10 Ways To Cut Your Heating Costs

Spending a little now can save you lots of cash later

DETROIT (Wednesday, October 12, 2005) - This isn't just economics. This is war.

And like any campaign, you need a battle strategy to figure out how to cut and slash those skyrocketing home heating bills down to levels your budget can survive.

In Oakland Township, Claire Rewold has caulked the windows on her 100-year-old farmhouse, put up storm windows, and replaced an exterior door so she no longer has to hang a blanket over it to keep out winter drafts.

"It's horrible," said the early-education specialist of the rapidly soaring prices. "A lot of people are going to be really strapped this year just trying to stay warm."

Happily, you are not helpless. Heat-saving steps you can take to head the enemy off at the pass range from the easy to the expensive, said Dave Moran of Home Energy Analysis Team in St. Clair County.

"Air-sealing is one of the quickest and cheapest paybacks," said Moran, by which he means plugging small holes and leaks to reduce heat loss.

In Northville, retirees John and Linda Osborne have hired HandyPro Handyman Service to caulk around the outside of their 15 windows.

"I'd been putting it off," said Linda Osborne, "but the rising prices gave me the impetus to think I better do something quick." She and her husband have already installed a high-efficiency gas furnace and put down more insulation.

Gas powers nearly everything in their house -- furnace, hot-water heater and drier. Last year, their highest monthly bills from Consumers Energy averaged $200 a month. This year, the former schoolteachers could easily be looking at an extra $70 a month, which is bound to take an ugly bite out of their budget. They're lucky -- customers who get their gas from DTE Energy will see a 77 percent hike.

Asked how they'll cope, Linda Osborne laughed a little.

"Denial works for me," she said, but added that she and her husband will likely eat out less "or cut down on the sprinkling in the summer, because that cost is very high."

Still, look on the bright side. Even at the new, punishing rates, both heating oil -- seldom used these days in Michigan -- and natural gas are still cheaper than electrical heat, according to DTE Energy officials.

Even so, with winter barreling down upon us, now's the time to launch a counterstrike. Here follow 10 ways you can dial down your energy pain:

1.It's not the heat. It's the humidity: According to the U.S. Department of Energy, a humidifier boosts the "heat index" and makes 68 degrees feel like 76. Plus, it'll keep your skin from drying out.

2.Get high-tech: A computerized thermostat, which ranges from $70 to $200, will guarantee your heat gets reduced overnight and during the work day when no one's around -- a great hedge against forgetfulness.

3.Turn it down: Dollar-smart consumers will pile on the blankets, put on long underwear, and turn down the thermostat, said Stephen Ewing, president of DTE Energy Gas. "For every degree you dial down," he added, "you save 3 percent on your bill."

4. Go solar: The Ontario Ministry of Energy recommends opening south-facing curtains and blinds to take advantage of the sun's heat, then shutting them at night. Clean glass helps, too. (You can go completely 21st century with photo-voltaic cells on your roof, but those, alas, work better out West than with Michigan's cloudy winters.)

5.Don't heat the great outdoors: Fireplaces can vent as much as 24,000 cubic feet of furnace-heated air to the outside -- particularly once the fire has died down and is just smoldering. And by all means, close the damper when not in use.

A modern, airtight wood stove, however, might be a way to supplement your heating needs at considerable savings.

An average household that uses 700 gallons of heating oil a winter will shell out roughly $1,900 this year.

But according to the federal government's National Agricultural Safety Database, you can get the same heat output with 6.5 cords of hardwood.

Cords in Metro Detroit are running around $80, which means an annual heating total of $520 -- about $1,380 in savings.

6.Spread a blanket: Putting down 12 inches of insulation in your attic is the easiest and most cost-effective way to warm up your house. In addition, walls, floors and basement foundation can all profit from the same treatment.

Common types of insulation include fiberglass rolls or batts, cut to ordinary joist widths, or loose-fill insulation like cellulose that can be blown into walls or attic.

An attic batt or blanket from Home Depot that covers 77 1/2 square feet with 6 1/4 inches of insulation will run you about $30.

7. Keep your furnace happy: Change filters in forced-air systems once a month. Hot-water radiators need to be bled once or twice a season, while steam radiators have to have sediments removed a couple times a year. Consult your owner's manual for required maintenance.

Also, clean registers as needed, and make sure furniture or drapes aren't blocking them.

If your furnace is more than 25 years old, it might be time to replace it. A modern furnace with combustion efficiency greater than 90 percent is likely to run you around $3,000.

But if you're staying in your house for five years, said Dave Moran of Home Energy Analysis Team, the cost "is worth it in the long run."

Still, while replacing your old clunker with a high-efficiency furnace can trim costs by 10 percent to 25 percent, don't jump too fast.

"Realistically," said Bill Moosbrugger at Ann Arbor's Koch & White Heating & Cooling, "if you've got a good furnace in the 80 percent efficiency range, and it's been maintained, take a look at all the other stuff" you can do to save on heat before shelling out for a new model.

8.Seek counseling: Confused about where to start? You might want to get an energy audit from a qualified specialist, who can pinpoint exactly where the heat -- and dollars -- are billowing out of your house.

A comprehensive audit for a 2,000-square-foot home will run somewhere in the neighborhood of $400.

9.Windows matter: If you've got them, get those storm windows up and out of the basement. If not, a sheet of plastic stretched and taped across the inside of a window can also reduce heat leakage by 25 percent to 50 percent.

New windows, of course, do even more, and today come in energy-efficient, gas-filled double-paned varieties that require no storms whatsoever.

And they might not be as costly as you think. Stanford Blanck, vice president of Wallside Windows in Taylor, said the total cost for replacing a typical 28-inch by 45-inch window "would be under $300."

10. Houses shouldn't leak: Doors and windows are responsible for about a third of a house's energy drain. Install weather-stripping all around doors, and caulk leaky windows as well as any cracks or other holes where air can get through. Rope caulk is available from hardware stores, and can be reused next year.

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