Take a moment to think about how comfortable (or uncomfortable) your home has been over the winter. Have you been battling drafts and cold floors inside your home? Has your heating system been running constantly? Are your heating bills higher than ever?
Winter has a way of bringing home comfort and efficiency issues to the surface. If your home comfort was less-than-ideal this past winter, you can expect your home to be uncomfortable this summer, as well. Fortunately, there are a few simple upgrades that can make a major impact on your home comfort. Here are our top five ways you can make your home more comfortable this spring.
Start with an Energy Audit
Improving how comfortable your home is begins with an energy audit. An energy audit is an in-depth assessment of your home and how it is performing. With diagnostic tests such as a blower door test and infrared thermal imaging, your energy auditor will uncover hidden issues that are causing your discomfort, such as air leaks and missing insulation.
Once you’ve had an energy audit done on your home, you’ll understand exactly which home improvements will have the biggest impact on your indoor comfort. Here in South Central PA, our energy auditors often recommend sealing hidden holes and cracks as well as installing new insulation.
Remove Old Insulation
Before you can think about addressing hidden holes and cracks or areas where insulation may be missing, it’s important to remove any old or damaged insulation in your home. Insulation has a tendency to degrade and become less effective over time, especially when exposed to moisture, mold, or pests.
When you schedule professional insulation removal, an experienced insulation contractor will safely remove any contaminated insulation from your home and prepare your home for new insulation installation.
Seal Holes, Cracks & Gaps
Many homeowners in the Carlisle area are tempted to throw some new insulation into the attic as a quick fix to their home comfort issues, but there’s one more energy efficiency upgrade you should complete first: air sealing. Air sealing involves using spray foam to close up any holes, cracks, and gaps that are letting air travel freely where it shouldn’t. When done right, this important upgrade helps prevent valuable heated air from escaping in the winter and keeps unwanted hot air out in the summer.
At Energy Smart Home Improvement, we most commonly seal air leaks around the following areas: windows and doors, the attic hatch, plumbing and wiring penetrations, and recessed lighting.
Upgrade Attic Insulation
Once old insulation has been removed and air leaks have been sealed, upgrading your attic insulation is the most effective improvement you can make for greater indoor comfort. In the winter, attic insulation keeps naturally rising heat from escaping into your attic and out through the roof. In the summer, it keeps unwanted heat from seeping down into your home.
South Central PA homeowners who upgrade their attic insulation are often surprised by the reduced energy bills and more stable indoor temperatures they see immediately after, without needing to upgrade their home heating and cooling equipment!
Insulate Other Key Areas
The attic isn’t the only area in your home that must be insulated properly. Two other key areas that may be in need of an insulation upgrade are the exterior walls and basement or crawlspace. Again, an energy audit will show you whether these areas are under-insulated.