4 Unexpected Household Expenses To Watch Out for This Winter

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If you’re a first-time homebuyer, it’s easy to get caught up in the moment. After all, buying a home is a huge accomplishment and probably the biggest purchase you’ll ever make.

However, the cost of owning a home can catch some new homeowners off guard. 

While many factor in their mortgage payment to their monthly budget, some don’t consider the other unexpected expenses you could have.

Keep reading as we dive into four unexpected expenses you should watch out for this winter. Most of these can be easily avoided.

Read more about seven inexpensive home improvements to make before winter hits.

Higher Than Expected Heating Bills

Once the weather starts getting colder, you’ll need to begin heating your home.

If you’ve been renting, there’s a chance your landlord covered the utility costs. If you lived in an apartment, you might now have quite a bit more space. Both scenarios mean your first heating bill might come as a big shock. 

Even though you might not have planned for your winter heating bills, there are things you can do to reduce the expense. Here are a couple:

Install a Programmable Thermostat 

If your home doesn’t have a programmable thermostat, this is a great first step.

Programmable thermostats allow you to set the temperature of your home based on your needs. If you’re at work all day, it doesn’t need to be quite as warm, so you can set the temperature a little lower. You can also drop the temperature while you’re sleeping because you’ll have blankets to stay warm.  

According to Energy.gov, you can reduce your heating bill by 1% for every degree you lower your thermostat over an eight-hour period. That means if you normally have your thermostat set at 70 degrees and you lower it to 65 degrees at night, you could save 5% on the cost of heating your home.

Fix Any Gaps in Your Home

Are there any areas in your home where cold air can get in? Maybe it’s older windows and doors, or it’s a vent pipe that’s not caulked properly. Fixing these voids can help keep the cold air out and the warm air inside your home. 

Make sure you caulk around all your windows and that each has weather stripping installed. If your windows are older, you might also want to consider adding plastic window insulation as an extra barrier of protection.

Frozen Pipes

The past few winters have included some extremely cold temperatures for parts of the country. When temperatures get too far below freezing, the chances for frozen pipes increase significantly.

The last thing you want to do is wake up in the morning or, worse, return from a trip to find your home flooded. This can end up being a costly expense that could have been avoided.

If temperatures are expected to fall well below freezing, there are a few things you can do.

If your kitchen or bathroom sink is located on an outside wall of your home, make sure you keep the cabinet doors open. This will allow heat to enter, providing some protection for the pipes. You can also turn on the warm water slightly to provide a slow drip. This helps keep water moving, allowing it to avoid freezing.

Not Winterizing Your Sprinkler System

If your home has a sprinkler system, it’s important to winterize it before cold weather arrives.

To do this, you must ensure all the water is removed from the water lines. If water remains over the winter, it will freeze. When that happens, the pipes will expand, which can cause them to crack. This can be a costly repair once spring arrives.

Winterizing a sprinkler system is something you can do yourself if you have the right tools. Otherwise, there are likely companies in your area that will handle everything for you.

Chimney Cleaning

If your home has a wood-burning fireplace, you’ll need to make sure it’s properly maintained. This includes having someone come out to clean the inside.

Soot can start building up inside the chimney stack, which, over time, can become a fire hazard. Depending on how often you use the fireplace, this might need to be done every year, or you can get by having it done every two or three years.

While you might be able to do this job yourself, it’s extremely dirty. Depending on where you’re located, hiring someone who specializes in chimney cleaning will cost around $250.

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