Fall has arrived and it is now time start thinking about preparing for winter. You’re getting ready to pull out your sweaters and look for your hats and mittens at the bottom of the coat closet. But what about your house -- is it prepared for the cold months ahead?
You'll be a lot less comfortable in the coming months if you haven't prepared your home for Old Man Winter, because as temperatures begin to dip, your home will require maintenance to keep it in tip-top shape through the winter and while it’s still a little warm and somewhat dry is really the best time to start.
Below are five tips to help you prepare your home for winter and eliminate energy waste. Always remember that you can call us if you have any questions. Our contact information can be found at the bottom of this article:
1. Insulate your house
You need warm clothes to stay warm in the winter and so does your house. The only difference is that the warm ‘clothes’ for your house is called insulation, and it is the most effective way to stay warm and eliminating energy waste.
If you go into the attic and you can see the ceiling joists you know you don't have enough, because a ceiling joist is at most 10 or 11 inches and you should have more insulation that that. The same goes for your floor insulation. There should be thick insulating bats that fill the cavity in between your floor joists. If your insulations is lacking, call us and we will refer you to one of our participating insulation installers.
2. Check the Exterior, Doors and Windows
Now, of course, is the time to take down the window screens and, if you have them, put up storm windows, which provide an extra layer of protection and warmth for the home. Storm windows are particularly helpful if you have old, single-pane glass windows. But if you don't have storm windows, and your windows are leaky or drafty, they should to be updated to a more efficient window. Call us to find out about our window replacement program, otherwise see below for a few ideas to weatherize your windows and doors.
• Inspect exterior for crevice cracks and exposed entry points around pipes; seal them.
• Use weatherstripping around doors to prevent cold air from entering the home and caulk windows.
• Switch out summer screens with glass replacements from storage. If you have storm windows, install them.
• Install a window insulator kit. Basically, the kit is plastic sheeting that's affixed to a window’s interior with double-stick tape. A hair dryer is then used to shrink-wrap the sheeting onto the window. (It needs to be removed in the spring.) It's temporary and it's not pretty, but it’s inexpensive and effective.
3. Wrap those pipes
A burst pipe caused by a winter freeze is a nightmare. Prevent it before wintertime temperatures settle in. Make certain that the water to your hose bibs is shut off inside your house (via a turnoff valve), and that the lines are drained. Also, you should install Styrofoam cups with a screw attachment to help insulate spigots.
Next, go looking for other pipes that aren't insulated, or that pass through unheated spaces -- pipes that run through crawlspaces, basements or garages. Wrap them with pre-molded foam rubber sleeves or fiberglass insulation, available at hardware stores.
4. Reverse that fan
Reversing your ceiling fan is a small tip that people don't often think of. In the summer we want the fan to create a draft that blows cooling air down towards us, providing a cooling effect on the skin. In the winter, this same cooling draft will feel cold and uncomfortable, and instead we want the fan to gently draw air upwards. This will help mix up the air in the room, counteracting stratification that otherwise happens as air that we have warmed with our heating systems floats up to the ceiling. By reversing the fan’s direction in the fall, the fan will force the air to recirculate, reduce draft, while keeping you more comfortable. You can know if the fan is ready for winter by looking at it while it is spinning; if the blades are turning clockwise, then it’s setup for winter.
5. Finally, check those alarms and clean your filters
This is a great time to change or clean your filters. Change the filter on your heat pump or electric furnace. Vacuum out the coils on your refrigerator. And if you’ve already upgraded to heat pump water heaters, then it’s got a filter too that you should clean. The bottom line is. If it has a filter, you probably haven’t cleaned or changed it for a while, and you should get up and do it right now. None of us, including the author of this article, clean and change their filters enough since they are out of the way and not in sight. Clean filters help your equipment run more efficiently and will make it last longer.
And last but certainly, not least check the operation and change the batteries on your home's smoke detectors. Detectors should be replaced every 10 years, fire officials say. Also, invest in a carbon-monoxide detector; every home with a combustion appliance, like a woodstove, should have one.
As usual, we want all of Clallam County PUD's customers, residential, commercial and industrial alike; to know that we are here to offer assistance when looking at eliminating energy waste. Please go to our website, www.ClallamPUD.net, send us an email at Utility.Services.Info@ClallamPUD.net or give us call at either (360) 565-3249 or (800) 542-7859 x249.