Top Three Fixes to Help with Winter Energy Bills

New Englanders pay 13.6% more on energy bills than they did last winter, according to U.S. Energy Information Administration. The rest of us pay 3.2% more. No matter where you have to shell out for heat, you're fed up with budget-zapping energy costs. You're ready to do something about it. So let's do something. First, read the top three energy fixes to help with winter energy bills—at least the top three in your home. They're easy to find. They're easy to fix. And fixing them doesn't require a lot of money. Soon you'll be toasty warm without losing your cool over spending even more cash. First, find out where all the heat goes. Start at Frost King's interactive home diagram. Mouse over the usual problems for details. Then go find them in your home. Do this by feeling around closed doors and closed windows. You may prefer to use a lit stick of incense. Follow the smoke. This helps identify small cracks that aren't easy to spot. Once you have a list of heat loss issues in hand, most DIY homeowners may start in the basement by adding insulating blankets around furnaces and water heaters. They wrap both hot and cold water pipes. They also add or replace weatherstripping around doors and windows. They even install door thresholds, cover windows and wrap HVAC systems. All of this can be done by you, even if you have no experience at all. Simply follow along, and we'll show you how to fix problems to help with winter energy bills. Here are top three winter energy bill culprits that cool your home and kill your budget?

1. Tiny openings: 15% of warm air escapes through tiny, often hidden cracks around windows, doors and other openings to the not-so-great outdoors this time of year. Instead of turning up the furnace, address this problem directly with weatherseal. You may use weatherstripping just about anywhere  in your home. Make sure to replace thin, crumbling foam weatherstripping every few years. Learn how to choose the right weatherstripping for your project. See how easy it is to install weatherseal.


2. Drafty chimneys: Smoke should be the only thing going up your chimney. And, perhaps, Santa Claus should be the only thing coming down. Too many times, though, it's warm air that rises and escapes from around a poorly insulated flue—even when it's shut. Seal around your chimney's flue, just as you need to seal around outlets and switches; seal up the foundation; and seal around exhaust fans.


3. Bare windows: Applying weatherstripping around windows doesn't stop air from seeping through single-pane windows and even cracked windowpanes. Eliminate heat loss by caulking around windowpanes and using Frost King Window Kits to put up an extra barrier between your festive party and your snowman. See how simple it is to install window kits. It's just as easy to remove window kits when it warms up.

There are plenty of other problems to address, but these are the top three winter energy bill culprits. Address these, first. Then consider upgrading door sets, wrapping duct work and pipes, and making sure that everything is buttoned up tight for a long, cold winter. By addressing these problem areas throughout your home, you can begin to see the benefits in your home and in your energy costs. For more do-it-yourself fixes for common winter issues, follow us, like us and bookmark the DIY homeowners blog. If you have questions about fixing insulation problems throughout your home, please view our FAQs, call 1-800-299-5700 or send us a message. We're here to help you.