My friend, who grew up in California her entire life, just moved here to Chicago. And just last week, she bought her first pair of ear muffs. For Dana, a typical winter in Los Angeles had consisted of a lot of sunshine and 70 degree temperatures. Let’s just say she’s having a hard time adjusting to the slushy snow and 15-plus mph gusts in the Windy City. In addition to cladding herself with an arsenal of recently acquired puffy coats, thick cotton mittens and waterproof snow boats, Dana has had to learn how to winterize her new home from what is expected to be another single digit January. For first time winter homeowners, here’s a few helpful tips on MSN.com’s real estate section on how to prepare your home for the cold season. 

Block those leaks
Experts say one of the best ways to winterize your home is to block obvious leaks around your house, both inside and out. First, find the leaks: On a breezy day, walk around inside holding a lit incense stick to the most common drafty areas: recessed lighting, window and door frames, and electrical outlets. Then, buy door sweeps to close spaces under exterior doors, and caulk or apply tacky rope caulk to those drafty spots. Outlet gaskets can easily be installed in electrical outlets that share a home’s outer walls, where cold air often enters. Outside, seal leaks with weather-resistant caulk. For brick areas, use masonry sealer, which will better stand up to freezing and thawing. Sealing small cracks will also discourage any insects from entering the home.

Insulate yourself
Regardless of the climate conditions you live in, in the United States you need a minimum of 12 inches of insulation in your attic. You can check to see if you need insulation if you go into the attic and you can see the ceiling joists you know you don’t have enough, because a ceiling joist is at most 10 or 11 inches. A related tip: If you’re layering insulation atop other insulation, don’t use the kind that has kraft face finish (a paper backing). It acts as a vapor barrier and therefore, can cause moisture problems in the insulation.

Face your windows

It’s time to take down the window screens and put up storm windows, which provide an extra layer of protection and warmth for the home. Storm windows are particularly helpful if you have old, single-pane glass windows. But if you don’t have storm windows and your windows are leaky or drafty, they need to be updated. Windows are pricey. Budget to replace them a few at a time, and in the meantime, buy a window insulator kit. The kit is plastic sheeting that’s affixed to a window’s interior with double-stick tape. A hair dryer is then used to shrink-wrap the sheeting onto the window.

Reverse that fan
Reversing your ceiling fan is often a small tip that people don’t often think of. By reversing its direction from the summer operation, the fan will push warm air downward and force it to recirculate, keeping you more comfortable. You will know the fan is ready for winter when the blades turn clockwise.

Wrap those pipes

A burst pipe caused by a winter freeze is a nightmare. Before freezing nights hit, make certain that the water to your hose bibs is shut off inside your house (via a turnoff valve), and that the lines are drained. In climes such as Portland, Ore., or Seattle, where freezing nights aren’t common, you can install Styrofoam cups with a screw attachment to help insulate spigots. Next, go looking for other pipes that aren’t insulated or that pass through unheated spaces pipes that run through crawlspaces, basements or garages. Wrap them with premolded foam rubber sleeves or fiberglass insulation, available at hardware stores. If you’re really worried about a pipe freezing, you can first wrap it with heating tape, which is basically an electrical cord that emits heat.

What other tips do you have to winterize your home?