What's a good way to weatherproof my home without spending a whole lot of money?

Question

I have a modest home in Ohio with gas heat. The windows aren't in terrible shape by I do know that they can be drafty. I don't have the money to replace the windows. I know drapes would help but they too are expensive. What are some other ideas for the financially strapped?

No offense taken DIY Doc. Maybe a better way to put it is: How can I cut my home heating costs without spendi a whole lot of money?
Currently my furnace is set at 65 degrees which isn't as warm as I like but it's isn't freezing cold either. I've put an electric space heater in my baby's room (set to low) to raise the temp in his room by a few degrees. The rest of us are doubling up on the blankets.

Thanks

Answer 1

I didn't read all of these, so I'm sorry if someone already recommended it: get double-paned windows. They allow great insulation when it's cold.

Answer 2

Actually, I would look at a lot of options.
1. Buy a "coat" for your water heater. They're cheap and they save a lot of money.
2. Turn the thermostat down even further at night and use more blankets. Inexpensive programmable thermostats are good investments too.
3. Check the weather stripping around the doors. Also check the threshhold. Many houses have adjustable threshholds that need to be adjusted. If it has screws in it - loosen them to raise the threshhold.
4. You can get inexpensive roller blinds to go over the windows. They help a little. But open them if there's sun coming in that window. Use the sun to help heat the house.
5. Don't rule out space heaters. If you have one room of the house that's colder, don't over-heat the rest of the house to bring that room up.
6. Take up a new hobby - baking. You get better quality food than pre-packaged store-bought items, and all the heat stays in the house.
7. Change the filters on the furnace each month. It improves air-flow (among other things.)

Beyond heat items -

1. Replace traditional lightbulbs with CFLs. They use 60% less power.
2. Only turn on the lights you need. Classic example - a bathroom typically has 1 light over the shower, and 4 over the sink. But most people turn on every light in the bathroom to shower. A garage door opener has 2 bulbs - unscrew one.
3. Look at motion sensors - even IN the house. Closets that have lights are one area where lights accidentally get left on the most. But a motion sensor switch will turn it off automatically. Same goes for outdoor lights. Leaving those lights on all night doesn't really improve security. But having them on a motion sensor does!
4. Turn off that computer. Unless you're an insomniac who surfs and games all night - that computer is burning power while you sleep. They suck power.
5. Overloaded refrigerator? Put some items in the garage. It's pretty cold out there and the fridge won't work as hard.
6. Read more books by the light of your CFL lamp. Books don't use power like televisions. Libraries are free!
7. Get out and about. If you're out jogging or exercising, you're not in the house burning electricity. And if you're doing it right - you're nice and warm too! Join a club. Volunteer in the community. The less you're home, the less power you're using. But stay close to home, you don't want to trade a heating bill for gasoline...

Answer 3

I'd say get some blankets which r thick and ones which u can put and remove anytime u want. As for Plastic is indeed sounds and feels good but tell me how wud u get ur windows open just incase u want to ventilate ur home again in the day at some point?

The other alternative is u get the Styrofoam barrier in thermasave form. ThermaSAVE is a panel building system which uses a 4 to 12-inch-thick core of expanded polystyrene (similar to Styrofoam) sandwiched between two sheets of cellulose fiber-reinforced cement board varying in thickness from 3/8 to 7/16 inch, depending on structural requirements. This creates a "stress skinned" panel, also known as structural insulated panels (SIPs).

But if it's costly then wat u can do is get some board and cut it into ur window size and place it near the window and then drape a blanket over it. If u can get some wood panels for cheap it can work great and styrofoam is risky business but only if proper car isn't taken but i'd say no to it as u've got a small kid.

I'd say wook draped with blanket wud work good. ur money will be spent on the wood panels and the extra blankets u'd need to buy. If both of these things seem costly then plastic is the best choice.

Answer 4

Since you have a young child, leaving the thermostat at 65 all the time isn't going to be very healthy for your child. The floors, ceilings, & walls, need to be kept warm, & that's not going to happen with a 65 degree temp. Try these steps:

Buy an energy wrap to go around your hot water heater. It does make a difference.

Caulk around your windows & doors

Buy the plastic window kits to put over your windows. You'll need a hair dryer to put them in place. Heavy drapes will indeed make a difference & go to the dollar store or some thrift shops for those.

When the sun is out, make sure the curtains are open to let the sun in to warm your home.

The Gas Co, can advise you on how to winterize your home. It's important so you can save money & stay warm, especially your little one.

