In the next few days we will be experiencing nothing short of Arctic sub-zero temperatures. Even the best built home is often not designed to maintain heat in this severe of weather. New homes will struggle to maintain temperature and more elderly homes will not be able to adjust throughout leaving cold pockets. Regardless of the age of your home, your heating system will be working at full capacity.
Below are a few suggestions to protect your home and equipment as we weather through this...
1. Raise the temperature in your home 2 to 4 degrees ABOVE your NORMAL SETTING. If the temperatures drop in your home, it will be harder to recover until temperatures rise again and the windchill diminishes. Most heating systems made for the American market cannot overcome temperatures -20 to -30 with a windchill up to -50 plus.
2. Take all programable thermostats out of SET BACK MODE and set on a PERMANENT HOLD.
3. Replace your furnace filter.
4. Keep your garage door closed and limit opening exterior doors.
5. Make sure all air vents and radiators are not blocked or obstructed.
6. Keep the INTAKE and EXHAUST for your furnace / boiler clear of ice and snow! The 90%+ furnace and boilers will typically have 2 white PVC pipes; an exhaust pipe and an intake pipe that are generally on the side or back of your home. In some instances they are on your roof. Should that be the case DO NOT go on your roof to clear the pipe and instead call in your HVAC company to inspect it.
7. Do not overload outlets with space heaters.
8. Open cabinet doors so your plumbing components are heated.
9. Let your faucets drip to prevent pipes from freezing; especially those in bathrooms and along exterior walls.
10. This is my all time favorite cure: To help minimize temperature loss you can make soup or stews or simply boil water! They introduce humidity and warmer temperatures into your home.
And, last but extremely important, PLEASE CHECK ON YOUR NEIGHBORS during these extreme temperatures especially if elderly or homebound and make sure they are okay and have adequate heat.
Warm Regards,
Jenny