Lowering your heating bill may seem complicated at first.
But in fact it's quite the opposite!
Yes, yes, I promise you, even in the middle of winter...
…and moreover without having to sacrifice the comfort of the whole family!
You can save money on heating, while maintaining gentle warmth in your home.
Just because it's cold doesn't mean you have to shell out a fortune on your heating bills.
Just take a quick tour of your home and check out the 14 problem areas listed below.
You will see, these simple and effective tips will help you considerably reduce your electricity bill.
To stay warm in winter, you'll never need to break the bank again!
So, without further ado, here are 14 simple and effective tips to lower your heating bill . Watch:
Consider checking the rubber seals around door and window frames. Over time, these gaskets wear out and break down.
And if they are worn, it creates drafts that cool your home all day.
Energy suppliers estimate that 7 to 12% of heat loss from a home takes place around doors and windows.
As a result, we tend to push the thermostat harder than we should to feel warm.
Even if you don't touch the thermostat, worn seals will cause you to lose hot air.
Indeed, to maintain the desired temperature, your boiler will necessarily have to work constantly and consume more energy.
"Caulk doors and windows with rubber seals is an effective way to avoid cold drafts" explains Mathieu Dufour, energy saving specialist at Ademe.
Be aware that after a few years, the wear of these seals is normal, and they must be replaced.
In addition, these seals are easy to replace. Simply pull on the worn seals to loosen them, then replace them with new adhesive seals, like these.
To discover: The House Tip To Insulate Your Windows From The Cold.
If you see an opening under your door, that means you're losing hot air. And this air, you paid dearly for it to heat your interior!
As Mr. Dufour explains:"If the underside of your door does not touch the threshold, the cold air will necessarily pass through there."
Take a good look at the sill bars under your doors, and make sure they are adjusted to the correct height.
In fact, few people know that the threshold bars have 4 or 5 screws that allow you to adjust the height . Simply turn these screws counter-clockwise until there is only a tiny gap between the sill and the door.
If you see a tiny hole in the corners of a door, that's no big deal. The main thing is not to raise the threshold bar too much, as this will prevent the door from closing.
Similarly, avoid the threshold bar rubbing the bottom of the door, as this considerably accelerates the wear of the weather stripping.
To discover: The Unstoppable Trick To Insulate Your Front Door Like A Pro.
The electrical panels located outside the houses are one of the weak points of the insulation of a house.
Very often, electrical panels and sockets are poorly insulated against drafts. According to Mathieu Dufour, it is necessary at all costs to avoid drafts of cold air around and inside sockets and electrical panels.
Indeed, air leaks caused by the passage of electrical equipment can reduce the overall airtightness of a building by 30%.
Fortunately, there is a simple trick to insulate your interior from drafts from electrical installations
Simply remove the covers from your boxes and electrical outlets. If you see small cavities , seal them with sealant.
For larger cavities , especially do not use expanding foam! Indeed, it is dangerous for the security of your home. Read this article to learn more.
To complete the insulation, use airtight backboxes, like this one. They are effective and only cost €2.
"Recessed boxes insulate your electrical outlets perfectly. Even if it's a small expense at first, they will help you save a lot of money on your heating bills", explains Mathieu Dufour.
Gas pipes, water pipes, electrical ducts… all these installations enter your home through holes.
These holes are more or less caulked with expansion foam.
But over time, the foam around the installation ducts cracks, crumbles, and sometimes it falls apart.
This creates cavities through which winter cold from outside seeps into your home.
Another concern, these cavities are also an open invitation to insects and mice. Indeed, these pests will not hesitate for a second to sneak into your home!
The solution is simple. To prevent this type of draft, use expanding foam to plug cavities around gas, water or electrical conduits.
If your water installation has a cover between the pipe and the wall, be aware that this cover is purely decorative. Unscrew it, slide it towards you to remove it, and put foam all around the pipe.
As Mr. Dufour explains, "These caches are not waterproof, and they can't do anything against drafts."
Try turning down the thermostat and putting a fan heater in the room where your family spends the most time together.
On average, lowering the temperature by just 1°C represents a saving of 7% in electrical energy.
Sure, the rest of your home will be a little colder, but you and your family will be toasty warm in the room you occupy most often.
7% less consumption on your bill for each degree, that's a lot of savings on your heating bill!
Of course, there is the initial purchase of a rotary heater, which also consumes electricity.
But you can easily find fan heaters around 20 €. And a blower of less than 1200 W costs you around €0.20 per hour, based on a rate of around €0.15 per kWh.
Remember, the savings from turning down your thermostat will always be greater than the electricity consumed by a small fan heater.
According to Ademe, windows are responsible for 25% of heat loss from homes.
The trick to reducing this heat loss is to cover the windows and bay windows of your home with stretch film.
"By putting stretch film on your windows, you lower your heating bill by around 14%", according to Mathieu Dufour.
It is an effective method, but also economical. You can find large rolls of stretch wrap for less than €11 a roll.
In addition, the stretch film is easy to install, and it hardly shows on your windows. In the spring, once the fine weather returns, it withdraws as easily as it arises. Check out the trick here.
