Having replacement windows in San Jose, CA should be one of the things you consider doing when you winterize your home this year. Even in milder climates, there are several things you should do in your home to get ready for the colder months that winter brings.
One of the things that you should do to winterize your home for the winter is to protect your pipes. If you have ever experienced a pipe freezing and bursting inside your home, you can attest to the kind and cost of the damages that ensue.
While some newer homes have PVC pipes installed throughout the home, many homes still have metal pipes that are prone to freezing when temperatures get cold enough. You will find these in basements, bathrooms, and kitchens primarily.
There are several ways you can protect your pipes from freezing and bursting. One of the most common sources of pipes bursting is outdoor pipes that have water hoses attached to them that have not been drained and removed. So, start with outside your home, and make sure hoses are removed from all the faucets.
To protect the pipes inside your home, you should insulate them. To help keep metal pipes in your kitchen and bathrooms from freezing, you should open the cabinet doors when the temperature outside is below freezing. The heat from inside your home will keep the pipes at a temperature above freezing so they will not burst.
Another way to winterize your home is to get rid of cracks and air leaks. If your existing windows have cracks in the frame or they do not fit properly in the frame, you will notice that the rooms seem cold and drafty during the winter, regardless of the temperature you have the thermostat set at.
You probably remember your parents telling you to close the door when you were a kid and asking you if you were heating the entire outdoors when you did not. Well, when your windows have air leaks or are cracked, that is exactly what you are doing. Most of the heating and cooling problems – and higher costs – come from windows that are leaking air or are not sealed properly.
Having replacement windows installed will not only fix the problem of sealing and air leaks, but replacement windows are inherently more energy efficient, and there are a number of options that you can choose with replacement windows to optimize their energy efficiency.
Having energy-efficient replacement windows in your home will make a big difference in the comfort of your home and the amount you pay in energy costs in the winter and during the rest of the year.
Another way you can winterize your home is to make sure your exterior doors are properly insulated and that you do not have any air leaks around them. The windows company you choose to install your replacement windows can check the insulation around your doors and make sure that they have a good seal when they are closed so that the cold air of winter (and the hot air of summer) stays outside where it belongs.
A final way you can winterize your home is to change all your ceiling fans to rotate clockwise (ceiling fans should rotate counterclockwise in summer) at the lowest speed. This will create an updraft that will push warm air from the ceiling down to the floor, which will keep the rooms in your home warmer.
To learn more about replacement windows in San Jose, CA, you can speak with our knowledgeable staff at California Custom Creations.
