It’s cold. We get it.
I need cheap ways to keep warm in winter, please.
It’s wear two pairs of socks, long johns, infinity scarf and flannel in the house COLD! I got our heating bill. Come ON! I’m in the wrong business. I need to own a heating company in New England. New England has some of the highest heating rates in the country.
Winter has barely started here, so I’ve been looking up some an obscene amount of ways to keep warm in winter.
Use these tips collectively to keep yourself toasty!
Ways to Keep Warm in Winter…
1. Layer your clothes.
2.Use flannel sheets.
3.Use an electric blanket.
4.Put area rugs on your floors.
5.Use insulated curtains.
6.Keep blankets on sofas.
Watching TV? Turn down the heater and use blankets.
7.Conserve free solar heating.
Keep windows uncovered during the day and close the curtains at night to trap heat in.
8.Don’t use kitchen and bathroom fans.
The fans take the smell out, but also hot air.
9.Change furnace/heat pump filter regularly.
If not cleaned properly, it makes them work harder which means high heating bill.
10.Run your ceiling fan in reverse.
It will force the hot air to come back down.
11.Turn down the thermostat just a couple degrees down will make a big difference.
12.Request an energy audit from your utility company.
Many do this for free and will come and tell you how to get your home more energy efficient to save on your heating.
13.Move all furniture and items away from heating vents.
14.Light a candle. Candles create heat.
15.Keep fireplace damper closed when not in use.
16.Keep ducts wrapped tight.
17.Replace very old heating units.
18.If you live in a deregulated state, shop around for a better rate and negotiate.
19.Use a draft stopper.
20.Remove window air conditioners.
21.Insulate exposed piping.
22.Insulate hot water tank with an insulating blanket.
Aww, tanks get cold too.
23.Insulate exterior switches and switch plates with foam sealer.
24.On windy days check all windows for air leaks.
Use an incense stick. If smoke blows up, you’re fine. If it blows sideways, there’s a leak.
25.Use cheap rope caulk to seal windows.
26.Install weatherstripping on drafty doors.
27.Replace missing or damaged shingles on the roof.
28.Use a freestanding heater for one room at a time.
29.Install a programmable thermostat.
30.Boil water and potpourri in a cast iron skillet on the stove.
The humidity will warm the home and make a nice fragrance.
31.Drink hot chocolate.
32.Bake something in the oven.
33.Eat soup.
34.Hang blankets in front of staircase.
To close off the space between the first and second floor, hang a blanket to prevent the heat from rising.
35.Cover drafts on outside doors.
Many East Coast homes have an outside entrance before the main entrance.
36.Layer windows just like clothing.
Air doesn’t just come from down. Put flannel in between the window and screen also.
37.Keep your body moving to create heat.
38.Use a humidifer.
39.Let the bath water get cool before draining.
The warmth from the water will help warm the house. Don’t drain it right away.
40.Recycle old pantyhose as leg warmers underneath clothing.
41.Use hand warmers found in drugstores for $1.
42.Use a hot water bottle under blankets.
43.Hang out with friends.
A study from University of Toronto found socializing makes you warmer.
44.Eat nuts.
Adding extra healthy fats will keep you warmer according to SELF magazine.
45.Cuddle. Really, hug someone.
46.Eat more ginger it helps get blood circulation going.
47.Take a warm bath before bedtime.
Our bodies naturally cool down closer to bedtime, a warm bath will help keep you cozy before sleeping.
48.Change your socks.
Sweaty socks create cold moisture.
49.Close unused rooms and shut off the vent.
50.Wear fuzzy slippers.
Mainly for cute factor, but they are warm too.
51.Use a heated mattress pad.
Have you used any of these methods? Any others I should add to the list?
52 Ways to be Happy for FREE: Go Somewhere New! (Week 2)
Hi! I'm Isra, aka The Frugalette. I took my family from fancy to frugal in 3 years, with 3 kids and 1 income, oh and found the meaning of life too! To read more about my fancy life gone frugal, 
I use pretty much all of these ideas! We heat with a wood stove, but it doesn’t do a great job of covering the whole house. My kitchen, for instance, is too far from the stove to get a lot of heat. So winter is my big time for baking! We have 4 blankets on our bed and the kids basically sleep in a big pile.
Since our kitchen was an add on to the space, there was no vent added. This is a really old home, and I guess they were just hoping our cooking would heat it up. The kitchen is by far the coldest room in our apartment, which is tough since it’s the one room we are all in the most.
