Keeping your home warm as toast

A guide to keeping your home warm in the coldest winter months

In the coldest months of the year it’s important to keep your home warm and comfortable – after all at this time of year you’re spending more time inside. But the trouble is that lovely heat generated by your heating escapes.

In some houses, just about all of it. In others enough escapes so that you feel draughts near windows and doors. That makes a house difficult and expensive to heat.

But rather than wrapping up like an Eskimo in an igloo and shivering around a heater, there are some things you can do.

We’ve divided them into small steps that don’t cost much, larger projects that require more investment, and future projects in case you’re thinking of building or renovating. Lastly we’ll point you in the right direction for choosing the right heating for your home. Follow some or all of these steps and you’ll notice a warmer more comfortable home.

Small steps that don’t cost much

Draughts can suck away up to 20% of the warm air from your home. But the good news is that in most cases, it’s easy and inexpensive to prevent them.

1. If you’re not using your fireplace, block the chimney by filling a plastic bag with newspaper and fitting it into the hole. Leave a note for yourself in the fireplace.

2. Stop draughts coming in under doors. Hardware stores have many types of draught stoppers. Or you could buy or make a ‘snake’ or ‘sausage’ door roll.

3. Where doors and windows don’t make a complete seal, draughts will get in! You can seal the gaps with self-adhesive strips from hardware stores.

4. Close your curtains at sunset, so that the warmth that has built up during the day doesn’t escape again through the window.

Larger projects requiring more investment

Uninsulated ceilings and floors can account for up to 40% of the heat loss in your home. But don’t let the prospect of having it installed put you off. If your home isn’t insulated or the insulation needs upgrading your outlay will pay for itself in energy bill savings.

1. Insulate the ceiling of your home. Fibreglass Batts, wool or blown cellulose is ideal. Check your hardware store or under ‘insulation – thermal’ in the Yellow Pages. You can install Batts yourself – just make sure the R value (insulation value) of the insulation meets recommended minimums. Otherwise you could get professionals to do it.

2. If your ceiling is already insulated, check its condition. Over time, gravity can flatten insulation or it can get blown around or moved, thus reducing its insulation value. You may need to replace it or top it up.

3. If you have polished wooden floors, underfloor insulation should make a difference. A special metal foil (with or without a fibreglass layer) is an option. You need at least 60cm crawlspace under your floor to have it installed. It is possible to do it yourself, but if you want to save your back, why not leave it to the professionals?

4. If you don’t have curtains, or the ones you have are so thin they don’t count, get some new ones. Make sure the curtains are bigger than the window frame, and close fitting so the warm air doesn’t escape. It also helps if your curtains have thermal linings. You can make your own with fabric from furnishing fabric shops or buy ready mades - check the Yellow Pages under ‘Curtains’.

Building or renovating?

Did you know that you can now build a home that harnesses the power of the sun and then keeps in the heat at night? We’re not talking about solar water heating or electricity, we’re referring to energy efficient building design. So if you’re about to build or renovate, here are some things you can talk about with your designer or architect.

1. Where is the sun in relation to your home? Make sure the building is laid out to catch the sun and keep its heat, especially in the winter.

2. Allow for insulation in the ceiling, walls and floor. That way once the sun has heated the home, it’s kept in for as long as possible.

3. Think about ‘passive heating’ in the design. That’s where the sun warms a large concrete mass (wall or floor) during the day, and then the stored heat releases at night when the temperature drops.

4. Some window shapes are more effective than others, and tall slim windows on the north side of the house are good for maximising sun in winter, and minimising it in summer.

5. Consider double-glazing, especially in the far south. Windows are great for allowing your home to heat up. The trouble is when it’s cold outside they allow heat loss. As well as helping to prevent this, double glazing also reduces condensation and outside noise.

Choosing appropriate heating

When it comes to choosing heating, bear in mind how you use your home and the size of the rooms you’re heating. After all, a small radiant heater won’t heat a large kitchen and living area. Or on the other hand, do you need central heating for the whole house if you only use part of it?

You can find out appropriate heating methods for your home by visiting the EECA (Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority) website, or copy this link into your browser:

www.energywise.org.nz/inmyhome/inmyhome_fixbyproblem_heating.asp

For more information about energy efficiency visit www.energywise.org.nz.

You’ll look forward to reduced heating bills, and a warmer, more comfortable home.