Brr! The weather outside is cold enough to endure, so you certainly don’t need to have pesky drafts in your apartment making the air in your home any colder. If you’re worried about feeling a chill in the air this season, it’s best you prepare as soon as possible. Here are a few tips to get the better of wintry drafts in your apartment.

Find the Source of the Problem

Before anything, you need to figure out where the air is leaking into your apartment. Do note that air leaks aren’t necessarily out of the ordinary for your home; they’re common in any building. The biggest leakage culprits are typically doors and windows, but even more recently-built homes can still see air leak through other parts of the residence, including vents, outlets, and closets, where there might not be as much insulation within the walls. Wherever your cold air is coming from, you’ll need to know that first in order to tackle your problem.

Buy (or DIY) a Draft Stopper

More than likely, you won’t’ be allowed to make any permanent changes to your apartment. So, although you can’t replace your home’s window and door seals, you can put something in the way to block any air from going in or out. Draft stoppers come in all shapes and sizes, from rubbery molds you can place under your door to big, fabric cushions you can lay at the bottom of your entrance. If you don’t feel like shelling out too much money, you could always make your own. Alternatively, heavy curtains, or plastic film tacked up to block the window, might do the trick.

Keep Your Door Closed

Some draft issues can be made a little better simply by closing each of the doors in your apartment. Air circulation plays a larger role in the heating and cooling of your home than you may think. It’s science: heat (and cold air) will naturally even out through a contained area. So, if you’ve got a particularly cool area of your home, section it off from the rest of the apartment to make the rest of your rooms more bearable.

Bundle Up

Sometimes you can do only so much to prevent drafts from entering your apartment. Instead of blasting the heat, which will run up your utility bill, consider the most important thing you’re trying to keep warm – yourself! Bust out that knit sweater and heavy socks to stay toasty while you relax at home, and at night, throw an extra blanket or two on your bed to cuddle up with.

Get in Touch With Your Apartment Managers

You’ll most likely solve any small draft issues by making use of the above tips. But, if there’s something obviously wrong and you’re still shivering in your home, do yourself (and your community) a favor by getting in touch with your apartment managers. After all, they want their residents to be happy, so they’ll want to be the first to want to know about any inconveniences. Whatever problem you’re facing could be facing others around you as well.