Frugal Living

Keep Warm This Winter For Less: 10 Tips And Tricks

1. Layer Up

There’s no easier way to keep warm this winter than layering up. The principle is simple: top up whatever you are in with a sweater and a jacket to create an extra layer of insulation, allowing the body to remain warm even outdoors. The best part of this is that you can add or remove the layers depending on how warm or cold you feel and your comfort level. 

2. Invest In Thick Socks And Slippers

Woolen or cotton socks come in handy when looking to keep warm. Ultra-warm woolen socks will leave you warm and comfortable all day long, hence never have to turn up the heater. You might also want to invest in soft and comfortable slippers to wear around the house, especially if your floors are cold. 

3. Make Use Of The Stove And Oven

The winter season provides an excellent opportunity to perfect your cooking and baking skills. Although you might have avoided baking during the warmer months, winter is the best time to start. In addition to perfecting your baking and cooking skills, the process will help warm up the house, making it more comfortable. 

4. Leave The Oven Door Open After Baking

Ovens are designed to keep most of the heat in, with minimal amounts of heat leaking outside.   While baking will help heat the house a bit, leaving its door open immediately after baking will help disperse the heat to the room and the entire house. Be sure to keep children and pets away from the kitchen or the oven when you do this. While excellent sources of heat, you should never use your oven as the primary source of heat. This is especially so for ovens that use natural gas as fuel. 

5. Enjoy A Hot Cup Of Soup or Porridge

Opting for hot meals can also help keep you warm for the better part of the day. A cup of hot soup, porridge, or even chocolate, is thus good for your health. You can also take it a notch higher and prepare the soup yourself. The process of preparing the soup will generate enough heat to warm up the kitchen and possibly adjacent rooms. 

6. Switch To Warm Beverages

Hot meals provide the ultimate solution to heat your body up from the inside. A hot cup of tea, coffee, cider, or cocoa will warm you up faster than the central heater. This is one of the reasons we recommend preparing a thermos of your favorite beverage and keeping it close by. A tea kettle will serve the purpose remarkably well too. 

7. Turn on the Humidifier

The colder season makes air drier than usual, contributing to low temperatures and dry skin. Dry air takes longer to heat up, a reason you might want to use the humidifier to restore humidity levels in the house to favorable levels. Humid air heats up faster, holds heat for much longer, and is recommended for healthy skin and scalp. 

8. Reverse The Ceiling Fan

Although running the ceiling fan might seem counterproductive, setting it to run in reverse will help keep the house warmer. Basic geography tells us that hot air rises. Reversing the ceiling fan helps push the hot air down, keeping the room warmer for much longer without dialing up the thermostat. 

9. Use Heating Pads

Heating pads can be used as a temporal solution to keep your hands and feet warm for some time. Microwaveable heating pads are mostly recommended as they are also efficient and easier to use. Simply place the pads in the microwave for 30 seconds with the desired temperature set, then use them to keep yourself warm. 

10. Clear/Clean Heat Vents, Radiators, And Registers

The central heater is a crucial part of the house, hence should be kept in the best condition possible. Experts recommend fully servicing the AC a month or so before the winter starts. Find out more about servicing here. The main idea is to eliminate the risks of a breakdown in the middle of winter. You can also help keep the central heater in tip-top condition by cleaning the radiators, heat vents, and registers for optimal performance. You might also want to move furniture and heavy equipment away from the vents to allow easy airflow and heat circulation.

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