As the temperatures go down, heating costs go up. Here are some tips to help warm your wallet and save you some money.

Open shades and curtains during the day to let the sunshine in. The rays of the sun will give your home a little warmth.

Change the filter in your furnace as recommended. Dirty, plugged up filters make your furnace/heat pump less efficient and more expensive to operate.

Get your furnace/heat pump serviced as recommended. This helps keep them in top working order and running efficiently.

Keep your house a bit cooler and dress for it. While wearing a sweatshirt indoors is not appealing to a lot of people, keeping the temperature down on the thermostat can be a big savings.

Insulate. Adding insulation to your home can be a big expense in the beginning but can save you money in the long run.

Windows are another big way to lose heat. Lock them in the winter time. Locking will cause some windows to seal better and let in less cold air. Have an old window that rattles every time the wind blows? It may be time to replace it. While expensive at first, it will save you in future heating costs.

Check ducts/duct work that leads to the outside. Seal up those seams with tape, etc. to keep the cold air from getting in.

Don’t block the heating registers. You know those little metal grates some of us have in our floors? It’s so easy to block them with furniture and other things. Doing so can make heat and air flow less efficient though. Try to keep them clear for better, even heating.

Block drafts. Have a cold draft coming in under your door? Get a draft stopper. Amazon and other places have lots of them for sale and they are not that expensive.

See any cracks/spaces around window and door frames? How about around pipes exiting your home? Seal them, caulk them, close them off any way you can. These are often hidden areas where heat escapes.

Here's one you may not think of. You heat your hot water. Have you checked the temperature setting on your hot water tank lately? Dialing back the degrees can save you. Tankless water heaters are even more efficient and can save you money in the long run, but again, upgrading to a tankless is a pretty big initial expense.

Doing just a few of these can lower your utility bill. Stay warm and enjoy the savings.

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