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• Open curtains on your south-facing windows during the day to allow sunlight to naturally heat your home, and close them at night to reduce the chill you may feel from cold windows.

Cover Drafty Windows

• Install tight-fitting, insulating drapes or shades on windows that feel drafty after weatherizing.

Adjust the Temperature

• When you are home and awake, set your thermostat as low as is comfortable.
• When you are asleep or out of the house, turn your thermostat back 10° to 15° for eight hours and save around 10% a year on your heating and cooling bills. A smart or programmable thermostat can make it easy to set back your temperature. 
• If you have a heat pump, maintain a moderate setting or use a programmable thermostat specially designed for use with heat pumps.

Find and Seal Leaks

• Seal the air leaks around utility cut-throughs for pipes ("plumbing penetrations"), gaps around chimneys and recessed lights in insulated ceilings, and unfinished spaces behind cupboards and closets.
  • Find out how to detect air leaks.
  • Learn more about air sealing new and existing homes.

Maintain Your Heating Systems

• Schedule service for your heating system.
• Furnaces and heat pumps: Replace your filter once a month or as needed. Find out more about maintaining furnaces or boilers and heat pumps.
• Wood- and Pellet-Burning Heaters: Clean the flue vent regularly and clean the inside of the appliance with a wire brush periodically to ensure that your home is heated efficiently. Find other maintenance recommendations for wood- and pellet-burning appliances.

Reduce Heat Loss from the Fireplace

• Keep your fireplace damper closed unless a fire is burning. Keeping the damper open is like keeping a window wide open during the winter; it allows warm air to go right up the chimney.
• When you use the fireplace, reduce heat loss by opening dampers in the bottom of the firebox (if provided) or open the nearest window slightly--approximately 1 inch--and close doors leading into the room. Lower the thermostat setting to between 50° and 55°F.
• If you never use your fireplace, plug and seal the chimney flue.
• If you do use the fireplace, install tempered glass doors and a heat-air exchange system that blows warmed air back into the room.
• Check the seal on the fireplace flue damper and make it as snug as possible.
• Purchase grates made of C-shaped metal tubes to draw cool room air into the fireplace and circulate warm air back into the room.
• Add caulking around the fireplace hearth. Find out more techniques to improve your fireplace or wood-burning appliance's efficiency. Learn tips for safe and efficient fireplace installation and wood burning.

Lower Your Water Heating Costs

• Turn down the temperature of your water heater to the warm setting (120°F). You'll not only save energy, you'll avoid scalding your hands.

Lower Your Holiday Lighting Costs

• Use light-emitting diode -- or "LED" -- holiday light strings to reduce the cost of decorating your home for the winter holidays. Learn about the advantages and potential cost savings of LED holiday light strings.
   

Cocoa Fudge Cookies



You can mix these incredibly easy, fudgy cookies right in the saucepan. When freshly baked, these cookies have crisp edges & chewy centers. Recipes by Cooking Light

Ingredients:

• 1 cup all purpose flour
• ¼ teaspoon baking soda
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 5 Tablespoons butter
• 7 Tablespoons unsweetened cocoa or Dutch Cocoa
• 2/3 cup granulated sugar
• 1/3 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/3 cup plain low-fat yogurt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extra
• Cooking spray

1. Oven to 350°
2. Lightly spoon flour into a dry measuring cup, level with a knife and combine with baking soda & salt in a bowl, set aside.
3. Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Once melted, remove from heat, stir in cocoa powder & sugars (mixture will resemble coarse sand). Add yogurt & vanilla, stirring to combine. Add flour mixture, stirring until moist.
4. Drop by level tablespoon on baking sheets coated with cooking spray, 2 inches apart.
5. Bake at 350° for 8-10 minutes or until almost set. Cool on pans 2-3 minutes or until firm. Remove cookies from pans, cool on wire rack. Yield 2 dozen.