It may not seem obvious but the warmer seasons are often the best time to repair and insulate our homes in preparation for the cold weather. However, we rarely think of heating and insulation during those balmy days – out of sight, out of mind, right?
So why is it a good time to tackle those tasks?
Let’s face it, there’s never a good time to be without heating, hot water or windows during the winter, is there? However, we often discover issues with these same elements once the summer is over and we start wanting to feel cosy in our homes.
That’s when we switch the heating back on and discover there’s a problem with the radiators, thermostat or boiler. It’s when we notice that cold chills are seeping in around our windows. And we find ourselves shivering while wishing that we’d thought to add more insulation before the attic became icy cold.
That’s why I’m starting to think about the things I can do to improve the heating and energy efficiency of my own home right now. I want to get a head start to make sure I will be cosy and comfortable during the coming autumn and winter.
Here are some things you can plan…
Avoid iciness with Internal insulation
When you got your Christmas decorations out of the loft, you probably noticed just how cold the air is in your loft. Likewise, you may have noticed condensation on the cold exterior walls of your home on chilly days
These are all factors you wouldn’t notice in the summer but will certainly feel the effects of in the winter. So, think back to what bothered you during those cold months and start to tackle those issues now.
It might be adding a thicker layer of insulation in your loft or you might wish to add internal wall insulation to your external walls to minimise heat loss and keep the cold weather at bay next winter. This is particularly useful for older buildings that don’t have cavity wall insulation and can just be applied to the cold exterior walls you have in your home.
I remember living in an apartment which was surrounded by other homes, so there was only one external wall and we were perfectly cosy there. However, now I’ve got three external walls so there’s more chance that heat can escape.
On the flip side, insulation helps to keep your house cooler in the summer. On those swelteringly hot days, your interior temperature will be more comfortable, so you’ll start to feel the benefit of having extra insulation straight away before the cold weather even comes!
Stay hot with heating
I’ve previously written about why the summer is the thriftiest time to update your heating system so be sure to have a read of that article too, as there are so many ways you can cut the maintenance and DIY costs if you address your heating system at this time of year.
These reasons for arranging repairs and upgrades during the sunny seasons combine with the fact that I wouldn’t want to be without functioning heating or a working boiler during the winter to make me believe that now is a great time to start researching those heating updates.
Win the winter with windows
I couldn’t believe it when I spotted my curtains rippling in the wind last winter – we had the windows fully closed and locked but there was still a draught coming in! Windy weather is certainly the enemy of my windows; they’re so old that they just can’t keep breezes at bay.
So, I know I’ll need to replace them – in fact, they’re on my renovation to-do list for this year. However, I don’t want to wait until the winter to do this as the house will be freezing cold while the windows are removed.
Plus, it’s probably much nicer for the installers to be working outside in good weather rather than the wind, rain or worse. I better crack on with my research if I want to get this project started this year, so watch this space!
Energy efficiency every day
All of these measures to improve my insulation, heating, boiler and windows are all going to contribute to a lowering of my energy bills. That’s because the house won’t take as long to warm up if the heating system is working efficiently and if all the draughts are excluded.
Plus, the insulation will help to keep the warmth locked in for longer, so I won’t need to have my heating on as often – that’s the real win here: being able to get through the winter without £100s of pounds being spent on energy bills.
By the way, I also got a Hive just before last winter and I found it very useful for setting up a heating routine that helped to save me some money. Plus, it has a setting that turns on your heating automatically when it falls below a temperature of 7 degrees, which helps to prevent your pipes from freezing if you’re out of the house when the icy weather comes, so that’s a handy safety measure too.
In summary, the sooner I start making these updates, the sooner I’ll start saving money on my bills every single year going forward and additionally, I’ll be so much more comfortable in my home during the colder months, so it makes total sense to me.
Let me know if you have any plans to update your heating or insulation etc and please let me know what time of year you’re planning to do the work. I’d love to hear your hacks for staying cosy this coming autumn and winter, so please leave me a comment below with your tips.
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