Although we are already dreaming of spring, we still have a few more weeks of winter. During these cold months, we often find ourselves cranking up the heat in our homes and it can get costly. We have some energy saving tips for you so you can ride out the rest of winter without putting a dent in your wallet.

Accessorize with Warmth

An easy alternative to turning the heat up is dressing in warmer clothing. Try layering with a heavy sweater and some thick socks and you won’t even notice the temperature. You can even make a fun thrifting trip out of it and find some fiery looks to rock by the fire! Don’t just stop with accessorizing yourself, you can accessorize your home with warmth too. Try a new cozy area rug to cover colder flooring such as tile or laminate. Throw a trendy throw on your couch for those days you want to curl up with your favourite book.

Save with the Sun

It just so happens you have a completely free source of heat for your home just a few a million kilometres away: the sun! Heating up your home can be as simple as pulling back those blinds. If the sun is shining on your south-facing windows, let it in for some free heat. Close your window coverings once the sun sets to trap some of the heat inside.

Focus Your Heat

If there are rooms in your home that are often unused, you shouldn’t spend energy on heating them. A simple guest room solution is a space heater. When a guest does stay the night, you will save energy costs by turning on the space heater instead of spending longer to heat the room through ventilation. If you have large areas,like a basement, that are mostly for storage, don’t waste energy heating them.

Ventilate with Fans

You may think of your ceiling fans when you want to cool down in the summer, but they can also help with heat in the winter. Turning the fan on the lowest setting can actually help push rising heat back down. Also, ventilation in general will help spread heat throughout your home.

Insulate Your Home

It may be a more costly endeavour, but investing in insulating your home can really help save energy in the winter. Areas like windows and doors are more prone to letting heat escape, essentially evaporating your hard earned money into the outside air. Visit your local hardware store for your insulation needs and feel free to check out our post on How To Insulate Your Windows for a more in-depth guide.

Time Your Consumption

Most Ontario homes are currently on smart metres, meaning your energy consumption rates are based on the time of day you use energy. Running high-power appliances such as your washer, dryer, and dishwasher during off-peak times can really rake up the savings. You can check the Ministry of Energy website for in-depth prices and timing.

Maintain Your Furnace

You may not be able to do full maintenance on your own, but keeping your furnace in good working condition is extremely important. If your furnace isn’t functioning properly, it can use more energy–and money–to continue heating your home. If you’re comfortable doing so,make sure you change the filter every two months and keep the vents clean. If you require service, we are more than happy to come and make sure everything is in tip-top shape for you.

We hope these tips help keep your bills low this winter and if you have any questions or concerns, feel free to Bryan’s Fuel!