There are some easy, cheap ways to winterize your home. First, after the trees drop their leaves, clean your gutter of debris. This allows the melting water to flow down and away from your home.
Change the direction of your ceiling fans. They should now rotate clockwise moving the warm, lighter air down to the floor.
The most frustrating way to keep heat in is to use window film on the windows. Insulation film on windows can keep up to 70% of the heat in especially if you do not have double pane windows. Using heavy curtains also helps. One of the best things I did was to replace the old windows and storm windows you a to put on every fall with double-pane energy efficient windows.
Check underneath you outside entrance doors to see if cold air comes in the bottom. If it does place a draft guard under the door. You can use a rolled towel to seal off the draft.
Change your furnace air filters to improve its efficiency.
If your windows leak around the outside edges, use rolled weatherstripping putty to seal the warm air from leaking outside. Any remaining gaps around the door or windows can be filled with caulk. If the home is older, you can pull off the moldings and fill the gaps with insulation or caulk.
Every degree you lower your thermostat you will save between 1 to 3 percent. Have you ever forgotten to turn down the heat when you left your house? For as little as $50, you can get a programmable thermostat that turns the heat up or down when you want it. Also, you can get a smart thermostat that you can control on your phone.
If your water heater pipes are in a cooler area like a basement, get pre-slit pipe insulators or batt-style wrap for your hot water pipes. If you are doing major upgrades like installing new windows or furnace, there may be federal tax credits so check with your accountant.
