Planning for the cold weather months saves homeowners time and money. The financial savings involve reducing drafts and the energy losses, causing your bill to decline. These rank among the do-it-yourself home insulation strategies worth considering.
1: Address screen doors
Many storm doors come with sliding glass panes and a screen option to allow fresh air to flow into the home. These products appear reasonably secure against drafts with the glass lowered. But that's not necessarily the case.
Storm doors typically are not installed with preventing air leaks in mind. One DIY way to improve them is by applying plastic insulation around the pane-screen system. Homeowners can use the same inexpensive plastic shrink-wrap kits used to cover windows.
2: Add insulation to attics
A home's attic ranks among one of the largest areas for heat loss because the heat from the lower levels rises to the attick. So, your furnace may be triggered early and often. Even if your attic has reasonably sound insulation, consider adding a little extra where heat loss is likely to happen.
3: Permanently winterize windows
The plastic shrink-wrap kits sold in stores are a yearly renewal commitment. However, there is an alternative to performing this task and spending the extra money each winter. If outdated and inefficient windows cause cold air leaks, replacing them may be worth considering. But if the drafts seep through the casing surrounding the window, you may be able to eliminate the cold air inexpensively.
Consider removing the interior lumber surrounding the window without damaging the walls. Once removed, inspect the space inside the wall to see if it has secure insulation. If not, deploy an insulation product best suited to solve the issue. A wide range of reasonably-priced spray foam and loose fiber products can solve the problem.
Although winter chills will bring higher utility bills, homeowners can minimize costs with improved insulation. The root cause of energy waste revolves around cold air leaks. These and other DIY efforts can prevent unnecessary expenses.
About the Author
Judy Szablak
With over 30 years in the industry, Realtor Judy Szablak has been on national television for her real estate expertise on the HGTV Network, featured on Martha Stewart Living Radio "Morning Living” , NPR radio as an expert real estate panelist, It’s Relevant News channel, and quoted in the Wall Street Journal for her in depth knowledge of Fairfield County Connecticut real estate.
She was also on the local NPR radio station (WSHU) as a Fairfield County CT real estate expert. Judy has provided multiple online respected news sources with her real estate expertise including The Daily Easton, The Daily Weston, The Daily Fairfield, The Daily Stamford and The Daily Greenwich, as well as in print in the New York Post. She is a weekly Real Estate Columnist for WestportNow.com, another real estate column "Real Estate With Judy” is syndicated through Hearst CT Media Online and seen in The Connecticut Post, The Danbury News-Times, The Stamford Advocate, The Greenwich Time, The Hour, Fairfield Citizen, Westport News, Darien News, New Canaan News and the Wilton Villager.
Judy is also the author of the book, The Art of Buying or Selling a Home, available at all major book retailers. Additionally, Judy has been nationally recognized in a number of national real estate trade magazines, some with distribution to over 1 million members. She was featured in Real Estate Today as early as 1994 for her commitment to, and implementation of technology in real estate. Judy appeared in the Certified Residential Specialist Magazine, as she provided advice on marketing strategies and ethics in the article titled "Marketing Makeovers.”
Judy was also featured in REALTOR® Magazine, regarding image enhancement for Realtors. She was again featured in REALTOR® Magazine, in an article on "Achieving Flow” and operating at optimal peak performance. In another article in the same publication, Judy offered guidance to fellow real estate professionals as she explored the topic of implementing and maintaining personal websites. She has appeared in The Council of Residential Specialists Magazine, which featured her ideas regarding technology. Additionally, Judy authored an article on marketing and technology for the Certified Residential Specialist (CRS) Online Magazine. On two occasions, in 2015 and 2017, she appeared as a featured agent in Top Agent Magazine. I have a few other websites- www.TheCtrealtyBlog.com www.CtHomesAndRealEstate.com www.BestWestportHomes.com www.ThePetitePowerhouse.com www,SzablakConsulting.com
