HEATING your home throughout the winter months can be a costly necessity.
According to experts, there are handy tricks you can use to lower your bills while still maintaining a warm and cozy atmosphere.
The home professionals at Good Housekeeping detailed the top 10 ways to heat your space without breaking the bank.
Before you begin to heat the interior of your home, the experts recommend tackling any potential drafts first.
Technical and engineering director Rachel Rothman suggested using a flashlight to check for any cracks in your window frame, which you can then caulk.
"Even a tiny one can allow a ton of heat to escape and chilly winds to come in," she said.
Rachel also revealed the ceiling fan trick that can easily help to heat up your space.
"If you think your ceiling fan is just for hot, humid days, you're wrong," she said.
Rachel explained: "By reversing the motor in the winter, so it's clockwise, the fan creates an updraft that actually pushes warm air near the ceiling back down."
According to the experts, this hack will allow you to reduce your thermostat and lower your bills by as much as 10%.
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Rachel's colleague Lexie Sachs, who works as a textiles product analyst, discussed the role of blankets when keeping warm.
She explained: "Just remember that blankets aren't enough to keep you warm all the time.
"The textiles help to trap the heat, but there needs to be heat in the first place to trap."
Another textile worth paying attention to is your curtains, which can help to heat your home on sunny days and insulate it when closed at night.
Similarly, placing a rug on your floor can help to prevent heat from being lost through your floorboards.
Like the cracks in your windows, the space under your doors can create a draft in your home.
"All you need to seal off the chilly breeze is a door stopper," the experts said.
They also recommended preventing potential drafts around your electric outlets with an outlet insulator.
"They're basically foam sheets that you put behind the face plate to block any cold temperatures," the pros explained.
By closing off any rooms you don't use often you can increase the efficiency with which you heat your space.
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The experts also advised against dramatically changing temperatures within your home by adding a programmable thermostat which allows for minor adjustments.
Finally, Rachel recommended checking your roof for potential leaks, particularly after rain or snow storms.
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