Skip to main content

5 Home Projects to Complete Before Cold Weather Arrives

By U.S. News & World Report

With fall right around the corner, it’s time to complete a few home projects that are best handled before the weather turns cold and the days grow short — most notably, buttoning up your house and getting its heating system working comfortably and efficiently.

Don’t wait too long. When cold weather and short days arrive, you won’t want to discover cold air blowing in through your windows or out of your heating system.

Nothing instills a sense of urgency like cold drafts or a broken furnace, but that urgency can be expensive and uncomfortable. In fact, an unheated house can be downright deadly in the wrong situation. The longer you wait, the more likely contractors will be overbooked and will charge a premium for their services.

Here are five things you should handle now, before the weather turns cold.

[See: 12 Home Improvement Shortcuts That Are a Bad Idea.]

Get the heating system in order. A good place to start is your thermostat. To test it, set the thermostat to “heat,” and turn it up to about 5 degrees warmer than room temperature. If the heat doesn’t go on and stay on until the room reaches the set temperature, either the thermostat or the heating system has a problem.

Replace the thermostat’s batteries first, and then try again. If you suspect the thermostat may be defective, this is a good time to replace it with a new, programmable model that can reduce your energy costs. If you know the thermostat is functional, or replacing it doesn’t do the job, call a heating, ventilation and air conditioning professional to check and service the heating system.

Be sure to change the air filters, which are typically located in the furnace’s air handler or inside the return-air registers in the rooms of your home. If you’re having a professional work on the system, he or she should do this. Clean filters don’t just mean cleaner air — they help the system work more efficiently.

When checking on the delivery of warmed air through the registers, make sure dampers or registers were not closed for the summer and that heated air can flow freely into rooms.

If your home’s heating system is powered by fuel that is stored on the premises, like propane or fuel oil, be sure you have enough fuel for the next month or two.

Prepare the fireplace. If your home has a wood-burning fireplace that you intend to use regularly, stock up on firewood and make sure the wood is protected from rain.

Next inspect the fireplace. Shine a flashlight up into the chimney from inside the fireplace. Make sure the damper works, and then open it. Check to be sure birds or rodents haven’t nested in the chimney.

Inspect the chimney walls. If they are coated with creosote, a sap-like material that builds-up on surfaces, have the chimney cleaned by a professional chimney sweep. Creosote is highly flammable and can cause a chimney fire.

Also look for any missing bricks, crumbling mortar or broken chimney flue tiles that need to be fixed.

[See: 10 Ways to Save Energy and Reduce Utility Bills at Home.]

Protect water pipes. If you live where outdoor temperatures can drop below freezing, protect water pipes that run through unheated spaces, like an attic or crawlspace. To do this, you can buy inexpensive foam pipe insulation sleeves at a home improvement center. These are sliced along their lengths so you can easily fit them around pipes.

While you’re in the plumbing department of the home improvement center, also buy an inexpensive emergency pipe repair clamp to keep on hand just in case a water pipe bursts.

Stop drafts. Windows and doors should be weather stripped to prevent drafts and energy loss. To weather strip windows and doors, you need to keep them open for a while, so it’s best to do this work before the weather gets too chilly.

If some of your windows and doors are not protected by weather stripping, now is the time to seal them up. Buy inexpensive vinyl or foam weatherstrips and apply it according to the label directions.

Storm windows and doors can help with minimizing energy loss, too. If you have the kind of screen-and-storm doors that utilize interchangeable screen and glass panels, switch out screens for glass. Before you install the panels, check and tighten the clips that secure them. Also check and, if necessary, adjust the storm door closer so that it pulls the storm door tightly closed without banging it.

[See: 8 Easy Renovation Projects Every Homeowner Can Do Now.]

Flush the water heater. When the weather gets cold, so does the water that travels through outdoor pipes to supply your water heater. As a result, the water heater has to work longer to heat that very cold water, making water heater efficiency extremely important.

The best way to keep a water heater working efficiently is to flush it once or twice a year. Mineral deposits build up over time and coat the bottom of the tank, reducing the efficient transfer of heat from the burners at the base. Flushing out some of the water helps remove these deposits.

To flush a water heater, turn off the heat, either at the gas valve of a gas water heater or by shutting off an electric water heater’s electrical power. Then turn off the valve at the cold-water inlet pipe, usually right above the water heater.

Locate the faucet-like drain valve in the side of the water heater at its base, attach a garden hose to it and run the end of the hose outdoors, terminating at a point that’s lower than the water heater. Turn on a nearby hot water faucet to allow air into the plumbing system, and then open the water heater’s drain valve to flush sediment out through the hose. Drain about 3 or 4 gallons of hot water until it becomes visibly clear, and then close the valve.

