Let's Save Energy - Fix Those Air Leaks!

Usually window and door leaks are the largest contributor to infiltration.  The good news is that these leaks are fairly easy to solve.   If the air leaks where the moving doors or windows meet the frames, then you need new weatherstripping seals.  If you are handy, get new weatherstrip seals from Home Depot or Lowes, and install them yourself (they will come with instructions or ask someone at the store).  If the leaks are around the frames where the window or door frames meet the walls (and not between the door or window and the frame), the moldings need to be removed and the air leaks and you need to seal off the space in between the door / window frame and the house framing.  If you can handle this, great.  If not, ask around your neighborhood or church for someone that is handy and can handle this job of removing the moldings, filling the gaps with spray foam and caulk, and then re-installing the moldings.   Notice I did not say fill those gaps with fiberglass insulation.  Often times contractors will do this.  Fiberglass is a good insulator…it will slow down heat transfer.  But fiberglass insulation is not a good air blocker.  Not at all!  Air will pass right thru it.  

There are lots of other air leaks as well, allowing outside air to infiltrate into your home.  Such as outlets on outside walls, holes in your floors or walls under sinks where pipes come in, recessed lights, vents, ceiling light fixtures, etc.  Anywhere in your home where a floor or wall has a hole in it, is a potential source of infiltration.  You can check these areas with the “wet hand” test also.  And plugging these leaks is fairly simple.  For outlets and switches, you can purchase insulator sheets that install behind the cover plates and offer a fairly good barrier against the outside air.  And for the other holes in the floors, ceilings, and under sinks, spray foam and caulk are usually the solution. Again, ask one of the experts at Home Depot or Lowes for tips what to buy and how to install it.  

And don’t overlook one of the biggest holes in your ceiling….your attic access panel or pull down steps.  These areas are notorious for huge amounts of air leakage if not sealed properly.  Sealing these attic access points can be a little more complicated, but often times rubber or foam tape applied where the access panel meets the framing or the ceiling can stop most of the air flow. (these access panels should also be insulated to slow down heat transfer….I will save that one for another chapter).  

If you would like more information on finding and eliminating air infiltration into our home, and reducing your energy consumption, and saving money and helping the Earth, please see my website at www.saveenergyusa.com.  Feel free to email me at any time for more detailed information on any topic we talk about.

Think energy savings every day!
Jeff

Energy saving tip of the week.
Find and fix those air leaks first on the side of your home that gets hit the hardest by the wind. In colder climates, this is usually the northern side of the home.  This is where most of the colder outside air will come into your home….and it will push the warmer air out of the opposite side of the home through leaky windows or doors, or thru other openings such as attic hatches, fireplaces, and lighting and plumbing holes.  If you slow down the incoming cold air, you will slow down the exiting warm air.