You basically has three options: heating, reducing area to be heated, and better insulation. Outside of this, there are no lifehacks ever going to save you, so let us tackle each one.
The most common heat sources are wood, gas and electricity. Electricity is by far the most efficient way in terms of heat produced. To reduce electricity usage, do use a heater directly instead of indirect heat through a refrigerator, lights, or other electrical equipment. They might have other benefits, but the heat value will be reduced as compared to a proper heater.
Gas can be a good alternative, but requires enough ventialation not to be a safety hazard. However there does exist good gas ovens, which are allowed for indoor use, and if you have the money you can invest in dedicated gas ovens for indoor use.
Wood is also a good alternative, and can be very useful and cheap if you have a good supply. This does however require a working fireplace, which the OP in this case says is not available.
If you have limited heating capabilities, it is always an option to reduce the are which needs to be heated. In one apartment I rented, I chose to close off two rooms in the winter, to reduce the electricity needed for heating.
Either close off rooms for the cold seasons, or accept that some of the rooms are going to be colder. You can also try to divide existing rooms using either light walls, or blankets in a pinch, which will help a little.
A variant of reducing area to be heated, is to allow the room to be colder, but use more and better clothes. This allows for you not to freeze, whilst the overall temperature in the room is lower. This can also be accomplished by using blankets when seated, or possibly a mattres heater when in bed.
Your best option is usually to get better insulation. Insulate walls, roof, floor and windows. Try to locate the coldest surface, and start there when insulating.
Note that adding blankets/rugs can help insulate both walls and floors. If you have really old windows, it can help with thicker curtains or if really cold by inserting extra windows or even insulation boards.
On a lighter note: A person usually generates around 100 W of heat, so inviting a lot of friends over will increase the temperature quite fast!
Each year as winter approaches, homeowners across the Seattle, WA area start to think about how much their heating bills will be for the year. As they examine current energy prices, they inevitably start to wonder if there’s anything they can do to increase the efficiency of their home’s furnace. Clearly, the best approach is to purchase a brand-new high-efficiency furnace from Brennan Heating & Air Conditioning. In lieu of that, however, there are some ways homeowners can improve the efficiency of their existing furnaces. Here are seven tips that can help achieve greater furnace efficiency.
The simplest way homeowners can improve their furnace’s efficiency is to demand less of it. By lowering your thermostat by a few degrees, you won’t be asking your furnace to work as hard. Since it’s easier to maintain your home at a lower temperature, you won’t have to worry as much about energy loss. That translates into an instant furnace efficiency bonus.
Lowering your thermostat by a single degree may not sound like much, but it translates to significant cost savings. Over eight hours, a 1-degree decrease on your thermostat will save you approximately 1% on your annualized heating costs. That’s a pretty big benefit for a change you’re not likely to even feel!
Another excellent way to improve your furnace’s efficiency is to cut down on how much heat it needs to generate. Weatherproofing your home is a great way to do that. You can begin by installing weatherstripping around your home’s doors and windows. That will cut down on the amount of cold air leaking into your home during the winter.
You might also want to seal any gaps you see around your doors and windows with caulk or expanding foam. For an extra efficiency boost, you can even hang insulated curtains to create a cold air barrier at each window. Together, your efforts mean a better-sealed indoor environment and less work for your furnace.
Every time your furnace turns on, it draws air through its return duct and a filter before heating it and distributing it around your home. That filter traps all of the dust and dirt carried along by your home’s air. Eventually, the filter will get so dirty that it will start to impede your furnace’s airflow. The result is worsening furnace efficiency.
It’s a good idea to change out your furnace’s filter at least once every 90 days. It’s an inexpensive maintenance item that can translate into significant furnace-efficiency gains. Plus, it’ll help keep the air in your home fresh and clean throughout the heating season.
Just like a dirty air filter, blocked or closed air registers throughout your home will create resistance that makes your furnace work harder. Making sure that all of the air registers throughout your home remain open and unblocked by things like furniture will improve your furnace’s efficiency.
Also, it’s a good idea to open up the doors to as many rooms in your home as possible. Forced-air heating systems rely on maintaining constant airflow throughout your home to operate at peak efficiency. When you close off a room, you’re trapping heated air inside and preventing it from cycling back through your furnace.
The ductwork in your home’s walls is like a highway that carries heated air from your furnace to the places around your home that need it. However, the ductwork in many homes comes equipped with dampers to control airflow to the various branches of the duct network. In some cases, you might gain an efficiency benefit from adjusting those dampers to fit the season.
For example, if you have a two-story home, you could restrict the heat going upstairs while increasing the airflow to the first story. Since heat rises, this will help you to balance the temperature within your home and allow your thermostat to get an accurate reading that reflects the conditions in your home. Just make sure to reverse the changes you’ve made before the air conditioning season starts!
When your furnace begins to send heated air through your home’s duct network, not all of it will make it to the air registers in your home. That’s because ductwork is rarely airtight, and some of the air will escape into your walls on the way to the other end. Anything you can do to prevent those losses will improve your furnace’s efficiency.
One way to do this is to examine the joints of the ductwork you can see, which is most often near the furnace itself. If you can feel warm air escaping there while the furnace runs, there’s likely a leak in one of the joints. Re-sealing those joints with duct or furnace tape can stop the leak and help more hot air reach the parts of your home that need it.
Unfortunately, since your ductwork is mostly located in the finished walls of your home, you won’t be able to address air leaks in most of the system yourself. However, a trained HVAC technician can help determine if and where your ducts may be leaking. Then they can recommend the least intrusive way to fix the problem and seal the leaks for you.
The final tip we have for you in your quest to improve the efficiency of your home’s furnace is to insulate any exposed ductwork that’s part of the system. In some homes, ductwork runs exposed along a basement ceiling or through other locations, which leads to energy loss in the winter. Remember, every inch of ductwork that runs through a cold location will lower the temperature of the heated air passing through it.
To prevent that energy loss, it’s sometimes worthwhile to add insulation to your exposed ductwork. It’s not a job that you should tackle by yourself since most insulation isn’t pleasant to handle or work with. Instead, contact an HVAC specialist to tell you if additional insulation is necessary and to have them handle the work if it is.
The tips detailed above will help you to improve the energy efficiency of your furnace this winter. The thing to remember, however, is that they can only do so much. If your furnace is old or in poor condition, it’s still going to cost you more than it should to operate.
So, before the temperature really starts to drop, call the experts here at Brennan Heating & Air Conditioning for help. Our highly trained HVAC technicians can evaluate your furnace and perform whatever types of maintenance or repair it needs to work efficiently. With 30 years of experience serving homeowners all over the area, there’s no better place to turn to keep your furnace in good working order. In addition to heating services, our team also offers cooling and electrical services, water heater repair, and air duct cleaning.
For furnace repair or any other questions you have about heating your home this winter, contact Brennan Heating & Air Conditioning today!