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It's hard to believe, but there is still less than a month before the official start of winter.

After the historic winter storm last year, many Texans think about cold weather again.

In order to eliminate these feelings of anxiety, you can now take some measures to provide your home with protection from the cold this season.  

The first thing you need to do is to walk around your home and find all outdoor faucets and hoses.

"If you think it will be cold enough to freeze, remove the hose from there and let it disappear. Your house will freeze quickly, and if the hose is still connected, it will force it to freeze in your home," ABC Home & Commercial Services Manager Mike Marugo said.  

After removing all the hoses, you can use store-bought insulated tanks or even old T-shirts and towels to protect the faucet.

The key is to protect your pipes from outside air. If there is a main sprinkler return valve outside, wrap it to protect it from the elements.

If your house has piers and beams, please wrap all exposed pipes under the house with foam pipes. Make sure to cover every seam to make it as tight as possible.

Next, you can enter your home, the first stop is your kitchen. Is your sink on the outside wall? If so, open the cabinet below to allow hot air from the house to flow in, which will help protect those fragile pipes.

Everyone usually knows that during severe cold, you need to drip the sink, but Mike said a mistake that people often make.

"If you have separate handles, which are hot and cold, open them all a bit to let it drip. If you have a handle, put it somewhere in the middle so that it will pull hot and cold water in. In the house," Mike said.

He said that many people remember to drip their taps, but forget to turn on the hot and cold lines to make them move. If you forget, the stationary side can easily freeze.

Another golden rule to survive the winter without going bankrupt is the two-degree increment rule.

"If you want to save money, don't raise the thermostat more than 2 degrees every time. Turn it from 65 to 67 degrees, then turn it to 69 degrees and increase it slowly, so that the heating bar will not be there. No, no," Manager David Boyer said.

If your heating bar lights up, your system will enter emergency mode and consume more power.

The last check you need to do is to check the HVAC system in the attic. Of course, you want to make sure your system breathes normally, so replace the filter if necessary, but you also need to look around your plumbing system. Is it properly protected? Are there any gaps or imperfections? 

To make sure you get all the heat you pay for, not just heating the attic, you also need to make sure that the pipe system has a continuous flow.

Mike said the best advice he can give you is, "Don't panic. Take an hour now to do this seasonal check."

Remember, last year’s winter storm was unusual. This is not a Texas standard, so nine out of ten, these inspections will enable you and your family to spend the winter safely.