Winter or summer, one thing is almost certain – the temperature outside your home doesn't match the temperature within. But, unless your home is properly sealed and weatherproofed, the conditions outside have a good chance of affecting your comfort inside.
A leaky house also means extra energy consumption for your heating and air system, leading to higher utility bills and environmental stress. The solution is simple: Weatherproof your home with a few quick, easy methods that won't break your wallet.
1. Break Out the Caulk
If you measured every gap, crack, and air leak in your house, you would likely find you have the equivalent of a window open year-round. Perhaps the most important step you can take to combat drafts and keep the heat either inside or out is to load a caulk gun and hunt down the holes. Choose a quality caulk (you generally get what you pay for) and create a homemade draft detector to test for leaks with a hairdryer and a candle or stick of incense.
Where to Use: Start from the bottom of your home and work your way up. Look for holes in the floor where cables or wires enter the house. Run a bead of caulk along the edge of the foundation, where it meets the siding. Caulk along the subflooring, underneath the baseboard trim, whenever you have your finished flooring removed. Test windows and doors; even newer installations, if caulked with an inferior or improper product, may have caulk that's grown brittle, shrunk, or become loose. Check around any other openings in the walls, such as pipe outlets, the clothes dryer vent or incoming wires. Caulk around any protrusions through the ceiling into the attic, as well as in the attic walls or roofing.
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