Answer 5

hey man, i can relate to your problem!. and we have been doing this every year- it does work!. you can put plastic over the windows ,there are several ways to do this, easiest is go buy a roll of plastic from local wallmart or home improvement store[there is a variety of thickness, so give some thought to that] and a stapler is the easiet way to attach it caution this is not pretty but, if done right will not look bad. and seeing out will not be easy, seeing in either, anyway, you will need scissors to cut the roll to fit the window allow 2-3 inches more all around,so that you have room to wrap the plastic around a 1 inch wide piece of thick cardboard,[wrap from outer edge till enough to reach the sill and/or frame] take your time, do the top first and double check the fit then keeping it taut do the sides then bottom ,that way if you have a wrinkle you can adjust it. also if you have screens then you can either apply over them or remove and making sure to adjust and allow replacement of them you can replace them with the plastic to the inside and this will offer a little more support[the reason to be tight is to keep the wind from balloning the plastic, it gets noisy and can tear, which defeats the purpose] you will be amazed at the difference in temperature inside, take your time, get some help, it really is a two person job, cut your cardboard from grocery or beer boxes-you will need a lot of them!. now you can get painters plastic-it works well and some stores sell a kit made for this but, do not use the cardbosrd strips that comes with it - it is real hard to remove when you want to take the plastic off, which you'll do when bad weather is gone with the thick strips it is easy, just yank. i should tell you that unfortunatey you will have some staples and staple holes in and/or around your windows but, a little touch up paint will cover that.also do remove all the staples so, you'll be ready next year!. good luck. be toasty for less. eddie. p.s with gas heat be sure to watch out for gas build up and/or co2 or whatever there might be.

Answer 6

Live in PA and it gets plenty cold, although with global warming... Anyhow, we have an electronic thermostat, which keeps the temp at about 60 while we're away and at night. Briefly kicks up to 70 for breakfast and supper. Installed a gas burning Yotul heater in the rec room in the basement. Wood stove would work just as well. Nice place to get warm.

On the bed have an electric blanket on a timer, covered with a down comforter. The electric blanket is a low energy one, which takes about 30 minutes to warm up, but the timer starts it before we get in. This way the bed is nice and warm when we hit the sheets in a cold bedroom.

Other suggestions I see here are excellent. Make sure you have at least 12 inches or more insulation in your attic. You can upgrade your heating system. Gas is less then oil right now and if your system is more then 10 or 15 years old, they now have more efficient units, but that's quite an expense.

Answer 7

Money is always an issue, especially right now when our economy is in such bad shape. If you want to try and save money on heating cost there are several things you can do.
I know people here have said to put plastic on the windows and they are right BUT if money is tight a roll of plastic may be to expensive. A good alternative if to use lawn and leaf bags that can be purchased fairly cheap at your local dollar store, big lots, white elephant or what ever cheap store that may be in your neighborhood. These bags are not going to look very good on the windows but they are heavy made and cheap. You can also buy window caulk at the dollar stores for $1.00 to $1.50 a tube. it always helps to caulk around the window from the outside. Another place to caulk is behind light switch and receptacle plates. People do not realize it but a lot of cold air comes in around these electrical box's. If you have leaves in the yard then it is a good idea to bag these leaves and place them around the foundation of the house, the more leaves and the higher up the side of the house you can stack them the better, If you ask, most neighbors will let you collect leaves from their yards. These bags of leaves insulate the house very good and work even better if it snows on top of them covering them up. Move everyone into one room to sleep during the winter months and close off the vents to rooms that you are not using, lets face it, all you realy need is 1 bedroom, the livingroom, kitchen and bathroom. I have seen people sleep in the livingroom or kitchen in order to keep from heating the whole house.
There are lots of ways to save on heating cost if you use your imagination.

Answer 8

One other option:

If you are making improvements to improve your energy you can get specail Energy Efficient Mortgages along with a 203 (K) loan that will pay for the improvements, you will get a $2000 rebate from the government and it might not cost you any more money because of these government programs.

I advised a client and friend to change our her furnace and she saved over 50% off her monthly heating and cooling bill last winter. Yes- it did cost by the savings in the first year paid for the improvement and more so. And the Furnace Company let her finance it so that she could pay it monthly!!

If you are on a crawl space, insulate between the floor board.
The plastic window covering can help and lowering the temperature- I think that everyone is planning to do that this winter!!

Answer 9

I buy plastic sheeting and staple it to the inside of the windows. This really helps reduce the draft and a $15 roll should be enough to cover all windows in a medium sized home. I didn't realize how much cold air was getting in until I started to put the plastic on. The wind coming in through the cracks blew it around alot. Good Luck

Answer 10

No offense meant at all but Weather PROOF is probably relative, and not totally accurate.

Plastic sheeting to cover windows in the winter
Check caulking around windows and trim
Add new weather stripping around doors
Check insulation overhead
Close in any crawl space Under the structure; if that is the case
Draped certainly can help modestly
Close off little used parts of the structure
Allow the oven door to remain ajar if and after you've used the oven.
Keep drapes open on each side of the house as the area gets Sunlight.
Consider times when Comforters/ Blankets/ Quilts/ even WOOLIES; might be used when it's time to sleep.

Finally, and again with no offense; consider adapting to slightly less heat.

Steven Wolf

Answer 11

According to Algore, it no longer GETS cold! Remember, his movie "A Convenient Lie" told us that the sky is falling! You have NOTHING to fear! Don't worry about it at all. Just be certain that Algore will be able to heat his HUGE house should the temps dip a little there in Tennessee.

If you're lucky, your home in Ohio will be a beachside lot! *laughter*

In ONE of the column below, the people in Argentina are pissing and moaning because they are experiencnig the COLDEST winter the country has seen in 90 years! Buenos Aires is FREEZING!!! Remember, they are in the southern hemisphere. So their seasons are reversed from ours! ;-)