*Set your home thermostat as low as comfortable (68 F is suggested) when the house is occupied.
*Set back the thermostat by about 8 degrees at night or when the house is unoccupied during the day.
*Set back the thermostat to 50 to 55 F when the house is unoccupied for over 24 hours.
*Install a programmable thermostat to automatically provide the setbacks mentioned above.
*Close the fireplace damper – except during fireplace use.
*Reduce heat to unused rooms in the house – close doors and heat registers too.
*Close curtains and shades at night, and open them on sunny winter days.
*Replace furnace filters once a month during the heating season.
*Remove any obstructions and clean heating registers regularly.
*Have certified maintenance personnel service and check your furnace regularly.
*Seal all joints in sheet metal ducts in a forced air furnace with mastic or appropriate tape;insulate ducts passing through unheated spaces.
*Minimize the use of kitchen, bath, and other ventilating fans or install a timer switch on them.
*Install insulating gaskets behind electrical outlets and switch plates on exterior walls.
*Caulk and weatherstrip doors and windows.
*Caulk and seal leaks where plumbing, ducting, or electrical wiring penetrates through exterior walls, floors, and ceilings.
*Use an inexpensive door sweep to reduce air leakage under exterior doors.
*Seal small holes around water pipes and stuff insulation into larger holes around plumbing fixtures.
*Use foam gaskets that fit behind cover plates to reduce heat loss around light switches and electrical outlets.
*Upgrade ceiling insulation to R-38 (higher R values mean greater insulation levels and thus more energy savings).
*Insulate exterior heated basement walls to at least R-11.
*Insulate floors over unheated areas to R-19.
*Install storm windows over single pane windows.
*Replace aging furnace, when needed, with an energy efficient ENERGY STAR model.
*Replace single pane windows with energy efficient double pane windows mounted in non-conducting window frames.
*Repair leaky faucets.
*Reduce the temperature setting of your water heater to warm (120 F).
*Add an insulating wrap to an older water heater. For a newer model, check your owner’s manual.
*Install low-flow showerheads.
*Wash clothes in warm or cold water using the appropriate water level setting for the load.
*Replace water heater, when needed, with an energy efficient ENERGY STAR model.