Media Room
Heating Oil News
Essential Tips on Winter Energy Conservation
December 13, 2009
Given the high cost of heating homes around here each winter, the Massachusetts Oilheat Council offers a range of advice for consumers who want to keep their utility bills in check. Don't worry if you don't use an oil furnace. Most of these tips apply to anyone who is trying to keep a temperate heating bill this season.
- Open the shades and drapes when the sun is out to help warm your home, and close them when the sun goes back down.
- Turn back the thermostat at night, or when you are away from home. For each degree that you lower you thermostat for at least eight hours every day, you'll save 2 percent on your heating bill.
- If you've got an oil furnace, consider getting an annual tune-up. Properly maintained boilers and furnaces can operate at higher temperatures while burning less fuel, and can cut your heating bills by up to 10 percent.
- Wrap your pipes to guard against heat loss and prevent them from freezing.
- Block drafts by filling gaps between your door and the floor's threshold. You can use a bottom seal, which attaches to the bottom of the door that can brush up against the floor.
- Close your kitchen vent, fireplace damper and closet doors when they're not in use.
- Remove any air conditioning units in your windows - you won't need those for a while.
- Consider more expensive, long-term improvements, such as: replacing an aging furnace; adding extra insulation where needed to your home's walls, ceilings and floors; buying and installing new windows with glass designed to decrease radiant heat loss without lowering visibility.
