Winters are mild in Yuma, but we still sometimes need to turn on the heat now and then. When that happens, it’s good to know we’re getting maximum efficiency from our homes, and not wasting our energy dollars. One of the best ways to make sure that happens is to eliminate cold air leaks.
When you have leaks, cold air from the outdoors can find its way inside your home, while warm air from your furnace or other heating source can migrate outside. Either way, you lose and your energy bill is higher than it should be.
Finding Leaks
One way to find energy leaks is to light an incense stick and walk around the home, pausing in front of typical leak sites, such as windows, doors, baseboard, attic hatch, recessed lighting, holes to the exterior for pipes, cables and wires, and electric switch plates. If the smoke from the stick moves, you likely have a leak.
Fixing Leaks
Depending on where the leak occurs, you will want to plug it with weatherstripping, caulk or insulation.
- Install weatherstripping between window panes if air is leaking from between the panes.
- Install weatherstripping between double doors to keep out breezes.
- Wrap insulation around pipes, cables and wiring that extends from the outdoors into the interior of the home.
- Install insulating gaskets behind the plastic covers of electric plug outlets.
- Add weatherstripping around the hatch cover for the attic.
- Install a door sweep on doors that leave a wide gap at the bottom.
- Carefully inject caulk into gaps between the molding and the wall where the wall meets the floor.
- Inject caulk under gaps around door and window frames.
If you don’t feel you can adequately find the leaks in your home, you may need to hire someone to perform an energy audit, where they will not only perform the lit incense test, but will also do a blower door test to measure leakage and help detect where the leaks are.
For more on cold air leaks, contact Hansberger Refrigeration and Electric Company. We serve Yuma and the surrounding area.
Our goal is to help educate our customers in Yuma, Arizona about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems). For more information about other HVAC topics, download our free Home Comfort Guide or call us at 928-723-3183.