It’s that time of year again. With Thanksgiving behind us, December underway, the holiday season has arrived. We at Huber Heights Heating and Cooling appreciate all the hard work you do to make your holiday gatherings special. It can be a full-time job making everything just right.
And, because it’s bone-chilling cold outside, you pay a lot of money to guarantee your place is cozy and welcoming for your visitors. Strangely enough, cooking during this time of year, along with a home full of guests, can make your place too warm without some important considerations. To make sure your holiday gathering has the perfect temperature for all your guests, we have composed a list to make things go smoothly.
- Call us for a routine maintenance check-up before your big event. Sure, your furnace might be working fine right now, heating your home without a hitch. However, it is constantly a great idea to prepare for potential breakdowns and avert them. A visit from one of our friendly HVAC technicians will likely eliminate any future disruptions. Being proactive rather than reactive will save you money every time.
- Check the area around your heating devices and vents to make sure they stay clear of anything that could cause a fire. When your guests start arriving, these areas tend to get blocked without you even realizing it.
- Count on your programmable thermostat to automatically correct itself to a more suitable setting for when you are cooking. If you don’t have one, consider having us install one. With the added heat from all your holiday cooking, along with a home filled with guests, your home can get relatively hot. A lot of us recollect a Christmas or New Year’s party when it was just too warm, or flat out hot. The more friends and family in the home and the more cooking, the more the temperature gets hot.
- Lay out blankets, or holiday quilts, on your couches and love seats. Make sure they are readily available for those few visitors known to get a little chilly when it’s comfortable for everyone else. This will keep them from the urge to mess with your thermostat when you aren’t looking. Think about it. No homeowner wants their guests, or anyone for that matter, touching their thermostat.
- Prep appetizers and meals in advance, as much as the festivities merit. This will limit the extra heat your oven and stove generates from making food.
- If your home is equipped with a safe and functional fireplace, fire that baby up! Fireplaces enhance the holiday feel. They are a great source of heat. And they make it possible to turn down your thermostat or even turn it off if the circumstances are right. This is another great way to save some money off your heating bill while making your holiday get-together cozy and festive.
- Latch down all the windows in your home ahead of time. Keeping them locked creates a better seal on them, which will help in preventing the cold air from getting in and the warm air from escaping. In addition to this, keeping them latched will deter your visitors from cracking one open when you’re not looking. Just like with the thermostat, no one wants their guests messing with their windows.
- Ever hear of a “whole-home humidifier?” If not, now is a great time to consider buying one and using it during your party. Humidifiers, in general, allow your home’s heating system to sustain a more comfortable temperature. They keep everyone in your home just a little more comfortable while keeping your thermostat at a moderate level. A whole-home humidifier also eradicates the arid feeling of a dry home, decreasing everyone’s chances of getting shocked by static electricity. All this combined goes a long way in keeping EVERYONE feeling better.
- Set your ceiling fans to their “reverse” setting and utilize them during your party. Most modern ceiling fans have a “reverse” switch that, when used accordingly, propels your naturally rising warm air back downwards. This helps you get the most out of the heat in your home. It also assists in moving the air around inside, supporting a balanced temperature.
- Break out some space heaters if your event is going to take place primarily in a cooler part of your home. Doing this should balance the temperature out, so you don’t have to raise the thermostat for the whole place. To spice up the holiday ambiance, if desired, find a space heater that imitates a fireplace.
- Last but not least, have a good look at your furnace filter before your big event. If it’s dirty, get it replaced. These should be checked throughout the year, but it’s always a good idea to check yours before your party.
For more money-saving tips, or to schedule a check-up from one of our friendly HVAC technicians (to avoid losing heat when you have a house full of people), call Huber Heights Heating & Cooling today at 937-226-9675, or schedule an appointment now at www.huberheightsheatingandcooling.com/schedule-now/.
