The Gluten-Free Homemaker

My husband is a real handyman. Even he will admit that he’s terribly slow, but he does a good job and saves us lots of money. Since last spring he has been working on replacing our windows as well as adding insulation and siding to the house. The windows are done and only of portion of the back of the house still needs siding.

I won’t bore you with the details, but the difference these changes made in heating and cooling our house was obvious. Of course, we did numerous things at once which contributed to better energy efficiency, but I thought I would single out the windows today.

We had old single-pane windows previously. I can’t tell you how thrilled I am to now have windows that I can actually open and that tilt out for easy cleaning. However, the best benefits (though less exciting) are the energy efficiency benefits. Several things combine to make new energy star windows better than old ones. Things like double panes with a special gas in between and the low-e invisible films.

If you have inefficient windows and plan on staying in your home for a while, you might want to consider replacing your windows. Sometimes a large initial cost must be paid to reap long term benefits. If you have a handyman around like I do, the cost will be lower. I would like to note that if you have a do-it-yourself wannabe husband, windows might not be the best place to start. If the windows are installed improperly, you could end up losing the benefits you thought you were gaining.

If you can’t afford new windows, there are still things you can do to help make them more efficient. Replace broken glass, use storm windows, install weather stripping and draft-blocking devices, and repair any cracked or broken wood. More ideas can probably be found online.

For more money-saving ideas check out Frugal Fridays.

You might also want to visit my gluten-free giveaway which ends Friday night!

Labels: frugal tips

# posted by Linda @ 1/29/2009