You can fix many air leaks in your home without the help of professional contractors. Here are a few ideas about how to go about it.
1. The first place to look are your doors and windows. These two places can account for most of your air leaks. Be sure the weather-stripping is in good shape and in contact with the doors and windows. If you have wood trim around doors and windows, air is probably entering there.
It's not uncommon for builders and remodelers to do a poor job of installing insulation between doors or windows and the rough openings. It may pay to remove the wood trim carefully to see if the narrow cavity is insulated.
If it's not, you can insulate around them with expanding foam. If you use this product, be sure you use one that is made for this purpose. If you use the wrong one, the foam can expand too much and cause the window or door to not open and close properly. You also can carefully stuff strands of fiberglass insulation around windows and doors, but you shouldn't pack it too tightly.
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2. Electrical outlets on exterior walls can be sources of air leaks. In the winter, you can stop some of the air leaks by first removing any dust around the outlet box, and then caulk the gap between the box and the wall. Then put the plate back.
3. If you have access to your attic, go there with a flashlight and look for black or dirty insulation. It's acting like an air filter, letting you know where air is passing through the insulation and the fiberglass is capturing the dirt. Trace the source of the leak and seal it.
Turn off any lights in the attic and look for light leaks through the insulation. These are almost always locations needing caulking. Be careful around recessed lighting. Older recessed lights must not come into direct contact with insulation.
You have to construct a special housing that creates an air space around the fixture before you insulate around it. If in doubt about how to do this, check with your local fire-prevention officer.
4. The building code in most places requires an iar gop between chimneys and any wood framing. This gap can be a huge source of air leakage. You can stuff this gap in the attic with fiberglass batts to stop air from infiltrating your home.
5. Inspect your basement for air leaks where the wood framing is in contact with the foundation. These leaks can be sealed with caulk from the interior during colder weather.
1. The first place to look are your doors and windows. These two places can account for most of your air leaks. Be sure the weather-stripping is in good shape and in contact with the doors and windows. If you have wood trim around doors and windows, air is probably entering there.
It's not uncommon for builders and remodelers to do a poor job of installing insulation between doors or windows and the rough openings. It may pay to remove the wood trim carefully to see if the narrow cavity is insulated.
If it's not, you can insulate around them with expanding foam. If you use this product, be sure you use one that is made for this purpose. If you use the wrong one, the foam can expand too much and cause the window or door to not open and close properly. You also can carefully stuff strands of fiberglass insulation around windows and doors, but you shouldn't pack it too tightly.
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2. Electrical outlets on exterior walls can be sources of air leaks. In the winter, you can stop some of the air leaks by first removing any dust around the outlet box, and then caulk the gap between the box and the wall. Then put the plate back.
3. If you have access to your attic, go there with a flashlight and look for black or dirty insulation. It's acting like an air filter, letting you know where air is passing through the insulation and the fiberglass is capturing the dirt. Trace the source of the leak and seal it.
Turn off any lights in the attic and look for light leaks through the insulation. These are almost always locations needing caulking. Be careful around recessed lighting. Older recessed lights must not come into direct contact with insulation.
You have to construct a special housing that creates an air space around the fixture before you insulate around it. If in doubt about how to do this, check with your local fire-prevention officer.
4. The building code in most places requires an iar gop between chimneys and any wood framing. This gap can be a huge source of air leakage. You can stuff this gap in the attic with fiberglass batts to stop air from infiltrating your home.
5. Inspect your basement for air leaks where the wood framing is in contact with the foundation. These leaks can be sealed with caulk from the interior during colder weather.
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