How We're Saving Money on Heating This Winter

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I have been challenged by the Money Advice Service to write a post on my January's "survival guide". For me, the biggest challenge in January has got to be keeping warm, as that month usually is the coldest month of the year. Right now I hear there has been a blizzard (or pseudo-blizzard) going on in the east coast of the US- we had a snow "storm" and freezing temperatures in the beginning on January- keeping warm is probably on everyone's mind.
But warmth usually means high utility costs, because most of those things that heat up your home typically use a lot of energy. Especially after December, usually a month in which most families have many extra expenses, cutting costs is something most people are think about- so why not talk about how to keep warm without blowing the budget?

Where we live it is relatively warm year round- only occasionally does it dip below freezing temperatures (though it did do that already a few years in a row in December and January). But that doesn't mean it actually isn't cold here. It often is 40-50 degrees outside... and the houses here generally have no central heating. Which means that the only heating options are on the expensive end- they're electricity or gas run- both expensive round these parts.

Because of how expensive our heat is to run, I try to run the heaters as infrequently as possible, and use these various tips to keep warm without the heaters. If you live in a place where it is colder than my area, you'll need to keep the heat on all the time to prevent frozen pipes- but consider setting the heat very low- like 45-50 degrees or so (or however high you have to do it to prevent freezing/damage) and use these tips to warm yourself the rest of the way.


So, let's start with the basics.

Insulation works. All types of insulation. If you have heat but it isn't being trapped, then you end up using much more energy and therefore money to heat the place. The best thing to do is to make sure that you have insulation in as many places as possible.

• First, if you can insulate your windows, either with plastic and/or with thick curtains, and make sure to caulk any holes; that should help prevent heat from escaping rooms.
• Make sure your beds are insulated. That means good quality blankets, ideally fluffy down or similar blankets, since they help trap heat best. Since it gets coldest at night, good quality insulation in bed can help you avoid or minimize heating costs during the most expensive part of the day.
• Insulate your body! Wear warm clothing! There's no reason why your house should need to be raised to summer temperatures in the middle of the winter. It's fine to keep your house on the cool end in the winter, and expect everyone to walk around wearing sweaters, socks, and slippers. (Though some might say if you have to wear gloves and hats indoors you've gone too far, others would disagree. Your call. Depending on your budget. We don't do gloves and hats indoors at this point in time.)

Ok, so now once we've gotten this out of the way, how about lets talk about some real, concrete ideas that my family is doing to save money on our heating bill.

Directed Heating. We only heat up the room that we're in, while we're in it. That means that during the day, when we're not sitting in bed, our living room/kitchen has the heat on (if at all). During the night, there's no heating in any room other than the bedroom, if at all. No use in heating up empty rooms in the house- that's pretty much throwing money down the drain.

Indirect Heating Via Cooking. Yesterday I had a bunch of friends over, and as they walked in, they commented on how warm my house was and asked what I did for heating. I told them I had no heat on, and they didn't believe me. I tried to think about what I was doing that possibly was heating the house so much, and then I discovered what was making my house so warm- my cast iron skillet! I know- sounds ridiculous, but hear me out. 

You know that "flower pot heating" thing that has been going around the internet? It may or may not work- I haven't tried it- haven't got terra cotta pots, nor do I want to spend money on something like that which may or may not work...
But, in essence, the way it is supposed to work is that the terra cotta pot traps the heat from the candle, which it slowly radiates outward, because of the properties of the clay.
Cast iron cookware is like that. Cast iron takes a while to heat up, but once it does, it retains its heat for a long time. I've noticed that cooking with my cast iron pans actually heats up my kitchen more than cooking with anything else- you can literally feel heat radiating from my pan, and even heating the general area, for long after I have turned off the fire underneath it. It's really amazing.
Baking will also heat up your house- making homemade baked goods from scratch is cheaper than buying the store bought alternatives- and warms up your home at the same time without needing to use your heaters.
I've discovered that using my pressure cooker also heats up the kitchen and the surrounding rooms, more so than any other regular pot.
So get cooking!
Added bonus? These hot soups and other things you're cooking will make you feel all warm as well.
Super bonus? Drink tea with foraged medicinal greens (my husband drinks with rosemary and olive leaves)- this'll both warm you up and boost your immune system, so you're less likely to get sick, even with the cooler weather....


Heating Beds Vs Bedrooms. I felt like such an idiot for only discovering this now... but did you know that using an electric mattress pad can seriously reduce your utilities bill? When everyone is in bed for the night, if you have your heat on in the bedroom, what you're doing is heating up all the air- and heat rises, so the warmest air is at the top of the room, while your bed is at the bottom- instead of heating up the place that really needs to be warm, because that's where you are- the bed! Even assuming you had the mattress pad on all night, it still would use only a fraction of the amount of electricity that electric heating would cost; the heat is direct, so much less wattage is needed to make you feel as warm as you'd be with heating up an entire room.
But even that isn't necessary- you can and probably should put your electric mattress pad on an outlet timer, having it heat up your bed for the first hour or two that you're in bed, and then turn it on randomly for 15-30 minutes a couple of times throughout the night, and you'll be cozy warm for a fraction of the cost. Or you can do it even thriftier- like I do- and just turn it on before you get into bed and for while you're falling asleep, but shut it off when you're ready to go to sleep, since good insulation (remember I mentioned warm blankets above?) will keep that heat in and you won't get cold, even after it is off.
If you're worried about danger- the modern electric mattress pads are made differently than electric blankets used to be made in the past, and they are not the fire hazard they once were. And putting it on a timer means that you won't be running it the whole night, which decreases the danger even more.
I recently bought these electric mattress pads for my family (from a deal site, so it was relatively cheap) and it has made such a difference- we're so cozy at night, but we barely use any electricity.

January.... Brrrr...

But don't let the heating costs get you down. You can lower the heating bills, without compromising your comfort too much!

What are your tricks for keeping warm in cold weather, without setting your bank account on fire?