A cold snap is on its way and some parts of the north-west might even see a touch of snowfall. 

With temperatures plunging, what is the best way to keep your home insulated from the cold? 

On Lunchtime Live, home interior expert Jenny Sheahan set out her top tips to stay warm and toasty this winter. 

“The number one thing that you can do to keep your house warm and bills down is insulating it,” she said. 

“You don’t need to hire a company or go for grants, there’s some really simple things to keep the draft out. 

“Get up and walk around - like a lunatic - and find out where the drafts are coming from. 

“It could be a little gap in your skirting board, it could be around your doorframe - anywhere like that.” 

A man adjusting a radiator. 10-1-23. Image: Artem Evdokimov / Alamy

Ms Sheahan said plugging little gaps that let in cold air is the best way to keep heating bills “way down” and it does not need to cost an arm and a leg. 

“You can buy a draft excluders - those little rolls,” she said. 

“Sometimes they’re decorated and they’re the nice things that you put along the bottom of your door to keep the gap plugged up. 

“You can buy brush strips; they just come in rolls and are sticky on one side and they’re made of white foam. 

“You can stick them around your door and if you don’t like the look, it’s only temporary.” 

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Windows are another way in which cold air can creep into a person’s home. 

“It’s best to keep your curtains open during the day time when the sun is coming in,” Ms Sheahan said. 

“Even though it feels very cold, there’s still heat coming in from that sunlight. 

“If you go up by your window and your window is cold and there’s cold air seeping through - maybe you have single glazing. 

“What you can do is you can buy a window film; it’s really, really easy. 

“You buy a roll of window film and you just use a hairdryer to get it to shrink onto your window - it’s amazingly affective and supercheap. 

“It deceptively turns your window into a double glazed window.” 

Grants are also available for those looking to invest in retrofitting with a qualified tradesperson.  

You can listen back here:

Main image shows an electricity bill. Picture by: Rosemary Roberts / Alamy Stock Photo