Improving Your Home's EfficiencyImproving Your Home's Efficiency

If you're like most people, just one look at a wintertime heating bill is enough to give you shivers. Yet it is possible to keep your home nice and cozy without spending a small fortune, by addressing one of the most common forms of energy loss--air leaks. To learn more about improving the energy efficiency of your home, read on. Here you'll find three easy ways to lower your energy bill by neutralizing pesky air leaks.  

Insulate Recessed Lights

Recessed lights--also sometimes referred to as can lights--are a wonderful way to provide natural ambiance to the rooms of your house. Unfortunately, because they usually vent up into the cold attic, they are also one of the leading culprits of energy loss. In fact, a recent study determined that a single recessed light can cost you up to $30 a year in lost energy. Depending on the number of recessed lighting fixtures in your home, that can quickly add up to a lot of money.

Insulating recessed lights generally involves the installation of special boxes over the top of each light fixture in the attic. These boxes provide an air-tight seal, meaning the warm air in your home won't be able to escape up into the attic. And because they are made of rock wool, a noncombustible fiber, they do not present a fire hazard. Just be sure you understand the installation process before you get to work.

Weatherstrip Your Attic Door

Pull down stairs are a convenient way to gain access to your attic. Yet that hatchway also represents a significant source of air leaks, especially when there is any sort of gap between the edge of the hatch and the ceiling. Luckily, this problem can be easily addressed by installing compression bulb weatherstripping around the lip that the hatch rests on. 

Plug Any Gaps In Your Basement Walls

Basements are a commonly overlooked source of home air leaks. When cold air penetrates through gaps in your foundation, it often gets sucked upward into your home by the ventilation system. As a result, your furnace has to work harder to maintain the temperature you want.

When checking for air leaks, be especially vigilant around any plumbing pipes or vents that penetrate all the way through the basement walls. Gaps between 1/4" to 2" wide should be sealed using a can of low-expansion polyurethane foam. Anything narrower than this can be more effectively sealed using a tube of silicone caulk. To learn more, speak with a business like Nebraska Heating & Air.