This article is sponsored by Home Depot:
Time is money, the old adage goes, but so is a well-winterized house. Stopping air leakages can take as much as 30 percent off your heating bill, according to the U.S. Department of Energy.
Check out these three tips for closing up air leaks around your home:
- First, do an energy audit of your house, keeping an eye out for the trouble spots. Windows and doors are obvious places to check, but also look at things like wall outlets and switches, plumbing vents and the attic hatch for leakage. Swaying curtains and light under your doors are sure signs, but you can find less obvious air leaks by using an infrared thermometer to check for temperature variations. Or use a lighted candle (carefully). If the flame moves, air is coming in.
- Seal the outside of windows with a good quality silicone caulk; use rope caulk on the inside (it can be removed in the spring). Or cover windows with a transparent film, using a hair dryer for adhesion. Other air leaks can be sealed with caulk or self-adhesive weather stripping.
- Installing insulation yourself is not easy, but if you have an older home, chances are you need to add more. If the insulation is level with or below the floor joists, you should add more, according to Energy Star, a joint program of the Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Energy.
To learn about adding insulation to your home, check out the video above sponsored by Home Depot.
This appears in Oconee Patch as well as other Patches in northeast Georgia.
Most inexpensive solution for windows is to buy Roc-Lon budget blackout liner. I buy it by the yard and sew it to draperies. Glass windows let in so much heat or cold. This blocks the elements and the noise. I have the 2" blinds ( from Home Depot ) and draperies. Layering helps to insulate. We have R-Matte Plus, foam insulating sheathing lining the exterior walls. Looks like it has an aluminum reflective layer then styrofoam followed by R-13 insulation then drywall. Wow does that keep your home cozy! If I were a builder, I would insulate every new building with Reflective Insulation from the roof through the exterior walls. Super insulation is the way to go.