When you come home from a long day out and find your home much colder than you’d like, cranking on the heating only when you’re home may seem like the more economical idea. In actuality, this may be counter intuitive.

Ambient temperature in the winter can be quite low, making the home much frostier than we’d typically like. Indoor temperature can continue to drop making the climb up to a warmer temperature steeper and more costly.

To save on energy expenditure, set your thermostat at a temperature lower than your comfort temperature. This way, the house is kept relatively warm so that when you return and turn up the heat, the climb to the desired temperature causes less stress on the central air system, using less energy sources. You can use the setback function or program on your thermostat to schedule these changes in accordance to your return home.

Weather-stripping or silicone-based caulking are easy do-it-yourself methods that help trap heat indoors while keeping cold air out. These instruments and products are available at any home improvement store. These approaches to sealing should be used on windows, doors and even sliding glass doors.

A good rule of thumb to follow is that if you can see light passing through the cracks, it hasn’t been sealed well enough.

If your home is fitted with a fireplace, consider its heating power. Different types of fireplaces offer different levels of heating. Those enclosed in glass oftentimes come with a light switch-type of on-and-off function. These fireplaces produce little heat and usually come without a fan, which is crucial for proper distribution of heat. Attempting to heat a home with this type of fireplace results in higher gas consumption for less heating because of its design. If your fireplace is among this build, consider having a fan installed. The fan is instrumental in distributing the heat from the fireplace throughout the room. Once a fan is put in place, your fireplace becomes an effective method to alternative home heating.

Standard wood burning fireplaces are efficient at producing heat. The only caveat would be that because the natural draft leads up the flue pipe, it creates a vacuum inside of the home. You might find that though the room nearest the fireplace is warm, the back rooms are much colder than before. This is because those rooms pull cold air from outside. To combat this, implement the fan-based fireplace heating system with proficient weather-stripping and caulking to reduce the amount of outdoor air brought inside.