How to Stay Warm This Winter for Less

Keeping yourself and your home warm during winter can be a challenge, and with rising energy prices this year it is more expensive than ever to stay warm.

But we have some tips and tricks to make it a little easier to get through winter without breaking the bank.

Keeping yourself warm

Hot water bottle – these are not just useful when placed under your bedcovers, hold onto one when you’re sat on the couch. Price wise they are no more expensive than boiling a kettle (average price 21p). In addition to keeping you warm, holding onto a hot water bottle can help to reduce stress!

Hand warmers – a variety of these are available, including single-use and rechargeable. These can be used when you’re out of the house; just tuck them inside your gloves or coat pockets. But you could also use them in the house, if you’re prone to cold hands, a rechargeable one could be useful during those long winter evenings.

Thermal underwear – worn underneath your clothes, these can help regulate your body temperature and help you to stay warm when outside or indoors. By creating layers of clothing, you can trap heat. A good investment, these can be used year after year, and can be easily found for less than £10.

Keeping your home warm

Oil radiators – these can be extremely energy efficient. The oil retains heat for longer than the water in your central heating system does, and therefore they are more economical. Once you turn the radiator off, it continues to heat the room. Another advantage is that these are highly portable and can be moved to whichever room you’re currently using, meaning there is no need to heat the entire house.

Eco Fan heaters – whilst electric heaters are generally very expensive to run, there are now some electric heaters on the market that heat rooms quickly and effectively, thus making them much cheaper to run than traditional electric heaters.

Clingfilm on windows – it may sound unlikely but covering your windows with some cheap clingfilm can help to trap heat inside your home. Though it is advised that you use a proper insulating kit on your windows, cling film will do the same job, just not as effectively.

Draught excluders – this one is self-explanatory! Place draught excluders against doors to keep rooms warmer. You can even make them yourself using an old pair of tights and some newspaper, plastic carrier bags, rice or old bits of fabric! There are lots of DIY guides online to help you make a draught excluder without spending a penny.

Look after your boiler – Has it been more than 12 months since your boiler was serviced? If your boiler isn’t running efficiently, it could be costing you more than necessary.

Bleed your radiators – doing this will help your radiators work as well as possible. If you don’t know how, there are plenty of easy-to-follow guides online.

Keep warm this winter, it’s going to be a cold one!