6 Ways to Beat the Winter Chill
In Australia we often focus our house designs around keeping cool in summer, and neglect the fact that it can get chilly in winter as well – especially at night. Luckily, it doesn’t take a lot to keep warm in the winter time, especially if you do the right things with your windows and blinds!
- Insulation
Insulation is vital to keeping warmth inside your home during winter. Double glazing your windows is a great way to insulate your house, and will help to reduce both your heating bill in winter and air conditioning in summer! Double glazing will help you to keep the heat where it belongs – inside your home.
Having adequate insulation in your walls will also help during both summer and winter. As a general rule, when the temperature outside is uncomfortable then insulation is your friend.
- Blind control
In winter, you need to be careful with your cellular blinds. You want to let the sun in during the day to help with the heating, but at night having your blinds closed offers that extra insulation you need to keep your house warm.
Protective eaves are a very good insulator; however they can also limit the light that comes in. Thick blinds or curtains will give you the best of both worlds, as they give you the most control over how much light will get into your home as well as providing insulation when down.
- Targeted heating
If you try to heat your whole house up, not only will you send your power bill through the roof but it will also take forever. Consider only heating the living area during the day and evening and keeping doors closed, to contain heat in this area.
If your bedroom is frequently too cold when you go to bed, put a smaller heater in there and turn it on about half an hour before bed, to warm up the room a bit. You can turn it off before you go to sleep as well – your body heat will be enough to keep a well-insulated room warm through the night.
- Cooking
Winter is a time to put the fancy recipes away and focus on hot, hearty meals. Roasts, stews and soups will not only fill you up, they will also help to heat your home as you cook them! Hot deserts such as an apple crumble will also heat the house. In addition, the smell helps everyone in the house to look forward to dinner!
These hearty meals will also help you to feel warm when you eat them, and can help you and your family to get through a chilly evening. Certain drinks, such as hot chocolate and mulled wine, are also very effective for warming you up and spreading a pleasant, warming aroma through your home.
- Blankets
In winter, blankets are not just for beds. Nothing will help you to warm up faster than snuggling into a blanket while you watch the news, or chat to your family after dinner. The only problem is you have to get up at some point!
- Make it cosy
All the other points have really been leading to this one: create a cosy atmosphere for your home. A stew simmering over the stove, mulled wine heating up, blinds down or mostly down, a heater in the living room with blankets on the couches – could your home be any more inviting on a cold winters night?
You can ramp up the cosy factor buy having a warm glow coming from the windows to greet you as you come home. If whoever gets home first puts your blinds down, but not quite all the way, as it gets dark then you will see the light from inside your home waiting for you. Consider sharing blankets with family members on extra cold evenings!
These six tips can help you be warm and cosy all winter long, and will make you look forward to getting home after a long day more than ever! As the mercury sinks, these tips become more important than ever, so be prepared for uncomfortably chilly nights when you plan your dream home!
Author: Colin Steinway