This is the big disadvantage of a fireplace. When not in use, the warm air from the interior escapes through its duct.
Be aware that even if you remember to close the damper on your chimney, you will still lose hot air. Indeed, the valves are never completely sealed.
The easy solution to avoid this heat loss is to use an inflatable chimney ball .
These balloons are reusable, inexpensive, and you can find them in all sizes on Amazon. At home, I use this model which cost me around 25€.
"Inflatable fireplace balloons can easily save you €100 a year on your heating bill. This means that the initial expense of a balloon is quickly amortized", explains Mathieu Dufour. "Chimney balloons are therefore an excellent investment."
To use them, simply inflate the balloon and insert it directly into your chimney flue.
If you forget your balloon before lighting a fire, it will deflate automatically. So don't worry, your house will never be filled with smoke!
The only downside is that over time the balloons get clogged with soot. So remember to wear gloves when handling them.
To discover: 32 Surprising Uses of Wood Ash:Don't Miss #28!
Even if your attic is well insulated, this is not necessarily the case with the access hatch, another point of heat loss.
Even if it is insulated, the access door to your attic can become obstructed or veiled over time, which also causes hot air to leak into the attic.
"Check the access hatch of your attic to see if there are any hot air leaks", explains Mathieu Dufour. "Make sure it's properly insulated, and also that the door is well caulked."
To ensure that your hatch is well protected from drafts, lay adhesive glass wool on the attic side of the door.
If the hatch door is warped, or not closing properly, there is a simple fix. To solve this problem, simply lock the door with a latch system, like this one.
To discover: How To Transform Your Attic Into A Home-Cinema.
If your home has a forced air unit, check the air ducts, which are accessible from your basement or attic.
Take a good look at the corners and joints of the ducts, where they tend to come undone.
A house with a forced air unit loses between 20 and 30% of its heat due to leaks and holes in the ducts, or because these have been installed incorrectly.
Fortunately, you can easily fix this problem.
How? 'Or' What ? By sealing leaks with sealant or with this metal tape, specially designed to adhere to metal ducts and pipes.
Of course, the maintenance of your heating installations will inevitably generate a cost. The prices for a trip by a professional vary between €75 and €150.
However, the cost of maintaining your gas installation pays for itself over the long term.
Indeed, a heating installation controlled by a professional consumes less energy , and it will reduce your heating bill.
And above all, it will preserve the lifespan of your boiler or chimney.
Typically, a professional intervention on heating installations includes:
- a revision of the boiler and the chimney,
- preventive maintenance and
- control of components that need to be changed or repaired.
The technician will also be able to detect gas or carbon monoxide leaks, which put your family in danger.
Typically, boiler warranty conditions require review at least once a year. Check out the trick here.
Programmable thermostats can help you achieve significant savings over the year.
Thanks to smart thermostats, you can reduce your heating bill by at least 10%.
They allow you to automatically lower the temperature a few degrees when you are away from home or sleeping.
And because they're growing in popularity, you can buy a programmable thermostat without spending a fortune. Indeed, the basic models start around 25 €.
Even better, there are smart thermostats like the Nest. Admittedly, this model costs €250, but it will lower your heating bill by up to 12%, and your air conditioning bill by up to 15%.
You can also visit the manufacturer's site for discounts and bonuses on Nest products.
The advantage of the Nest is that it automatically adapts to your lifestyle . It adjusts the temperature when you are away from home and when you sleep.
So you save money, but WITHOUT wasting time programming your thermostat manually.
Last thing, you have surely heard that a boiler consumes more energy when it heats a house in which the thermostat has been lowered.
Well, that's wrong! Lowering the temperature of your home when you're away will always save you more money than leaving it the same temperature.
Even when the mercury dips below zero, the sun's rays can bring their warmth into your home.
The sun is a free source of energy, so make the most of it! During the day, your boiler will run less often thanks to the heat of the sun.
The idea is simple:open your shutters and curtains during the day, especially for windows facing south or with direct exposure to the sun.
Even better, prune the branches and shrubs that block the spaces in front of your windows and prevent the sun from heating your interior.
Conversely, do not forget to close the shutters and the curtains when it is dark. This will protect your windows and significantly reduce drafts. Check out the trick here.
If you have ventilation grilles at home (especially for our readers who live in Quebec), here is an effective tip to lower your bill.
To properly heat your home, the air that comes out through the grilles of your fan heater needs to circulate freely.
Therefore, avoid placing your armchair or sofa directly above the air vents, as this decreases the circulation of hot air. Indeed, if a grid is obstructed, it is as if it were closed.
To avoid this waste and reduce your heating bill, arrange the furniture so that it does not block the ventilation grilles.
Surely you have already noticed it. When you lock a window, you feel it tighten against its frame, which can also reduce your heating bill.
When a door or window is closed but not locked, it does not necessarily touch the rubber seals around the frame.
As a result, this creates a small space that allows cold drafts from outside to seep into your home.
Get into the habit of locking your windows as soon as the cold weather sets in, especially if you live in northern regions. Indeed, extreme cold can freeze window locks, and unlocking them is far from simple.
To discover: 25 Essential Tips For Your Car In Winter.
