Intro:
Before you begin
Step 1:
Find leaks
Step 2:
Fine-tune your furnace and air-conditioning system
Step 3:
Take care of the simple stuff
Step 4:
Insulate the attic
Step 5:
Consider professional weatherization

Weather-stripping: Strips of material used to cover the joint, sill, casing, and threshold of a window or door to keep moisture or cold air outside

During winter, keep drapes closed at night and on cloudy days. Open them when the sun is shining to take advantage of natural solar heat. During hot summer days, keep drapes or blinds closed as much as possible.

2torial #0562: Learn2 Weatherize Your Home Take care of the simple stuff Before going to great effort and expense, spend an afternoon on do-it yourself tasks. You don't have to be particularly handy to make a big dent in your heat-loss problem. Replace the filter in your furnace. This is the single simplest, most effective thing you can do to prevent heat loss. Most furnace filters are designed for easy removal and replacement. Look for a slot several inches wide and several feet high. The old filter should come out easily, and the new one should slide right in. Caulk loose windowpanes, as well as any other cracks where outside air is entering your house, for example around wall fans and plumbing outlets (See Step 1 to find out where to look). Attach weather-stripping to the edges of windows and outside doors where outside air enters your house. Shut off rooms that aren't in use, and close heating and cooling vents. (Caution: Do not close off too many vents. You could overwork the furnace by forcing air through too few vents.) Hang heavy drapes over windows that are particularly subject to heat loss. It's an ancient practice, but it works surprisingly well. Consider plastic heat barriers for windows. They look like the clear plastic that you might wrap a sandwich in, yet they have high insulation value because they create a pocket of dead air between themselves and the window. You simply tack or glue them up, then use a hair dryer to both remove wrinkles and shrink the plastic so that it forms a seal over the window frame. Martha Stewart might not approve of the aesthetics, but it's a cheap alternative to storm windows. Seal leaks in heating ducts with a special latex-based sealing compound available at most hardware stores. You just have to goop it on. (See Step 1 to find the ducts themselves) Step 4