Halloween is not often associated with your home's HVAC system, but the Halloween season could give your wallet a scare in the form of high energy costs if you're not careful. As the spookiest time of the year approaches, here are a few tips that will keep increased heating costs at bay.

Set Up Outside Instead of Constantly Opening Your Door

Halloween is a multi-day affair in some neighborhoods, with local communities organizing more than one trick or treat session according to age group. Even if your neighborhood only has one group of trick or treaters to contend with, you will be doing your heating bill a favor by setting up shop outside the house. Put a table of candy in your driveway and let the kids come to you there. Just wear a jacket if it's chilly and try to avoid going back into the house too often. By keeping the kids from marching up to the house itself, you won't have to keep opening and shutting the door, letting precious heat escape each time and causing your heater to work even harder.

Take Advantage of Body Heat

If you are throwing a Halloween party (or two) this year, make sure you take advantage of the fact that there will be a large number of people inside your house. All of those people generate body heat which can make the room feel a bit too warm if you keep your heater at the temperature it's normally at. Instead, lower your thermostat once a good number of people show up and take advantage of the energy savings. This same tip works during a football game party during the fall as well.

Late Fall is the Perfect Time for an Inspection

By the time Halloween rolls around, things have usually gotten chilly, but not unbearably cold like the weather can be in say, January or February. Use Halloween as a reminder every year that it's time to schedule your annual HVAC inspection. By getting a heating and air conditioning contractor out to your house in late October or early November, you will be ensuring that your heating system is ready to run as efficiently as possible during the colder days ahead.

Halloween is known for spooky things, but don't let your next energy bill scare you. Avoid opening the door repeatedly for trick or treaters, lower the thermostat when you have a lot of people in the house for your annual costume party, and most importantly, schedule an annual HVAC inspection starting this year. Get in touch with a company like Bergmann Heating & Air Conditioning for more information.