Improving Your Home's Heat Retention This Winter

Every time your furnace kicks on during a cold day your bill goes up, so it'd be nice if the money you spend to heat your home isn't wasted. Holding onto more heat and making sure your furnace isn't heating empty rooms can help avoid waste and keep you more comfortable. With a little effort on your part and some new habits, your home will feel warmer and your bill won't have to climb in the process.

The Value of Circulation

Regardless of the season, good air circulation in your home is a vital part of HVAC efficiency. In the winter, it's a case of putting the heated air you're paying for back where you need it. Since hot air rises, the warmest part of your home is also the closest to your roof, which doesn't benefit you at all if you haven't yet mastered levitation.

Ceiling fans are by far the most effective way of redistributing the heat from your ceiling back down to ground level. Multi-story homes may also need a certain number of oscillating fans to make sure that the upstairs isn't being heated at the expense of the basement or main floor. This will not only help to ensure more even heating of your home but it will help a furnace with limited cool air intakes displace air more effectively during normal operation.

Creating a Closed System

The biggest hindrances to your furnace's efficacy are the drafts that are found around windows and doors. Even the best installation in the world may not protect your window or door frame seals from aging, meaning that cold air can seep inside through small gaps and force your furnace to work just a little harder. There are several ways you can create a more complete seal around your doors and windows though, without replacing them entirely.

Window film kits can be installed almost immediately, using a thin plastic sheet to create an air tight seal around your window in minutes. Replacing the weather stripping around your doors can also be done with relatively little experience or preparation, so long as you apply the new weather stripping to the entire perimeter of the door. Come spring, you can implement a more permanent fix, such as sealing window and door frames with new caulk and expansive foam insulation, or replacing them.

Even the best heating system will be handicapped by the limitations of the environment it's installed in. Addressing those limitations will ensure that your furnace runs more efficiently and that your home is headed more evenly throughout the coldest parts of the year. If you're having any problems with your furnace, consider calling an HVAC specialist, such as Allied Mechanical & Electrical, Inc., to discuss your concerns.