Homeowners across the country ponder this question each year when temperatures start dropping. Answering the question, however, is not as simple as citing one specific temperature, especially as financial and energy usage concerns differ from one family and house to the next.

We do have general recommendations for winter thermostat settings:

• If someone is at home in the daytime, 22° C (72° F) is a good start, but aim for 20° C (68° F).
• If everyone is away from home in the daytime, or you're asleep at night, we feel 19° C (66° F) to 17° C (62° F) is best.

But instead of focusing on a perfect number, you will benefit from establishing an energy-efficient winter heating strategy that will keep your home warm and your thermostat settings reasonable so you won't face large energy bills. Here are a few tips!

Ease into Winter

Every home has its temperature preference, but setting the thermostat to that temperature and never changing it isn't helpful to your energy bills.

• Set your thermostats at that desired high temperature.
• Once you and your family acclimate to the colder weather, lower the temperature in the home by one degree each week.
• This one degree reduction - maintained for even eight hours - can reduce the home's energy bill by 1 percent, according to Energy.gov.
• Lowering the temperature further and preserving these lower temperatures for longer periods of time increases those savings, and you'll probably never notice the difference of such a slow, gradual change.

Invest In and Optimize a Programmable Thermostat

There is no perfect winter interior temperature for every home, and the savviest homeowners realize there is no perfect temperature for every moment in their homes. Times when your home is left empty – such as work hours or traveling periods – present ideal opportunities to lower the temperature and reduce expenses. However, many homeowners miss this opportunity because they find constantly programming their thermostats too time-consuming. Others simply forget.

Programmable thermostats simplify the chore of creating optimal temperature settings. During the installation process, you can program your thermostats to deliver specific temperatures at set times of the day. These preferences can be programmed for weeks or months at a time. The specified temperatures can then be changed and adjusted by using the accompanying smartphone app. This allows homeowners to reset their home's temperature from anywhere.

Optimal use of a smart thermostat enables homeowners to save as much as 15 percent on their heating bills, making this technology worth the initial time and monetary investment.

Seek Other Temperature-Control Resources

Since you still want to reduce your winter energy expenses without feeling the cold, it pays to be creative.

• Close doors and vents to unused rooms make it easier for the home's furnace to deliver the desired temperature to occupied living spaces.
• Have the furnace inspected.
• Seal cracks around the windows or door jambs.
• Bundle up. Dressing warmly, even inside the home, will make your family less reliant on the furnace, allowing you to turn down the thermostat another degree.

Start Saving Energy Today

Determining the perfect winter indoor temperature for your home is really a matter of supply and demand. You must measure your family's desired comfort against the price you're willing to pay for your winter heating bills.

Employing the strategies above can help you find that comfortable winter thermostat setting, one that doesn't depend completely on your furnace and its associated expenses.

Note: These tips are suggested as general practices. However, actual results may vary.

Do your plumbing fixtures seem like they need cleaning all too often? If the source of all that extra work is a white or green chalky coating on your faucets and showerheads, you may have a problem with limescale -- mineral-rich deposits that look unsightly and wreak havoc on your pipes and fixtures from the inside out.

Causes of Limescale

The limescale you see in and on your household plumbing fixtures is a natural byproduct of clean water with an above-average concentration of minerals like calcium, magnesium, and iron. This is commonly known as hard water.

Hard water is safe to drink and wash with, but there are a number of reasons you might not want to. The mineral deposits tend to give the water an unpleasant taste, and hard water makes it more difficult to lather and rinse away soap. That means your skin may get dry and itchy from bathing in it, your clothes may be dingy and scratchy after going through the laundry and your dishes may have water spots.

And that’s not to mention the hard-to-clean buildup on your faucets, showerheads and around pipe joints. Left unchecked, this buildup can cause stubborn clogs. 

Dissolving Your Problem

The mineral content in this buildup makes it resilient, and you’ll have a hard time scrubbing it away with just a wet rag. The preferred way to clean limescale is to weaken and dissolve it using a mild acidic solution.

Common household vinegar is extremely effective for this task. If you can remove your affected showerheads, faucets and other fixtures, submerge them in a bucket of vinegar for at least an hour. When you pull them out, any remaining limescale should flake right off after a vigorous scrubbing with an old toothbrush. This is the ideal method because it allows you to dissolve limescale inside and out.

When removal of your fixtures is difficult or impossible, you may need to get creative to let the vinegar do its work. Try pouring some vinegar in a plastic bag and wrapping it around your faucets or showerheads, securing it at the top with rubber bands or a zip-tie. For exposed pipes with limescale around its joints, wrap a vinegar-soaked rag around the affected area and secure it with string.

If vinegar isn’t getting the job done, you can always step up to a chemical cleaning solution -- just be sure to look for one formulated specifically for calcium, lime, and rust. Keep in mind that these solutions aren’t as gentle as household vinegar, so you’ll want to avoid exposure to your skin and use caution when using it to clean fixtures that have metallic or delicate finishes.

An Ounce of Prevention

If limescale is a consistent problem in your home, it’s time to consider a water softening system. These systems mix sodium-based solutions into your incoming water supply to counteract the damaging effects of mineral buildup. That’s not just good news for your pipes and appliances, it also means healthier skin and cleaner clothes and dishes.

For professional hard water testing or to discuss the different types of water softening systems, reach out to 4 Good Service.

If there’s one thing you should be able to count on, it’s that the toilet should flush properly when you need it to. But life isn’t fair, toilets clog, and to make matters worse -- they can overflow.

Preventing raw sewage from spilling over onto your bathroom floor can be failsafe, but only if you know what to do and have the proper tools at arm’s reach. If your toilet is prone to clogs -- or if you just want to be prepared for the worst -- this emergency protocol is critical.

