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How do you keep your house warm during the winter?

Heating homes accounts for more than 70% of household energy consumption. You might want to turn towards insulation which not only keeps the heat in, but it also lowers our energy bills and contributes to a sustainable world.

If you live in an old(er) house, it is not always easy to keep heat in as the standards for insulating houses were not so strict in the past. However, there are some ways to minimize heat loss from your home. Below you will find three simple tips that will help you to insulate your home easily without having to do major renovations.

Insulate the radiator

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If you heat your home with a radiator, this is the first place you can make changes to minimize heat loss. When furniture blocks radiators, many people do not realize they are actually blocking heat from entering the room. Therefore, move the sofa or other furniture away from the radiator, and you will notice that the room will heat up faster. This is an easy way to significantly reduce your energy consumption. Placing a bookshelf above the radiator can also help direct the heat towards the centre.

Insulating hot water and central heating pipes is another way to minimize heat loss through your radiator. How do you ensure that minimum heat escapes from the pipes? What is the most effective method for pipe thermal insulation? Insulating the pipes not only protects against heat loss but also against condensation on the pipe surface in case of cold water flow.

Pipe insulation entails that you are going to protect the pipes of your radiator with foam pipes or a reflective sheathing. It’s a good idea to insulate exposed pipes leading from the boiler to your radiator to keep the heat in. Foam hoses, available in various sizes, designs and constructions, are used for pipe protection but also ensure that the pipes lose little or no heat. Afterwards, you can finish the casing with a radiator spray so that the heating pipes look nice.

Closing cracks and gaps

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Reducing the amount of air coming in and out of your home is an extremely effective way to keep the heat inside. The warm air in your house goes out through cracks and openings and ensures that the cold air enters. If windows and doors do not close properly, you can solve this with draft strips quickly.

You can also fix cracks next to the window frames yourself, but you must know where they are. Often these are visible spots, and you can feel the cold air coming in, but sometimes it can also enter through unexpected holes in the wall that are not always visible. It is, therefore, recommended to go on a search when the wind is blowing hard outside.

Once you have found the hot spots where cold air comes in, you can seal them. You can use acrylic sealant in dry rooms, but you need to use silicone sealant in humid and wet places such as the bathroom. Also, check old sealant edges as they may have become crumbly. If this is the case, it is best to replace them with new sealant. One of our blog articles, How to remove silicone sealant and seal joints, provides a step-by-step description of how to do this. Closing all seams and cracks in an average home can easily yield annual savings of more than 50 euros.

Installing a programmable thermostat

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With a programmable thermostat, you can set the temperatures for different times of the day. The biggest advantage that programmable thermostats offer is the cost savings, but this type of thermostat will also ensure that you don’t heat the house when you don’t need to. With a programmable thermostat, you don’t have to worry about forgetting to turn it down or turn it off when you’re not at home.

Installing a programmable thermostat is a small job, and you don’t have to be an experienced handyman to do it yourself. All you need is a screwdriver, and the most important thing to do is label the wires when you remove the existing thermostat so that you can connect it to the new programmable thermostat accordingly. Of course, make sure that the electricity is completely off before you start working.

After removing the old thermostat, attach a mounting plate to the wall and connect the electrical wires to the new programmable thermostat. Place the batteries in the thermostat and then click the cover on. To test it, turn on the service switch again. By installing a programmable thermostat, you can save between 5% and 15% on your monthly energy costs.

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