-8943.