When it gets cold in winter, there’s a lot more you can do than crank up your heater. Efficient heating systems like heat pumps can help you reduce the cost of heating your home in winter, but you can increase your comfort levels and reduce energy bills further with these simple tips.
Wear More Clothes
It’s much easier to change your body temperature than the room temperature. Before turning the heat up more, try wearing some more layers. It’s easy to think that big jumpers are the way to go, however wearing layers of thin clothing is more effective at trapping body heat.
The more skin that’s exposed to the air, the colder you will feel. That’s because the body conserves heat by reducing blood flow to the skin. So the sensation of feeling cold mostly comes from skin. You can feel warmer by covering more skin, including wearing beanies and socks.
Turn on the Ceiling Fan
If you have ceiling fans in your home, running them on their lowest setting is an effective way of improve the heating efficiency of your home. This is because warm air rises. With the fan on, that warm air gets pushed back down to where you can feel it.
Have Warm Drinks and Eat Well
Many people agree that a nice hot cup of tea or coffee can make you feel warmer. However, a lot of that effect comes from the caffeine in those drinks, which increases blood flow to the skin. Alcohol also has the same effect. The downside is that while you may feel warmer, your body is actually losing core heat. Decaf or herbal hot drinks are better as a result.
Eating regular, healthy meals also help you keep warm. Hearty foods such as stew, soups and porridges are great for warming you up and even better if they have carbohydrates in them.
Get Thicker Curtains
Your windows can be a major source of outside cold getting in. Having thick, double glazed windows can help. However, if you’re not in a position to replace windows, you can also supplement existing curtains with heavier wool or fleece drapes during winter.
Move Around
Keeping active is a great way to keep warm and improve your morale during winter. Exercise gets blood pumping around your body, heating up your skin. As blood rushes to the skin as your body tries to release heat, you feel instantly warmer and pleasant from the release of endorphins.
Get Quality, Efficient Heating
Invest in a quality, energy efficient heating solution to ensure your home stays warm without blowing out your energy bill. Heat pumps are an excellent choice as their versatility allows you to mount them wherever you need in the house or integrate them into duct systems.
They do a great job of filtering your air, removing pollens, pathogens and humidity, lowering the risk of getting sick. Safe, environmentally friendly, cost effective and reliable, there’s no better choice.
Heat Pumps in Auckland
For more information about how heat pumps can help you stay comfortable over winter, contact Albany Heat Pumps. We provide top of the line heat pumps as well as installation, servicing and maintenance services. Contact us online today.