air sealing and insulation infographic header
August 15, 2021

Air that escapes into or out of the house through unexpected holes and cracks accounts for nearly a third of a normal family's annual heating and cooling budget! You could repair many of those leaks yourself with the money you waste in a year. According to Energy Star, it's one of the most cost-effective ways to save energy and improve comfort.

Begin in the attic, as this is where you'll discover the most energy guzzlers. Then go after the basement to keep any cold air that gets in there from being sucked up into the rooms upstairs. Finally, seal any remaining air leaks throughout the house. Here are seven good places to begin.

We all know how difficult it is to maintain good and energy efficient homes, however, with the professional assistance of Mass Energy Experts, it can be taken care of effectively and positively. One thing is for sure to get while hiring them – great energy-efficient home to live in coming years in!

Yet, with the help of the below-mentioned ways, any homeowner can easily get the best of both worlds – energy efficient home & goodbyes to air leak.

Hence, are you all set to know some of the efficient ways to secure your home and save a bank on energy consumption bills?

Let’s get going…

7 ways to protect your home from window and air leaks:

  • Recessed Lights Must Be Insulated

The vents on most recessed lights open into the attic, providing a direct path for heated or cooled air to leave. It's easy to see why experts at the Pennsylvania Housing Research/Resource Center identified these fixtures as a significant cause of household air leaks when you realise that many homes have 30 or 40 of them. ICAT (insulation contact and air tight) lights have already been sealed; look for the label next to the bulb. If you don't see it, assume it's because yours is leaking. A 10-second fix is to install an airtight baffle. Replace the bulb after removing the baffle and pushing it up into the housing.

  • Plug Open Stud Cavities

Between the living room and the unheated portions of your home, there is most likely an inner skin of drywall or plaster. However, this cover was frequently overlooked behind knee walls (partial-height walls where the roof curves down onto the top floor), above dropped ceilings or soffits, and above angled ceilings over staircases in the past.

You may need to remove insulation from the attic to examine if the stud cavities are open. If they are, fill them with unfaced fibreglass insulation stuffed into plastic waste bags to keep the air out. Large holes can be filled with drywall scraps or reflective foil insulation. Smooth the insulation back into place after you've covered the openings.

  • Shut The Gaps Near Flues and Chimneys

Wood framing must be kept at least 1 inch away from metal flues and 2 inches away from brick chimneys, according to building rules. However, this leaves openings for air to pass through.

Fill the gaps with aluminum flashing that has been trimmed to fit and sealed with high-temperature silicone caulk. Wrap a cylinder of flashing around the flue pipe, leaving a 1-inch gap between them, to keep insulation away from the hot flue pipe. Cut and bend a series of inch-deep tabs in the cylinder's top and bottom sides to preserve the spacing.

  • Must Weatherstrip the Attic Access Door

The same quantity of air passes through a 1/4-inch gap surrounding pull-down attic stairs or an attic hatch as a bedroom's heating duct. Caulk the gap between the stair frame and the rough aperture, or add foam weatherstripping around the hatch opening's circumference. Alternatively, a pre-insulated hatch cover kit for staircases or doors can be purchased.

  • Squirt Foam into Gaps of Medium Size

Start with the largest attic gaps and work your way down to the medium-sized ones. Low-expansion polyurethane foam in a container is ideal for plugging 1/4-inch to 3-inch-wide gaps, such as those surrounding pipes and vents.

A normal 12-ounce container will make 250 feet of 1/2-inch thick bead. Because the plastic straw applicator seals shut within two hours of the first use, put a lubricant like WD-40 onto a pipe cleaner and shove it into the applicator tube between uses to get the most mileage out of a can.

  • Fill up the Skinny Gaps

For openings less than 1/4-inch wide, such as those cut around electrical boxes, caulk is the best gap-filler. Silicone is the most expensive, but it performs better next to nonporous surfaces, such as metal flashing, or in areas with severe temperatures, such as attics. Acrylic latex caulk is less messy to use and cleans up easily with water.

  • Cover Gaps in your Basement

If you're trying to cure a wet basement, modest gaps on the foundation wall are important, but only those above the outside soil level let air in. Use the same materials you'd use in an attic to seal them: For gaps up to 1/4-inch wide, use caulk, and for larger gaps, use spray foam.

Caulk around hot vent pipes, such as those for the furnace or water heater, with high-temperature caulk. Foam over larger openings in the basement walls for wiring, pipes, and ducts that lead to the outside! Where the house framing stands on the foundation in older houses with basements, air leaks in. Apply a bead of caulk between the foundation and the sill plate (the wood directly above the foundation) as well as around the top and bottom edges of the rim joists (the piece that sits atop the sill plate).

Conclusion

Caulking windows and air leaks are considered to be one of the most important things to prevent your home and making more energy efficient. However, following the above-mentioned points will help in reducing energy consumption bills. However, if you’re not confident of performing it on your own, you can visit massenergyexperts.com for more information.