Reverse this process to refill and reheat the water heater. In other words, disconnect the hose, turn off the nearby hot water faucet, turn on the water supply to the water heater and wait a few minutes for the water heater to refill. Then, for an electric water heater, turn the power back on, or for a gas water heater, turn on the gas and, unless it is a pilotless model, relight the pilot light.

Don Vandervort is the founder of HomeTips.com.

More from U.S. News

Current Design Trends That Will Date Your Home

The 20 Most Desirable Places to Live in the U.S.

10 Ways Millennials Are Changing Homebuying

5 Home Projects to Complete Before Cold Weather Arrives originally appeared on usnews.com

Don’t Settle for Student Loans to Pay for Online Education

By WTOP Staff
Online college programs are becoming a more popular choice for prospective students, with one study finding that more than 6 million students enrolled in at least one online course in fall 2015. The popularity of these courses can be attributed in part to their flexibility with working adults' schedules, students' ability to progress more quickly through online programs and, oftentimes, cheaper tuition. [See 10 low-cost online bachelor's programs for out-of-state students.]Online degrees can be beneficial to many college students, but some studies have shown online learners complete their programs at lower rates than students at traditional brick-and-mortar campuses. Individuals with student loans but no degree comprise two-thirds of defaulted borrowers. Though these numbers are not encouraging, just like for traditional programs, there are ways to reduce how much you'll need to borrow for an online program to ensure you won't become one of these statistics. Don't just settle on borrowing student loans to cover the whole cost of your program and living expenses. Instead, start thinking about how to cut costs and cover your balance in different ways, such as the following. -- Grants and scholarships: Even though you are taking an online course, you can still apply and receive grants and scholarships. But your first step should be to complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, commonly referred to as the FAFSA, which will allow you to receive a Pell Grant if your expected family contribution is low enough. The EFC criteria and award amounts are adjusted annually, but the 2017-2018 academic year awards range from $606 to $5,920, which could significantly lower the amount you borrow annually. Your next step is to apply for scholarships. You can start by checking online scholarship search engines, such as the Salt Scholarship Search, College Board's BigFuture and Peterson's. But don't forget to take advantage of local organizations and your school's financial aid office. Both may offer scholarships that you can't find with a national scholarship search. [Review these 10 sites to kick off your scholarship search.]For instance, organizations like the Elks Club, Knights of Columbus or the Rotary Club typically offer scholarships annually to local students. Just because you're going to school online doesn't mean you're ineligible. Visit your local library for scholarship listings, and ask around town. You might be surprised how many local organizations offer scholarships. While these scholarships typically aren't large, every little bit counts. Each dollar you receive in a scholarship is a dollar you don't have to borrow and pay interest on. -- Work-study: Another option for online students may be work-study awards. Not all students enrolled in online programs are eligible, but students at some schools -- including, for example, SUNY Empire State College and Liberty University -- are. Work-study awards are not given upfront like scholarships and grants. In most cases, they are an offer to earn up to the awarded amount if you secure an eligible work-study job. While there is a misconception that all work-study jobs must be on campus, students can work for off-campus, nonprofit or public employers as long as the work is in the public's interest. You may be able to work for a for-profit employer if the job is relevant to your course of study. No matter who the outside employer is, it will need to have an established agreement with your college for you to receive work-study funds. Remember, to be eligible for federal financial aid, you must be enrolled and pursuing a degree or certificate. If you're not working toward a credential, Pell Grants and work-study won't be option, but you may still be able to take advantage of private scholarships -- just be sure to read the eligibility criteria carefully. [Explore what to know about financial aid in online programs.]-- Pay as you go: One of the great benefits to enrolling online is the flexible schedule, which can allow you to complete your college coursework around your responsibilities. But prospective students often overlook using their part- or full-time job earnings as an option for paying for college. Almost 80 percent of college students in 2015 worked at least part time while attending classes, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. By budgeting and thinking strategically about your college costs, you can likely reduce your dependence on student loans by paying a portion out of pocket. Many -- but not all -- online programs are less expensive than traditional programs and often have shorter payment periods. Six, eight or 10 weeks are common course durations. Because of the frequency of payments in an online setting, you may be well-placed to pay as you go and possibly avoid borrowing altogether. Attending college online and avoiding student loans may be challenging, but if you are willing to put in the effort, you can limit the amount you need to borrow. More from U.S. News Q&A: Understanding Student Loan Discharge Eligibility Student Loan Refinancing Isn't Right for All Borrowers
Read Next Story

Related News

Frustration grows in Venezuela as earthquake death toll reaches 1,430

Israel and Lebanon sign framework agreement with US in ‘first step’ toward peace, Rubio says

Trump-endorsed populist poised to become Colombia’s next president as rival challenges vote