As cool weather moves in you may be looking for a better way to keep your home warm before turning on the furnace. Perhaps it is the dead of winter, and your furnace died. Either way, you are facing a challenge of how to keep your home warm without a heater. The good news is it is easier than you think.
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Block the Cold
Block out the cold. Go hunting for places cold air is finding it’s way in. Caulk cracks and open spaces where you cold air can get in. Get draft blockers to keep cold air from seeping under doors and weather stripping for edges.
Block drafts inside with thick painters tape. Picking a neutral colored painting or masking tape is a great way to prevent small drafts around electrical outlets and gaps in baseboards. You can find kits for insulating switch plates and outlets online or your local hardware store.
Cover Windows
Cover windows in plastic to help keep drafts out and trap air. This may seem extreme, but it works. Especially if you have an older home. The more layers between you and the outside the better. If you used black out curtains in the summer to keep your home cool, you’d find these same curtains are great for keeping out the cold air. This is a great use for extra blankets to keep out the cold that seeps through your windows and walls.
Warm Floors
Keep floors warm and cozy with rugs or even extra blankets. Not only does this add a layer of insulation it keeps feet off of cold floors.
Heat rises so move your family upward to help keep warmer. Turn your ceiling fans the opposite direction to push warm air back down where your family is. Block off any upstairs rooms you are not
Use Space Heaters
Pull out space heaters with safety features that shut them down if they flip over to help keep your family warm in rooms you are using. This is a great way to keep your family warm at night when the temperatures drop lower than the day.
We use space heaters in the living room, and hang “curtains” between the main rooms to keep the warm air in a small space.
Bake! (No Surprise from me!)
Spend some time baking. Not only do you get delicious hot foods to enjoy and warm your family up for breakfast you also get residual heat that can warm your kitchen and surrounding rooms making cinnamon rolls, and other fun treats the perfect way to start your day.
Clean (OK, No Fun)
Take some time to clean your house. Yep cleaning your house can warm you up. Run the dishwasher, do a few loads of laundry and use the dryer to do them. If you have al electric dryer you can pull the vent inside and let the hot air flow into your basement. Remember hot air rises and this will help warm the next floor. With everyone moving around to clean blood is pumping and your family will feel warmer than usual.
Dress for the Weather
Dress your family warmer. Grab some fuzzy slippers, pull out the flannel pajamas, have the kids wear that sweater grandma made. While this may not be the most fun way to stay warm without a heater it does the trick.
Warm the Room You Use
Don’t try to warm your entire house at once. You can save money by only keeping warm the room you’re currently using.
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