According to the Punxsutawney Phil, winter is sticking around for a while this year. It's not too late to seal up your house from the cold and save money on your heating bill. These fixes are quick and easy to install, and they’ll help your home stay cozy and warm for the duration.
Insulating windows and doors
Weather stripping for windows and doors is available in many colors and types. It is simple to install and easy to remove.
Use a transparent weather-sealant tape for areas where the stripping will be applied directly to windows and glass doors, because it is not easily noticed.
A bonus use for this type of tape: You can temporarily seal cracks in windows to keep out the elements and prevent further cracking until you can make the permanent repair. Just apply the tape to the drafty areas, and you can easily remove it when you no longer need it.
Door sweep
The space under your exterior doors is a big entry point for cold air. Door sweeps are easy to install directly to your doors. Apply them to the bottom of the door with nails, or use the door sweeps with an adhesive for a no-tools-needed installation.
Reflective insulation
Attics and crawl spaces are notoriously cold areas of your home. While traditional insulation can be time-consuming and expensive to install, reflective insulation is fiber-free and super easy to staple to any surface you want to insulate.
It costs less than $20 a roll, and you can use it to creatively insulate a variety of spaces. You can also use it to keep Fido's doghouse warm or to insulate an RV, a chicken coop, or just about any small space.
Garage door
Unless your garage is insulated, it is probably a chilly space. An easy way to keep some of the cold air out is to install a weather-sealing strip to the bottom of your garage door. These can generally be installed in a matter of minutes.
These strips offer an added advantage: They keep out rain and pests.
Outlets and switches
Believe it or not, outlets and switches on your exterior walls are a cold-air culprit. Foam outlet and switch sealers cost very little, and can be installed in minutes.
Just turn off the power, remove the outlet or switch cover, apply the foam sealers, and reinstall the cover.
Decor updates
Curtains and rugs can have a big impact on warming up your home. For example, if you hang some nice, heavy curtains over drafty windows, you’ll notice an immediate improvement in the temperature of your space.
Likewise, adding some area rugs over hardwood floors will warm up a room. Putting rugs in bathrooms with tile floors really helps when the house is chilly, especially for middle-of-the-night bathroom visits.
Sometimes it’s the quick and simple updates that make a big difference. You can do all six updates above in an afternoon - or any one of them in under an hour. You will not only make your home more comfortable for the remainder of the cold season, but also save money and do your part for energy conservation.
You can do this!
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