NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - In light of the two massive hurricanes that battered the Gulf Coast, your household energy costs are going to skyrocket this winter.

What do you need to know and what do you need to do to contain some of those costs? Here are today's Five Tips Home Edition.

1. Winter pinch

According to Michael Gordon, energy economist and president and founder of Consumer Powerline, home heating and electricity across the nation are going to skyrocket. He estimates for an average 2,000 to 2,500 square foot house in the Northeast you can expect to pay as much as $2,200 this year for home heating oil -- an increase of $600 or more from last year's bill of $1,600.

The picture isn't much better in the Midwest and West where a majority of homes are heated by natural gas. He projects that you could be paying $400 more than last year bringing the cost up from $1,800 last year to $2,200 this year.