The first step: Make it warm.

Picture yourself cuddled up in a blanket on a cold night. You wrap it tightly around you, creating a cosy cocoon of warmth. You tuck in your feet and seal off any gaps to keep the cold air out. Retrofitting a home for thermal comfort is essentially the same: you need to "wrap" the house and seal all the gaps to prevent heat loss.

Over time, we have gradually improved the house to make it warmer in winter. Here’s what we did:

• Added bulk insulation and sarking to the roof when it was replaced

• Installed underfloor insulation, which also sealed those large gaps in the floorboards

• Sealed gaps between the skirting and floor

• Sealed internal wall vents

• Draught-sealed all external windows and doors

• Added thermally lined curtains to bedrooms

• Retrofit double-glazed units into the existing timber window frames

• Added wall insulation wherever possible, for example when replacing weatherboards (we haven’t managed to insulate all the walls—our bedrooms, for example, are still cooler, which we don’t mind).

Now, there is no need for beanies in bed. The house is warm, and with each improvement, household energy usage and bills have noticeably decreased.

Based on the Residential Efficiency Scorecard, we’ve improved the home’s efficiency score from a 1 to a 7. There’s still more to do, but these changes have made a significant difference in living and enjoying the home.

If you are considering making changes to your home, try to build in these upgrades to make you more comfortable in the cold months.