5 Ways to Make Sure Your Property Stays Warm During the Winter

5 Ways to Make Sure Your Property Stays Warm During the Winter

With winter just around the corner, many homeowners will be preparing their home for the cold. The Department of Energy and Climate Change detailed that a home’s heating accounts for over 70% of household energy consumption. For all homeowners this is a costly expense, and 11% of British families cannot afford to keep their homes warm. However, there are simple ways to keep your home warm without breaking the bank. Here are a few things you can try:

Make draught stoppers

The Telegraph notes that even the smallest draughts can affect the temperature inside your home—draught-proofing your windows and doors can help keep you cosy even when the heating is off. To stop a draught, add tape along the edges of your home’s windowpanes. Use sealants to fill the gaps between the top and the bottom of your skirting boards and make draught stoppers using old socks and rolled cushions.

Look for hidden draughts, too. There could be one behind the washing machine, under the kitchen cupboards, and around the sink and toilets.

Use thick curtains, roller blinds and carpets

Installing heavy weight curtains and thermal-lined curtains is a great way to keep the cold out and insulate your home this winter. Draw your curtains during the day to let some heat in, but remember to close them before nightfall.

Getting an affordable carpet and laying it over bare floorboards can help

The BBC explains how covering bare floorboards can help reduce heat loss, not to mention keep your feet warm while you’re walking around the house. You can also improve the insulation even more by adding some underfelt. You can also line your floor with plastic to prevent cold air coming up from under your home.

Move your furniture away from the radiator

Your couch absorbs a lot heat from your radiator, especially if it situated in front of it. Move it a few inches away or to another part of the room so the heat from the radiator can circulate better. Put away any clothes and towels that are hanging on the radiator so they don’t absorb the heat.

You can also put radiators and heaters under the shelves. This creates a vortex of warm air and prevents heat from rising to the ceiling.

Maintain your radiator and heating system

If you have a hot water radiator, make sure that the hot water is circulating properly. One of the most common problems is when air gets stuck inside the radiator, which can cause either the top of the radiator to remain cool even when the heat is on. To fix this, you need to turn your heating off, wait for it to cool down, open the bleed valve, and let the air and water drain out. When there’s no air left, shut the valve tight. You need to regularly check for leaks, too. Watch out for water on the floor and if you ever see a puddle, tighten the inlet valve or call for professional help. The Independent suggests you invest in a new boiler if your old one already needs frequent repairs. A good way to judge whether you need to consider this expense, is if the boiler is over 15-years old.

If you have a fireplace, you need to ensure that it’s producing enough heat for your entire home. An energy-efficient fireplace should be able to convert energy into useful heat, which is around 75%. If your fireplace is performing less than that, it’s better to replace it with one that is not only heat-efficient but energy-efficient, too. All of the gas fires featured on Screwfix come with a heat efficiency rating ranging from 50% to 100%.The higher the rating the more it is a dependable choice when it comes to keeping your home warm and cosy this winter. Other ways to make sure your property is warm this winter is to switch your fan on low to help circulate the warm air. You also need to make sure doors to rooms that you are not using remain closed.

Insulate your ceiling and glaze your windows

Between 40% to 50% of your home’s heat is lost through the roof—adding insulation is one of the simplest ways to prevent this. You can do it yourself by getting isotherm or glass wool that you can buy from a DIY store. You can also use rolls of foam and some recycled cardboard.

When it comes to your windows, have a professional install double-glazed ones. Don’t worry about the cost, as it’s a one-off investment that will save you more money in the long run. But if you’re on a tight budget, you can purchase thick plastic sheets instead and stick it to the inside part of your window panes.