Getting your furnace in good working condition before the cold weather hits was discussed in this space last month. With the stormy weather picking up this month, it’s a good time to delve a little deeper into making sure your home is properly prepared for the upcoming winter months.

The most significant drafts tend to happen around windows and doors in the main living areas. To check for leaks, light a candle or incense and hold it near the window. If the flame or smoke flickers, apply a small bead of caulking to the leak or even weather strip your windows for more protection. Make sure to check the window trim, too, both indoors and out. And, if your toes feel a chill when you’re near an outside door, installing a simple sweep to the bottom of the door or using a “draft snake” can keep the cold out.

To keep your home warm during all the right times – and cool when no one is home – have a programmable thermostat installed. Program the thermostat to warm the house in the hour before people wake up and come home from school or work. During the day when the house is empty, or at night when everyone is comfortably in bed, the thermostat will drop the temps. No more having to remember to adjust the heat or hurrying down the cold hallway in the morning to warm things up.

In the summer, keeping the shades, blinds or curtains closed during the day helps keep the house cooler. In the colder months, do just the opposite during the those sunny days. Let that big ball of gas in the sky help keep your house warm during the day, but make sure to close the blinds to help keep that heat in during the night.

A more involved step you can take is to check the insulation in your attic. Heat rises, of course, and an efficient layer of insulation can do a great job of keeping the heat in the living areas instead of dissipating through the attic. Don’t forget to seal the area around the attic access as well.

Finally, find smaller gaps where plumbing or wiring are run through the attic and plug those gaps with an expanding foam found at most home improvement stores. Do the same in the basement if you have one – keeping the cold air out is just as important as keeping the warm air in.

As for your furnace, contact MetFab Heating, Inc., for any heating maintenance needs you may have. MetFab Heating has been providing experienced services for 34 years in the Vancouver and Clark County area.