how to stay warm at home without turning up the heat.

A cold house is rarely the whole problem. Most of us sit still for hours in a sweater and thin cotton pants, on a hard floor, next to a window, with damp hair, and then blame the furnace. Fix those first. Here's the list, in the order to do it.

what to wear

1. Warm pants. Count the warm things you own: sweaters, hoodies, a coat. Now count the warm pants. Most people are at zero, and then wonder why 68 feels like 60. Your legs are about a third of your skin. Put them in something with pile, not flat cotton. bearpants exist for this.
2. Wool socks. Feet first. Cold feet make everything feel colder, and a cotton sock holds sweat against your skin. Merino or a wool blend, and change them if they're damp.
3. A hat, indoors. You lose heat from any skin that's uncovered, and once you're dressed the head is usually the only skin left. Nobody is watching.
4. Layers that trap air. Insulation is trapped air. Two light layers hold more of it than one heavy one, and you can take one off when you get moving.
5. Dry everything. Wet hair after a shower, damp socks, a sweaty shirt after the dishes. Water pulls heat off you far faster than air does. Dry off before you sit down.

what to do

6. Move for two minutes every hour. A flight of stairs, the dishes, one lap of the house. Muscles make heat, and three hours of sitting still is colder than any room.
7. Hold something hot. Tea, soup, a hot water bottle. Warm hands change how warm the rest of you feels.
8. Turn the heat down at night and sleep under weight. The US Department of Energy says you can save as much as 10% on heating by setting the thermostat back 7 to 10 degrees for eight hours a day. A heavy blanket does the rest.

what to change in the room

9. Shut the doors. Heat the room you're in. Close the doors to the rooms you're not.
10. Work the curtains. Open them when the sun is on the glass, close them when it goes down. Glass is the coldest wall in the house.
11. Find the drafts. On a windy day, run a hand along the bottom of the doors and the edges of the windows. A rolled towel fixes the door. Foam weatherstrip tape fixes the window and costs almost nothing.
12. Rugs on hard floors. A bare floor pulls heat out through your feet all day. One under the couch, one by the bed.
13. Reverse the ceiling fan. Clockwise, lowest speed. It pushes the warm air sitting at the ceiling back down to where you are.

the order to do it in

Pants and socks today. Curtains and doors tonight. Drafts and rugs this weekend. The thermostat last, and lower than you think.

questions people ask

What is the cheapest way to stay warm at home?

Wear more below the waist. Most people are already in a sweater; almost nobody is in warm pants. After that: wool socks, shut doors, and block the drafts under them.

What should I wear at home to stay warm?

High-pile fleece pants, wool socks, a sweater or fleece top, and a hat if you are still cold. Layers that trap air, everything dry.

Are fleece pants warmer than sweatpants?

Yes, by construction. Sweatpants are flat-knit cotton, brushed on one side at most. High-pile fleece is a deep pile that traps air across its whole surface, and trapped air is what keeps you warm.

Does turning the thermostat down at night save money?

Yes. The US Department of Energy says you can save as much as 10% on heating by setting it back 7 to 10 degrees for eight hours a day. Do it at night under a heavy blanket, or during the day while you are out.

Why does my house feel cold at 68 degrees?

Because you are sitting still, in thin pants, probably near a window. Air at 68 is fine. Cold glass beside you, a bare floor under you and cotton on your legs are not.