Stop It at the Source

No matter the cause, if a toilet is overflowing, the most urgent action is to stop the flow of water into the bowl. In many bathrooms, the best place to do this is at the toilet’s main shutoff valve.

You can probably see a water line leading from your bathroom wall to the toilet, as well as a hand-crank valve somewhere along that line. If you don’t see this hardware, it’s possible that your toilet’s valve is hidden behind wall or floor tiles, in which case you should talk to a plumber about modifications to provide this access. Short of shutting off the main valve to your home, the toilet valve is the only way to fully stop the flow of water!

Closing the valve when an overflow is imminent will stop the bowl from filling and grant all the time you need to clear the clog. But besides accessing it, actually turning the valve can be challenging when it matters most. Since this valve usually stays open, often for years, it can be sticky -- and may even rust in an open position. 

Be proactive and give your toilet valve a few turns back and forth today. If it’s stubborn, spray it with a little lubricant until it turns freely. Going forward, close and reopen the valve every time you clean your bathroom. It only takes a couple of seconds, and it will help make sure you can close the valve in an emergency.

The Backup Plan

If your toilet is actively overflowing and you can’t get the shutoff valve to budge, your next stop should be the inside of the toilet tank. Carefully remove the lid and set it aside.

The first part to check is the flapper -- usually a hinged rubber disc covering a hole at the bottom of the tank. If the flapper is open, reach in and close it manually. This should stop the flow of water.

If the flapper is not open, or if it won’t stay closed manually, find the float ball. This is the component that floats on the surface of the water and stops the tank from filling at a certain level. If you manually lift the float ball to the top of the tank, the water will shut off.

This is can create a precarious predicament if no one is home to help you. If lowering the float ball causes water to continue flowing into the bowl, you may need to prop the float ball up or hold it in place while you fight with the shutoff valve with your spare hand.

Get Things Flowing

Once the overflow has been prevented, the final step is to clear the clog. If you have a toilet plunger, preferably one with a toilet flange, that should be your go-to tool. If you don’t have one, pick one up today -- a clogged toilet is more a matter of “when” than “if”.

And for clogs that you just can’t clear, or for any other plumbing emergencies, the most failsafe option of all is to contact us at 4 Good Service 

As cooler weather settles in, here are some safety tips to follow when heating your home.

Winter is the worst season for residential fires in the country, according to Fire Prevention Canada. At least eight people die each week due to fires, with almost three-quarters of those deaths a result of residential fires. 

As we gear up for the winter season, here are a few safety precautions courtesy of The Canada Safety Council to help minimize the risk of house fires when heating your home.

1. Regular maintenance of all heating systems, including furnaces, by licensed technicians, is important in reducing the risk of a residential fire.
2. Do not dry clothes or shoes on or near a heater. Turn the heater off when you are not in the room and do not leave children or pets unsupervised with a heater that is turned on.
3. Periodically inspect the heater’s cord for damage and frayed or exposed wires, and do not use the appliance if any damage is present.
4. If you use a fireplace or wood stove for heat, build your fire with a small amount of dry, seasoned wood to keep the flames under control.
5. Resist the temptation to overload your fireplace or stove. Burning too much wood at once can cause tar and creosote to build up in your chimney or stove pipes, which creates a fire hazard.
6. Never use highly flammable materials such as wrapping paper or gasoline in a wood stove or fireplace.
7. Have a three-foot "kid-free zone" around open fires and space heaters. 
8. If you have a frozen pipe, keep the faucet open and apply heat to the frozen section using an electric hair dryer, or by wrapping pipes with towels soaked in hot water. Do not use any open-flame device, such as a blowtorch, kerosene or propane heater, or charcoal stove, to thaw the pipe. Call a licensed plumber if you are unable to locate the frozen area, if the frozen area is not accessible, or if you cannot thaw the pipe. Do not leave a space heater unattended near the frozen pipe.
9. Do not smoke in bed or in your bedroom. Ashtrays in the house should be kept on sturdy surfaces away from all combustible materials.
10. When using candles, keep them on or in sturdy holders on a level surface, out of the reach of children and pets. Blow out candles when you leave the room or are going to bed.
11. Store flammable liquids such a gasoline and paint safety, away from any heat sources, and ideally in a cool, dry place outside the house.
12. Flickering lights? Blown fuses or a circuit breaker that keeps tripping? These may be a sign of electrical problems. Contact an electrician.
13. Do not run an extension cord under furniture or under a rug. Traffic over the cord or the weight of furniture on it may damage the cord and create a fire hazard.
14. Clean the dryer lint filter before and after each use to minimize the risk of a dryer fire.
15. Test smoke alarms monthly.
16. Have a fire escape plan for your house and regularly review it with your family.

During colder weather, people tend to use fuel-burning appliances more often. Carbon monoxide is called the "silent killer," as it is an odourless and colourless gas produced by the incomplete combustion of any fossil fuel; wood, oil, gas or coal.

The Canada Safety Council recommends following these tips:

1. Eliminate CO at the source. Make the maintenance of your furnace, fireplace, and all fuel-burning appliances an absolute priority. Have them checked and cleaned each year.
2. Install a certified carbon monoxide alarm in your home and check it regularly to make sure the battery is working.
3. Know the symptoms of CO poisoning. If they appear, it is important to get everyone, including pets, outside to fresh air immediately.
4. Never heat your home with a gas stove.
5. Never use a barbeque, charcoal or hibachi grill in the home or in an enclosed area.
6. During and after a snowstorm, make sure vents for the dryer, furnace, stove, and fireplace are clear of snow.
7. Never use a gas-powered generator inside your home.

Source: Canada Safety Council