It’s something that we all dread – receiving the power bill during a bitterly cold winter. If you’re renting, you may think that there is little you can do to better insulate your dwelling, aside from meeting the soaring costs of energy. But the truth is, there are plenty of ways that you can achieve thermal comfort in your home, without doing major renovations. In this guide, we’ll talk you through some of the most affordable and non-intrusive ways you can improve heat retention in your home.   If you’re yet to sign a tenancy agreement, we suggest looking for well-insulated properties to keep heating costs to a minimum from the get-go. At Rentola, for example, you can search for houses in Sydney and apartments to rent Melbourne with great heat retention that will suit all budgets and styles. Install curtains   One of the easiest ways to prevent heat from leaving your home during the wintertime (and the sun from roasting it in the summer) is by installing curtains that are thermally efficient. These thick, heavyweight curtains create a barrier to prevent the chilly outside air from getting in and the warmth from your heater or wood fire seeping out.   Stay away from lightweight curtains made from cotton blends or linen as these will offer minimal thermal insulation. For the best results, hang your curtains so that they sit as close to the window as possible and with a little extra around the window frame. This will effectively “seal” the window and the spaces around it.     Draught-proof your doors and windows If you’re living in an older home, you may have noticed that there are gaps around the doors and windows. Draughts of cold air can easily seep through these gaps, reducing your home’s insulating ability. Sealing strip is an inexpensive product that you can buy at most hardware stores and consists of a self-adhesive plastic seal that is easy to install around doors and windows.   Alternatively, look for draft stoppers that seal the tops and sides of doors, helping to prevent cold air from getting in and heat from escaping. Most are designed to work even with doors that have warped over time or that change in size between the summer and winter months.   Seal any gaps and cracks If you’ve got draughty architraves, skirting boards or air vents, you can easily seal them with a flexible, water-based sealant. It’s a simple thing that can have big savings on your energy costs and will go almost undetected by landlords as it dries clear. While you’re at it, look for any cracks that could be allowing heat to seep out and seal them up too.   Turn down the temperature If you’re heating your apartment or home with a reverse-cycle air conditioner, it’s easy to have it turned up too high in the winter and down too low in the summer. By adjusting your thermostat by just a degree in either direction, you could be saving big on your heating and cooling costs.   Try turning the temperature down by just a degree in the winter and see if you notice the difference. Maybe it means putting on an extra layer or just giving your body time to adjust.     Close doors If you’re living in a two-bedroom apartment but that extra room only gets used when guests come to stay, make sure you aren’t heating it unnecessarily in the winter (and paying for it too). By closing off doors to unused rooms, your heater won’t be working so hard to warm the space. Similarly, close the bathroom door when it’s not in use, unless you want to stay at a comfortably warm temperature.   Invest in an electric blanket or hot water bottle   Rather than having heaters running all through the night, consider purchasing an electric blanket to keep you warm while you’re asleep. Alternatively, a hot water bottle can do the trick, with a lot of warmth radiating from these plastic containers, despite their small size.   Once you’re all snuggled up in your bed, you probably won’t notice what the outside temperature is while saving yourself a lot of money in the process. In the morning, you can turn your heating back on or stoke the wood fire to ensure your home is comfortably warm and liveable.