A Cozy Winter Home
When dropping temperatures and cruel storms combine to make everyone take refuge indoors, there are ways to make your home cozy and warm. You can do this by not ignoring the power of modest details to help foster a cozy ambiance inside your home. Exchanging bright overhead lights for the subdued glow of floor and table lamps is a good place to start. Cover bare floors with area rugs to make you feel warmer walking in your home. Outfitting your seating areas with blankets and throw pillows will allow you to have access to warmth everywhere indoors. If your home suffers from uneven heating, rearranging your furniture so it’s closer to the source of heat, whether it be a forced air vent, baseboard unit, or a radiator, will make a world of a difference. Installing a programmable thermostat would also help. You can save energy without compromising comfort. Just set it to run on your family’s schedule, so that the heat will turn itself up when you wake up in the morning or return home, and back down when you go to sleep or leave your home for the day. You won’t feel the difference in temperature but you will see a difference on your energy bills. Drafts are the enemy of a cozy home. Most of the time, dodging drafts means plugging up any crevices or cracks around openings to the outdoors. Weatherstripping and caulking commonly fixes these ussyes. To cut down further on heat loss from windows, you can put up plastic insulation film or curtains. Insulating helps stops drafts throughout the house, and this is especially true for attics. It works to prevent heat from escaping through the roof. Also, evaluate your current heating system. Your HVAC system requires regular maintenance in order to perform at its peak. Your furnace should be inspected every year, ideally before winter comes, in the fall.