Fuel Assistance | Home Energy Assistance

A smart way to lower your heating bills is to weatherize, or weather proof, you home to maximize the effectiveness of your furnace. The process of weatherizing your home works by employing methods to reduce help loss that occurs through circulation, ensuring that you can distribute the warmth throughout your home without worrying about energy loss.

While every home is unique in terms of its design, there are some common methods that you can utilize to reduce heat loss as much as possible. Common techniques relate to ensuring that openings in your home - doors and windows - are properly sealed using weather stripping, multiple layers, film covers and caulk sealant. You may also want to consider upgrading older doors and windows to newer, energy efficient models which can pay for themselves by lowering your energy costs. On the exterior of your home, proper roofing and siding can also keep in the heat, just as efficient insulation throughout your home can prevent heat loss.

These methods can prevent heat loss if installed properly. There are also several methods that can work to avoid unnecessary heat capture that can reduce the effectiveness of your heat production. In particular, you’ll want to ensure that you don’t have sitting ground or surface water, which can act as a heat sink, by clearing out your gutters, ensuring your home’s plumbing is operating properly and installing a drain system and sump pump, among other techniques. Additionally, you’ll want to ensure your ventilation system protects against unwanted condensation throughout your home.

Weatherization Assistance Program

The Federal government operates a Weatherization Assistance Program to help lower income households to reduce energy costs, and can provide funds to help you weatherize your home, if you qualify. Operated by the Department of Energy, the program has weatherized millions of homes, which provide hundreds of dollars in utility savings for families.