Top 15 Home Winterizing Tips to Save You Money

In this video I will show you top 15 home winterization tips. perfect home prep checklist for first time homeowners.

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[loganfrank]

Hey boss, licensed plumber here. On your water heater, the valve you’re opening is the “temperature and pressure relief valve, ” usually just called the T&P. Opening it actually does nothing to help the sediment buildup in the bottom of the heater. What will help is attaching a water hose to the port at the lower part of the heater and opening it while the water valve coming to the heater is still on. This ensures the pressure of the water coming into the tank pushes the water out of the bottom of the heater first, thus pushing the sediment out as well. Do this until you see the water running completely clear, usually 15 minutes depending on water quality and age, close the valve and you’re done! If you do this once a year, I’m telling you it is the NUMBER ONE thing you can do to maintain your heater and make sure you get every penny you can out of it.

Hope this helps, keep up the great videos!

[techdaddy]

Hvac tech here. You put the filter in backwards. Arrow goes toward your furnace. You have a down-flow system. That's why the filer was puffed out when you removed the old one

[Thewizkdojdj]

this man is literally writing off all of his home renovations lmao love it

[Biffwellington]

As an allergy sufferer I went with that filter and even higher MERV ratings to filter out allergens. A cousin, who owns a HVAC company, advised to just use the cheap filters that the manufacturers initially installed. The reason is the higher MERV rating adds a load onto the system sort of like a clogged filter. Over years this can severely affect the longevity of your system. This info was also verified on multiple HVAC YT channels.

[dpav]

quick tip about the foam which I found out recently... if you wait about 5-10 minutes for the skin to harden, you can actually push it flat with your fingers or another tool without it sticking to you and make it flat with the surface... saves you having to cut it later!

[PowerPuffGurl]

I'm such a Mom. The whole time I'm watching this video I'm thinking, he takes such good care of his family.

[davidbleil]

It's nice that your giving out some good advice to people with your platform. The problem with most DIY youtubes is they give wrong information. There is a reason they have professionals. I recommend doing research and either watching a professional or calling one before doing the tips recommended in this video. Furnace filter was put in backwards, he has a down flow furnace air should point towards the furnace. Blow down of the water heater was incorrect. Also the insulating of the door and windows should be done at install. I prefer lower amount of spray foam and a backer rod and window and door caulk at the end that will expand and contract with the opening. Good info on hear just missed the mark on being completely correct

[Just...saying...]

Thanks for the great tips! It's my understanding that carbon monoxide is denser than air. Therefore, it's best to use the CO detectors that plug in to an outlet versus those that you mount high on the wall or on the ceiling.

[Peachcobler]

I agree with both of your most of your winterization's. Personally I put a cover on my air conditioner but I take the fuse out of the box that way somebody cannot turn it on (you just have to remember when it's time to turn it back on to put the fuse back in). I wish you could come and clean my gutters. I'm to old to climb ladders and I haven't found anybody willing to clean up this year. PS don't forget to move your car monoxide to the base of your wall about a foot up from the floor. It does you no good next to the ceiling. You would be dead before the alarm goes off.

[genericwatcher]

When I replaced the paneling with drywall in my den, I was SHOCKED, not insulation around the doors, this one change made my den warmer before I even installed the drywall. Why do builders not insulate this space? CRAZY!!!!

[dodgersfnshepard]

Really appreciate the in depth coverage and no just the same 4 things EVERY other video covers

[SpideySensei]

If you live in an apartment or a condo with a giant sliding glass door it's a huge heat suck during the winter months. You can buy clear bubble wrap and a spray bottle and easily help keep some of the heat inside. Cut the bubble wrap into long strips and wet down the window glass [after giving it a good cleaning] and place the bubble wrap [bubbles side out] on the glass. As it dries it acts as an adhesive and definitely keeps alot of cold air from seeping in.

[BigPapiEsq]

Great video! I’m a first time home owner so I watch as many of these as I can. Keep up the great work!

[MikeJones-bfxi]

Dude as a new home buyer, thank you for this video!

[urchin]

1> the valve on the water heater you pulled is a safety valve, it does not drain sediment, use the bottom spigot
2> the loc-tie foam you used cost more than than the tiny heat you were losing there, do this when painting or remodeling
3>leaf blowers work great cleaning gutters
4> there is a power disconnect behind the AC unit, turn it off there or at the breaker, cover the whole thing
5>the double sided tape in the window insulation kits will pull the paint off when you remove it especially on drywall

[kimnkruzin]

Isn't Carbon monozide a "heavy" gas. Fills from bottom up. Those plug into the lower outlets.

[djpat]

I have that same water heater just put in my house. I was approved for a program by the city to weatherize my house for free. They gave me a new ac unit with the heat pump, a new thermostat, insulation in the walls and attic, caulked around my windows and doors, put weather stripping around the front, back, and drop doors. Yesterday they finished up putting solar screens on my side and back windows. They put an exhaust in my bathroom, smoke detectors, carbon monoxide detectors, and leds in my house to. I got it all for free and I'm blessed and happy for it because I really needed it.

[charliem.]

Thank you so much for this video. I need to do this stuff to my home. As a Woman, I'm almost always cold lol. I do have a sun room that has a massive picture window where apparently ALL of the gas has gone out of the window and now that it's winter time, it gets extremely cold in the house because the cold is coming through the window. My home warranty won't cover replacing that window, so I have to figure something else out. I'm most likely going to use the window plastic thing. I have to do something as I'm losing heat all the time because there are so many things that need to be replaced. My bedroom is freezing half the time because in the master bathroom, the shower in there, you can see right through the drain to the ground so the cold air comes up from there. The summer time is so much different to where we are roasting.

Hopefully I'll be able to get something fixed eventually. Your Wife is very blessed to have you as a Husband and one that knows how to fix things up and cares to do it. :)

As a single Woman, I have to figure out how to fix everything on my own. And being on a fixed and low income doesn't help when everything is extremely expensive. :(

[motavice]

I was literally about to caulk my trim and door floor kick plate. Now I'm going to take it off and seal it first thanks!

[Alexandra-Rex]

If you're installing new systems, get a heat pump/mini split system instead of just an AC. It does the same thing as an AC, but also the opposite as it can reverse the flow. These cools in the summer and heats in the winter. They work well quite low below freezing (0°C/32°F) Toshiba has heat pumps/mini split systems that work down to -30°C/-22°F. It doesn't create heat or cold, it just moves it around, so it's much more efficient than other heater systems. If there are a few days a year it's not efficient, it's still working well for you most of the year, and for those super cold days you can use movable space heaters or panel ovens below your windows.