Wallet-Friendly DIY Improvements with Big Energy Payoffs Regardless of the insulation you choose, your home’s “envelope” (or entire outer shell) needs to be tight in order to make sure your home is truly energy-efficient. After all, what good is a well-insulated attic if you can’t contain your costly conditioned air? Dale Phillips is the owner of Tomball, TX-based DPIS Engineering, which inspects hundreds of homes each day and performs energy analysis to help homes run more efficiently. He says that although insulation is crucial to efficiency, it’s not the only improvement homeowners should make. “There is no single ‘magic bullet’ in energy efficiency,” he says. “That’s why I always start with improving the ‘building envelope.’” Rick Brill, a representative for HeatBloc Ultra, shares this sentiment. “For energy efficiency, we look at the whole house: air leakage, efficient windows, proper insulation, duct leakage, ventilation in the attic, etc. If you look at the home as a functioning unit, you will start to see how all these little things add up to big savings throughout the life of the home.” What’s more, these “little things” are budget-conscious ways to step up your home’s energy efficiency. Small, inexpensive projects – such as caulking around drafty windows or installing specialty gaskets around electrical outlets – can tighten up your home envelope. And unlike installing new insulation, these DIY improvements won’t cost hundreds of dollars to complete: Plug Leaks There’s little sense in running your air conditioning if your home is full of places for all that cool air to escape. Fortunately, air leakage problem areas are easy (and cheap!) to address with a simple tube of caulk or a spray can of expanding foam from your local hardware store. Use them to easily seal these common culprits: Windows that leak air and doors that don’t close tightly. Extra space around TV or cable wires entering and exiting your home. Gaps around the plumbing fixtures and pipes in your kitchen, bath, and other rooms that need water access. Drafts around bathroom vents, recessed lights, or fixtures. Air leaks from pipes and wiring that go through the basement ceiling through the floor above. The upper perimeter of your basement, where the cement or block walls meet the wood frame of your house. Seal Drafts Specialty tape and weather-stripping make it easy to keep cool air in (and keep hot air out). Want some quick DIY energy savings? Take a tour of your home, and seal off these drafty problem areas: Gaps under inside doors. Doors leading from the house to the garage or foyer are often not as well sealed as doors that open directly to the outside. Another option? Install a door sweep to prevent hot air from coming in and conditioned air from getting out. Leaky ducts. Use foil tape (rather than “duct tape” that doesn’t last) to insulate all ducts you can access in your unfinished spaces like the basement and attic. For extra energy efficiency: Straighten any flexible ducts to eliminate kinks that constrict airflow. Air registers. Use special HVAC tape to seal around the rims of the duct boxes where they meet the floor, wall, or ceiling, and look for disconnected duct-work. Another tip: To enable air circulation, keep furnishings and decorations clear of air registers at all times. Invest in Gaskets and Covers Your local hardware store is full of cheap and easy solutions to common air leak issues. While caulk and weather-stripping are always useful in a pinch, consider investing in products designed to address some of these specific energy-guzzlers: Outlets: Seal holes or air leaks around electrical outlets with specially designed (yet inexpensive at as little as 10 cents apiece!) outlet gaskets. Window A/C units: If you can’t remove your window-mounted air conditioners in the colder months, prevent drafts with tailor-made covers at $15 a pop. Recessed lighting: You need to keep a 3-inch gap between lighting fixtures and insulation for fire prevention, but this ceiling opening causes energy loss. Cap these gaps with specially formed attic recessed light covers – for less than $20 – to prevent air leaks but still allow the space necessary for safety. Spaces around your attic hatch: An attic door cover can prevent hot air from getting through your attic door and down into your home’s living spaces. These covers come in a wide range of styles, and an even wider range of prices ($40-$200). Bottom line? Don’t buy into the misconception that a limited budget means limited energy-efficiency options. The truth is, small changes can greatly enhance the insulation you already have. And even if you have to space out your larger home improvements over time, you’ll save energy – and money – in the long run.
Posted on: Sun, 24 Nov 2013 13:47:24 +0000
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