Air leaks in and out of your home have the potential to cost you both in terms of comfort and money. In moderate seasons you’ll be fine, but during the summer and winter you want to keep your home’s air inside.
Finding Leaks in Your Home
It may seem like a difficult task, but it really just requires some patience and effort. It’s up to you if you want to hire an HVAC professional or attempt to do it yourself. The most common places to find leaks are around windows, doors and your fireplace, as well as where your garage and attic are connected to your home.
There’s a few ways that you can find the leaks. You can go around with your hands and try to feel them, or you can light an incense stick and see if the smoke wavers as a result of a leak. The easiest times to find leaks are during windy days. You can check for leaks and drafts along the floor of your attic.
Fixing Air Leaks
Now that you or your professional has found the worst offenders, you can now seal them using the following:
Caulking
Weatherstripping
Spray foam
Each of these can be used to seal different types of leaks in different locations, refer to their individual manufacturer’s guidelines to choose the best one.
Insulating your attic is different than sealing a common air leak. It’s a much bigger job that is often done best by a professional. There are tutorials you can follow online if you are determined to do it, and you’ll need to acquire cellulose or fiberglass.
Fixing air leaks can have a significant impact on the comfort of your home and your energy bill. If you need any help air sealing your home in the Hampton Roads area of Southeast Virginia, feel free to contact Russell’s Heating & Cooling.
Our goal is to help educate our customers in Chesapeake, Virginia and surrounding areas about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems). For more information about air leaks and other HVAC topics, download our free Home Comfort Resource guide. Image courtesy of Shutterstock