These are great tips! I had a electric blanket for awhile, but I got kind of weirded out about EMFs so I stopped using it. But I LOVE my hot water bottle, and you’re so right about the baths, the nuts and the caulking. I never thought about putting flannel in the windows. Gotta try that one! thanks for all of the helpful info1
I hear ya on the electric blankets, we used to use them all the time as kids. But now Im not so sure it’s the right way to go. We mostly just try to layer up.
These are excellent tips, Isra! Here in Georgia we are getting our power from one of the most expensive companies in the entire country, and it cost me $421 to heat our 2100 square foot house last month
Needless to say I’ve been doing some research on things I can do. Thank you for the post!! I think top on our list is to start using propane instead of our heat pump since that’s probably what’s running up the bill.
Thanks Anna! Wowza that is one high heating bill! There are a lot of simple things you can change that would make a big difference! Good luck!
These are all great ideas! Our house is pretty big and hard to heat efficiently..i need all the help I can get!
These are some great tips. Here on the west coast we don’t get as the east, but some of these ideas will help.
great list! Not too bad in CA but when it gets cold – its extra cold because buildings are just not as well made on the west coast! Some freezing temps recently so thanks for the advice!
I just added this webpage to my feed reader, great stuff. Cannot get enough!
My incredibly smart wife decided she had enough of the draft from our fireplace and barricaded it with big fat throw pillows. I’m going to have to invent a wooly cloth flanel fireplace cover for all those folks like us who have glass door covers which isn’t sealed… or i guess we could just have a fire…. and get a bear rug.. and… ok forget all that stuff i said above… i’m liking the fire and bear rug… some wine… strawberries…. chocolate… nice… warmth… mmmm
So funny!
Thanks for the tips! While I do several of them already, a number are new to me like eating nuts and letting bath water cool. My favorite way to say warm is using my very cuddly cat as a lap and handwarmer. Unfortunately he wants to do that in the summer as well.
Awww, nothing like a cat warmer!
All of super tips for staying warmer and saving money too. We lower our house temp quite a bit during winter. Use a portable heater to spot heat.
Great tips – especially love the idea of baking something yummy
I love baking during the winter. It makes the apartment warm and my hubby is super happy to get some treats
!
Great ideas, and most of them are so simple! I can pick out at least 5 that I can do right off the bat!
I love to have hot tea to warm up quick and stay warm.
These are great ideas — I shared them with my friends! We are all freezing here in the Midwest!! lol
Thanks Sadie! Stay warm!
I love these tips! I am currently doing some of them but you gave me some ideas I never even though of.
This is great! Like most residential buildings in Jerusalem, we actually don’t have central heat in our apartment. (Yikes!) We do a lot of these things out of necessity! My personal favorite is baking something yummy and enjoying the oven’s heat in the kitchen. I also like the idea of boiling water and potpourri– haven’t tried that one!
There’s some spa thing you can do with putting towels in the microwave and then wrapping yourself in them. I don’t know how long to put them in for, though, so I haven’t tried it. Dogs or cats on top of your bedcovers are warm, too!
Some great tips!
Here in southern China they actually don’t use central heating at all. It is not terribly cold where we are, but 50s feel much colder inside and all the time. We’ve used many of the ways on your lists to keep warm.
We mostly layer our clothing, a lot! Many people here wear coats inside all winter long. We don”t usually go to that extreme but wear lots of clothes and slippers. We use a space heater to heat up a room in the evening if it gets extra cold, but we all sleep in one room so it stays warmer and we don’t have to heat it all night.
Stay warm!
That’s probably the best tip, just layer, layer, layer!
You should join our weekly happy challenge, I can only imagine the amazing sights and sounds in China! 
http://www.thefrugalette.com/2013/01/avocado-bread-recipe/
I would just add wearing a hat. Heat escapes through our head and our feet. Most people keep socks on, but throwing on a warm hat will instantly heat you up as well. I have a super soft knitted one I like to keep in the living room.
Good one Melissa! I also thought of wool, it’s really great for wicking away moisture too, so no cold sweat!
I like this hint Run your ceiling fan in reverse.
Good ideas, thought we were saving a bunch of money using space heaters, but then you get the electric bill and that bill is higher than our gas bill!
Good information. Too many people don’t take precautions against the cold.
These are perfect since my roommate doesnt like to turn on the heat to save money, ah so cold. Thank you!!
You found a lot of great ideas! I’m going to have to try some of these. We recently moved from a one story to a two story house and our heating bill is a lot higher! I did a lot of baking and cooking today, so it’s nice and toasty in here now
Yeah, baking and cooking is a total win-win, food and warmth!
I forgot about solar heating! I am always cold so this post comes in handy.. thanks!
I feel like I’m always cold too! Solar heating works really well too.