A DIY Guide to Winterizing Your Property

Many people live in houses that become drafty during the cold winter months. Cold air often enters a home through leaks in windows and doorways. Fortunately, there are several ways to prevent drafts from sneaking into a home. The following article contains tips on preventing drafts as well as several other suggestions for winterizing a home. A few simple preparations may lead to a warmer, more inviting home this winter.

Drafts

The winter weather months bring days of cold winds and blowing snow. Even a small leak in a window or a door can allow heat to escape from a home. Some drafts can be prevented by placing weather stripping around the open edges of a doorframe. In addition, a homeowner may want to replace all screen doors with glass doors to give the doorway even more protection against drafts. Many people opt to put "draft snakes" against the bottom edges of their doors to prevent drafts. Alternatively, a window can be winterized by putting a layer of caulking around its edges. A homeowner may even want to buy a pair of curtains made of heavy fabric to pull closed in front of a drafty set of windows. In short, these simple ideas can create a more comfortable atmosphere in a home.

• Winterizing Tips for a Home: Learn how to protect a home against drafts with the help of weather stripping. Also, find several other winterizing tips for homeowners.
• Preparing a Home for the Winter: Checkout some ideas for winterizing a home including how to find drafts and what to do about them.
• The Facts on Weather Stripping: Read about the various types of weather stripping with descriptions of each.

Changing Furnace Filters

A dirty furnace filter full of pet hair and heavy dust can prevent a furnace from working to its full potential. Not surprisingly, a furnace with a dirty filter is working twice as hard to deliver its warm air. By changing the furnace filter on a regular basis a family can enjoy all of the warm air that a furnace has to offer. Furthermore, a clean filter allows a furnace to be more energy efficient especially during a stretch of extremely cold days in the wintertime.

• Furnace Filter Changes: Learn how changing a furnace filter can save on energy costs as well as keep a family safe.
• Energy Efficiency at Home: Find out the importance of discovering energy leaks in a home along with other winterizing tips.
• Furnace Winterizing Tips: (PDF) Discover how to prepare a furnace for winter and read several other helpful tips for home or business owners who are looking ahead to winter.

Ceiling Fan Maintenance

Some families purchase a ceiling fan to add style to the décor of a room. Chances are, they get a lot of use out of their ceiling fan on humid summer afternoons. A ceiling fan can also be of great advantage in the winter. Many ceiling fans are capable of moving in the opposite direction with the flip of a switch. A ceiling fan's counterclockwise motion will push the warm air downward back into the home's living space.

• Winterizing Preparations and Ceiling Fans (PDF): Read how reversing the direction of a ceiling fan in the winter can help make a home feel warmer.
• Energy Saving Ideas: Learn about how a ceiling fan can help to keep a home warm in the winter.
• Ceiling Fan Settings in the Winter: Checkout which direction a ceiling fan should turn in the winter in order to garner more warmth for a home.

Attic Insulation

If an attic is poorly insulated, heat can escape leaving the members of a household cold and unhappy. Consequently, no winterizing process is complete without checking the insulation in an attic. In fact, a homeowner would be wise to get a professional to evaluate the energy efficiency of an attic. He or she may be able to recommend a particular type of insulation that would suit the needs of the homeowner.

• The Importance of Insulation in the Winterizing Process (PDF): Find a list of winterizing ideas that includes information on how to determine if you need attic insulation.
• Facts on Insulating Attics (PDF): Learn about the importance of proper insulation in an attic.
• Information on Insulation in Attics and Ceilings (PDF): Find out about insulating attics and ceilings as well as the benefits involved in the project.

Pipe Insulation

Frozen pipes are a common occurrence during the winter months especially pipes that are located in a garage or a basement. It can be expensive to replace frozen pipes that burst from expansion. A homeowner should check for proper pipe insulation before the arrival of the winter months. Also, if a garden hose is attached to an outside spigot it should be taken off and stored to prevent freezing. It's also a good idea on extremely cold nights to leave the kitchen faucet on at a slow drip in order to prevent pipe freezing.

• Tips on Pipe Insulation: Read about how a homeowner can insulate pipes for winter.
• Information on Pipe Insulation: Look at the different ways to insulate water pipes accompanied by descriptions.
• Reasons for Insulating Pipes: Find suggestions on how to insulate pipes as well as reasons for undertaking the project.

Heating System Maintenance

Regular maintenance of a heating system can help it to work more efficiently. An owner that arranges for regular checkups for a heating system may be able to avoid large, costly repairs. Plus, a heating maintenance specialist will likely be able to recommend some ways to make a heating system more energy efficient throughout the winter. In addition, a homeowner may want to research some types of thermostats that are especially designed to save on a household's winter heating bills.

• A List of Winterizing Reminders: Learn how to prepare a furnace for the winter.
• An Efficient Heating System: Peruse several ways to have an efficient heating system.

Chimney Maintenance

A burning log in a fireplace can be a comforting sight on a cold winter's evening. It's important for homeowners to winterize their fireplaces and chimneys so they will work properly and safely. For example, a chimney should not have leaks that allow cold air to blow down into the home. In addition, a chimney should be cleaned to make sure there is no build up of ash or creosote inside it. If a family doesn't use its fireplace, the chimney flue should remain closed and the doors spanning the front of the fireplace should be firmly shut to prevent stray drafts.

• Tips for Maintaining a Chimney and Fireplace: Find out how to keep a chimney and fireplace in good working order.
• Chimney Safety: Learn about the buildup in a chimney that can cause a safety hazard and why it is important to maintain a chimney.
• Fireplace and Chimney Information: Discover how to get the most effective use out of a fireplace/chimney.