Winterizing Your Home

Winter is almost upon us and there are some things you should do to lower your winter energy bills and protect your home for the harsh winter. Even if your winter isn't so harsh as in the north, there are some things you should do about once a year to help you save money on your bills.

First take some notes on things you need to get from the home improvement or other store. Walk around the outside and inside to see what you'll be needing, start with the things you'll know first off, the furnace filter, jot down it's size if you don't have one of those that you wash out. I put in a filter that you cut to size and can wash out when it gets dirty. It cost $3 to $8 for a cut to size piece of this fabric that you put in for your furnace filter. Whenever you want to, you can wash it out for a clean and better filter, and it costs way less than having to buy a new one every six months.

Walk around the inside and outside and see what you need to get as far as any type of extra winterizing, plastic sheeting or window coverings, caulk or extra sealant for around doors, windows or on the roof. Many people need to check out their roof every so often and this is a good time when it's still not cold or snowing and you have a little time to get anything you find fixed. Check around the furnace exhaust or chimney and any vents to see if you need to add any sealant. On the roof you'll probably use that black sealant, they have stuff in tubes like caulk that you can apply in any weather, but you should not be on the roof if it's wet, you might slip. Check around the gutters and make sure they are not falling off or loose, and get anything you might need to hook them back up.

Also jot down any things you want to keep an eye on that seems to be going bad but not enough to work on yet, things like wood starting to rot but not enough to replace, shingles looking like they are getting loose, you get the idea. Then when you get inside you should write down a list of things to watch and post it on a bulletin board or somewhere like the garage wall where you will see it and you can watch these things so you don't forget later about them.