5 Smart Ways To Keep Your Home Warm

Whether you’re looking to cut back on expenses or conserve energy resources, there are plenty of smart and economical ways to keep your home warm for less. From changing the way you use your central air system to DIY sealing, learn to keep your home warm and efficient for winter weather.

Program Your Central Air System to Save Heating Costs

When you come home from a long day out and find your home much colder than you’d like, cranking on the furnace only when you’re home may seem like the more economical idea. In actuality, this may be counter-intuitive.

Ambient temperature in the winter can be quite low, making the home much frostier than we’d typically like. Indoor temperature can continue to drop making the climb up to a warmer temperature steeper and more costly. To save on energy expenditure, set your thermostat at a temperature lower than your comfort temperature. This way, the house is kept relatively warm so that when you return and turn up the heat, the climb to the desired temperature causes less stress on the central air system, using less energy sources. You can use the setback function or program on your thermostat to schedule these changes in accordance to your return home.

DIY Sealing and Caulking Shuts Out Cold Air

Weather-stripping or silicone-based caulking are easy do-it-yourself methods that help trap heat indoors while keeping cold air out. These instruments and products are available at any home improvement store.

These approaches to sealing should be used on windows, doors and even sliding glass doors. A good rule of thumb to follow is that if you can see light passing through the cracks, it hasn’t been sealed well enough.

Use Home Fireplaces to Your Advantage

If your home is outfitted with a fireplace, consider its heating power. Different types of fireplaces offer different levels of heating. Those enclosed in glass oftentimes come with a light switch-type of on-and-off function. These fireplaces produce little heat and usually come without a fan, which is crucial for proper distribution of heat. Attempting to heat a home with this type of fireplace results in higher gas consumption for less heating because of its design. If your fireplace is among this build, consider having a fan installed. The fan is instrumental in distributing the heat from the fireplace throughout the room. Once a fan is put in place, your fireplace becomes an effective method to alternative home heating.

Standard wood burning fireplaces are efficient at producing heat. The only caveat would be that because the natural draft leads up the flue pipe, it creates a vacuum inside of the home. You might find that though the room nearest the fireplace is warm, the back rooms are much colder than before. This is because those rooms pull cold air from outside. To combat this, implement the fan-based fireplace heating system with proficient weather-stripping and caulking to reduce the amount of outdoor air brought inside.

The Efficiency and Economy of Portable and Single-Unit Heaters

Some homes may consider single-unit heaters as a method to saving on costs. Though technology allows for greater efficiency and economy, single-unit heaters are not the best choice for overall household heating. Unless you are looking to heat a single room, it may cost more than less to use unit heaters.

The average central air system is composed of a gas burner and one blower motor and uses between 400-500 watts to heat an entire home. Compare that to a portable or single-unit heater, typically comprised of the same parts, yet uses up to 1000 watts to heat a single room.

The Best Way to Save on Heating Costs

The preferred method of saving on heating costs entails proper furnace maintenance once a year. Though it is popular to avoid maintenance calls due to their initial costs, a professional service avoids expensive repairs and replacements, poor central air quality resulting in inefficient use of energy and other systemic issues.

One of the most important reasons to have your furnace maintained is to lower heating costs through proper ductwork. Any standard HVAC contractor should provide an evaluation of your duct system as part of regular furnace maintenance

The duct system is the network of ducts by which conditioned air travels from the central air system into the rooms of the home. Faulty ductwork is a primary reason for low quality central air and/or rising energy costs.

Duct systems with leaks and holes are entryways for cold outside air to enter and for warm conditioned air to escape. At the same time, what cold air does enter can manipulate the warmed air contained in the ducts before it reaches the rooms of your home. Your HVAC technician fixes these leaks and insulates the ducts to keep warm air from escaping and cold air from contaminating the warmed air supply.

During any standard furnace maintenance call, your preferred HVAC contractor should:

• Check that burners are in good shape.
• Visually inspect ductwork for leaks and holes at every joint and junction.
• Safety inspection of all gas and electronic systems.
• Ensure furnace cleanliness and sanitation.

Service Champions Keeps Your Home Warm

Service Champions technicians and specialists have a genuine concern for your home heating and air conditioning. Whether you need furnace maintenance or simple advice on how to get the most out of your central air system, our teams are always available for you.

Our expert technicians provide exceptional customer care and superior technical service to every home in order to ensure the best possible heating and air conditioning available. All technicians train annually for 150 hours, allowing them to care for your home central air system with the most intelligent and technically advanced service methods to date. They pass drug tests and background checks. For your additional security, we send you an e-mail containing their photo IDs prior to their arrival.

Service Champions Heating & Air Conditioning leads California in heating and air conditioning repairs, maintenance, tune-ups, replacement and installations. We are the only Diamond Certified HVAC providers in Orange and Los Angeles counties.