What are the best way to save energy in the winter?

Question

This will be my second winter in this house. I need help I know alot of people will say keep the temperature at 60 but my house is very old and the pipes run in the walls so I need to keep my temperature at 70 down stairs otherwise I will have alot of problems. My next problem is my bed room gets so cold. We can turn the thurmostat up to 80 in the bed room that controlls the upstairs heat and my bed room will still be freezing. I had a space heater last year but that did not help much. I have checked everything its all insulated and I covered up all the windows so no air could get through. I don't want to do this winter to be the same as last year. Any suggestions would be great.

Answer 1

turn off everything!!
2 points

Answer 2

The biggest culprit is your windows.You can save a ton of money by installing double pane,gas inert windows.You can also take a candle,light it, then blow it out near a door or window.With all windows closed and the AC off,observe the smoke direction,It should not be moving.You can do this on a windy day too to get better results.If so,you'll need to change your weather stripping.Is your water heater in a cold basement or garage? You can wrap it with a thermal blanket to raise the 'R' value.Speaking of R value,Go to a Home Improvement store to see how much insulation you are supposed to have in your attic.It may not be enough and you will have to put more up there.There are also receptacle cover-insulators too.They go behind the plates a prevent cold air from seeping in.Since the house is old,it probably has not been updated to today's standards, IE windows,doors,insulation value.I know some companies offer a free energy survey.See if you can find some one who can perform this.

Answer 3

Make sure all the windows are caulked, anywhre a draft comes in, caulk it. If you have problems with pipes freezing when turning the heat down to 60, you have major issues. You'll need to get into that wall, and insulate the pipes, you can use spray on foam to insulate them, or you can make an opening big enough to install pipe heating tape.
If you use electrica heat, maybe your heaters are too small for the room size. I know there should be so many watts per square foot, can't remember but I'm sure anyone at your local hardware store could help you figure that out.

Don't walk around with shorts and a tea shirt, wear long pants like sweats, there are light shirts you can buy that are long sleeved too. If you sit to watch tv, use a blanket.

Rugs are also perfect for keeping in the heat. If you don't have rugs, buy some to cover most of the room. If you don't want them in the summer, you can take them out and store them.

Good luck

Answer 4

Hope this helps:
-Put plastic over the windows to help hold in heat
-Pull up the shades in the day so the sun can warm the house
-Heating pad in the bed at night
-Space heaters are good, but remember heat rises, put them on the floor and make sure they have a trip switch so there are no fires if they are knocked over
-Take showers instead of baths
-When you're done baking. Turn off the oven but leave the door open, the heat will escape and add some heat to the house
-Down blankets are wonderful!
-Put blankets or towels under the door so the heat does not escape
-Electric blanket
-Also with space heaters, I bought one and it's tiny...it cost me a little more than the average electric space heater...but it's very compact and for it's size it heats my whole bedroom! It's wonderful when I go home if I think about it...I will try and get the name and model number. I swear by my trusty space heater

Answer 5

keep unused rooms closed during the times you are not in them and keep the floor vents closed if central heating. That way you direct all the heat to the downstairs rooms. As for bedroom, buy a down blanket. They are incredibly warm and it is healthier to sleep in a cold room than a room with artificial heat. keep a warm robe and slippers by the bed and when you get up, put them on and go to a warmer room. Do you have a wood burning stove? If so, upgrade to one lined with fire brick, like a Lopi. They are very efficient. If you have a bath tub, take a hot soak before you go to bed and you will be nice and warm when you crawl into the cold bed. The down will keep you warm. Make sure all pipes running under the house are insulated there. Try to plug as many air leaks in your foundation as possible (leave a little air flow to prevent termite infestation) and cover your floors with heavy rugs. If your crawl space is large enough under your house, have someone install insulation under the floor. This will cut down on drafts which come up from underneath your house.
Good luck, I know what you're going through!

Answer 6

For our house our bedrooms are in an addition that is not very old and when we moved in it was cold in the bedrooms like it wasn't getting any heat. We have Forced Hot Air heat and the furnace guy said that we weren't getting much heat because we needed another air intake because the bedrooms were too far away from the furnace.

We also installed a electronic programmable thermostat. That way you don't have to worry about turning the heat up and down you just set it and forget it. The thermostat cut our heating bill by almost a third.

Also what are you using to cover your windows. We use this shrink wrap plastic that you put on the windows and take a hairdryer to it and it tightens up the plastic to the windows. Growing up in New England I have always lived in very old houses and we always had plastic on the windows in the winter. You can get the stuff where ever they sell weatherproofing stuff.

Answer 7

I live in an old house too... And if I don't turn the heaters on early, the cold gets into the walls and don't leave them for the entire winter.
This comes from the fact that my house was built from limestone, and when fall/winter comes, it gets soaked in cold water and I can't dry that cold water from the walls even with heaters at full power until spring comes... The only way is to prevent it from getting in in the 1st place: by heating the house early.

Might be the same problem... Or might be something else...
But be warned: if you do the same thing I do, your heating bill will be expensive.

Answer 8

I had my house insulated with a foot of blown in insulation last year & had to turn the heat down after that. You'd be surprised how much heat goes out your ceiling. It cut my propane bill by about 30-40% last year & I'll recoup the cost in about 2 more years. Definitely one of the best things you can do.

Answer 9

It is best to get a heater the save energy like a energy star heater that not only saves u from ur heating bills but
it conserves u from using electricity and oil to much
theres stores that are called PC Richard & Son that uses less energy than u normaly use.

Answer 10

The oil crammed radiator style is risk-free and effective. They cost approximately $40 at walmart. I even have 2 that i exploit on party. I switched from nat. gasoline furnace to a warmth pump approximately 6 years in the past. purely undertaking is that in many cases it gets too chilly for a warmth pump to paintings. I merely activate my radiators. They paintings great. i actually placed one in my dogs room. I set the thermostat and go away it on all iciness.

Answer 11

Wear wool socks by Wigwam. Wear thermal long johns. Get a goose down comforter, and also an electric blanket. Wear a wool night cap. The feet and the head get cold first. And if necessary wool mittens, and you will be warm and toasty.