model house wrapped in a scarf, warm home concept
March 29, 2021

If you don’t know how insulation is supposed to keep your home comfortable, how can you know if your insulation is doing its job correctly? Insulation should protect you from losing heat in the winter and gaining heat in the summer by slowing any heat that tries to move through your home’s construction. 

Let’s get into the important details about how insulation works, and the ways you can identify if you are in need of an insulation upgrade

The Benefits of Proper Insulation

A properly insulated home will be better protected from the temperatures outside, and will maintain conditioned air provided by an air conditioner or heating system. This results in many benefits, including:

  • Consistent and stable temperatures throughout the home

  • Reduced indoor drafts

  • Lower energy costs

  • Increased control over indoor temperatures

  • Improved indoor air quality 

Now that you understand the benefits of insulation, let's get into some of the signs you might notice in an underinsulated home.

1. Uncomfortable Temperatures

Have you ever heard the term “heat rises”? When Massachusetts temperatures drop during the winter and you turn on the furnace, all of the heat it churns out will search for cooler areas in your home, like your attic. This is why heat rises out of your living space and into the attic, where it will eventually escape into the great outdoors. 

Occupants of an underinsulated home, or a home with damaged insulation, might notice it most on the second floor. Are your second-floor bedrooms tough to keep comfortable, or do they vary in temperature? Do you notice the change in temperature when you climb the stairs from one floor to another? These are all signs that your insulation needs updating. 

2. Indoor Drafts

With all of this heat moving around, who or what is driving the bus? The heat in your home moves via the air in your home, meaning that when the hot air from your furnace leaves the air vents and heads upwards, you are going to feel it in the form of indoor drafts. 

And in the summer, the same process reverses, as the heat from the sun makes its way into your home from the top down, searching for the cool temperatures coming from your air conditioner. Indoor drafts can also be a result of a leaky home, where hidden air leaks allow outside air to infiltrate, which can be resolved through proper air sealing

3. High Heating & Cooling Costs

Without proper insulation, your heating and cooling system will have to work much harder than it should have to in order to keep up with your home comfort needs. This will lead to increased electricity and heating oil usage and can cause premature wear and tear on your furnace or air conditioner. In short, an underinsulated home will cost more to run and more to repair, and isn’t guaranteed to be comfortable!

4. Ice Dams

As heat escapes the living space through poor insulation, it warms up the roofing materials and shingles underneath any accumulated snow. This melts the snow, sending it draining down to colder areas of the roof. The snowmelt then freezes into ice, creating a blockage for future snowmelt. As the moisture accumulates, it can cause damage to your roof, your attic, and even the structure of your home. If you have had ice dams in the past, upgrading your insulation should prevent them from forming again!

Save Up To 75% On Your Insulation Upgrades

If you are considering an insulation upgrade, there is no better deal than the virtual home energy assessment from Mass Energy Experts. Why? Because you will get an insulation plan customized to the exact design and state of your home, free air sealing service (if needed), and a package of energy-saving products, all at no cost to you

Plus, because this is a Energy Save energy assessment through the Energy Save® Rebate Program, your ensuing insulation upgrades could qualify for savings up to 75% thanks to the Energy Save® rebates. Mass Energy Experts will be your guide through the entire process, from beginning to end. 

Is your home uncomfortable? Get to the bottom of it with a Free, virtual home energy assessment. Call Mass Energy Experts at (617) 933-9094 or contact us.