THESE DIY TIPS WILL CONSERVE ENERGY AND LOWER YOUR UTILITY BILLS

Winter is creeping back to Philadelphia, and now is the time to ensure your home is sealed and ready for cold weather.

There are several easy steps you can take to keep the heat in your home and the cold outside. These DIY tips will conserve energy, and more importantly, save money during a cold Philadelphia winter:

Adjust ceiling fans. Reverse your ceiling fan rotation. This is an easy but often overlooked step to take for winter energy conservation. Check for a switch on the side of your ceiling fan and move it to a clockwise setting. This will draw warm air up and then redistribute it downward into your home.
Check for drafts. Use a candle or smoldering incense to check for gaps or leaks that could be admitting cold air into your home. If the flame flickers or the smoke blows inward, you’ve found a draft. Break out your caulk gun.
Use a door snake. This simple cloth device can plug drafts at the bottom of a door. You can make one yourself or buy one. It’s a great way to prevent drafts from blowing in or prevent heated air from escaping.
Weather-strip windows. Drafts are common along sills and window frames. Use removable window weather-stripping. For maximum insulation, cover the interior portion of windows with plastic sheeting.
Make sure windows are closed, top and bottom. Keep an eye on the windows to make sure they’re closed and sealed, paying special attention to the top half to avoid surprise drafts.
Let the sunshine in. Open curtains on south-facing windows during the day and cover them at night. This will take advantage of natural solar heating and provide a surprising amount of warmth during the day.
Close fireplace dampers. Unless you are enjoying a fire, make sure the flue is closed. This will prevent heat from escaping straight up your chimney.

If you want to make sure your heating system is in good health, we provide tune-ups for Philadelphia furnaces. If these DIY tips aren’t doing the trick to keep your home warm and utility bills lower, contact Stallion for furnace maintenance or repair. And don’t fret: Spring will roll around again soon. It always does.