Tip 18 - The Great Escape |
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The gaps found around the windows and doors of the average American house are the equivalent of a hole in the wall measuring nine square feet.
There are cracks all over the house. Doors and windows don't quite meet their frames; tiny spaces where the walls almost join the floor; open areas around your electrical and plumbing outlets. Considerable energy -- heat in winter or cool air in summer -- escapes through them. Two simple weapons are caulking and weatherstripping. |
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ENERGY FACTS
- If every gas-heated home were properly caulked and weatherstripped, the natural gas saved would be enough to heat 4 million homes.
- Caulking and weatherstripping an electrically heated home can keep some 1,100 pounds of CO2 out of the air. So if 1,000 of these homes were weatherized, More than 1 million pounds of CO2 would be saved.
- About 15 percent of the energy used for heating homes warms air that is leaking through the cracks.
- Some are concerned that although weatherstripping may save energy, it will keep fresh air out of their homes. While it's true that some ventilation is necessary, it's really not a problem. A typical house may have twice as much fresh air as it needs.
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CAULKING VS. WEATHERSTRIPPING
- Cracks with no moving parts -- such as places where a wall meets the outside edge of a window frame, or where two other dissimilar materials meet -- can be sealed with caulk.
- Doors and windows that close into their frames can be sealed with weatherstripping, strips of felt, rubber, metal or plastic that compress and fill the spaces between the frame and the doors and windows.
- Some weatherstripping materials are self-sticking while others must be nailed. Still others are crafted so pieces on the frame and the door lock together when the door closes.
- The threshold is one of the trickiest places to weatherstrip. Special shoes and sweeps are available to stop these leaks.
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LEAK PATROL
- Some evening, when your home is at least 20°F warmer than the outdoors, hold a hand up around window and door frames. If you feel drafts they need weatherstripping.
- You also may use a smoking incense stick to find drafts. If the smoke dances, you have a place to seal. Note: Keep the burning tip away from all flammable objects.
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SIMPLE WAYS TO SAVE ENERGY
- Weatherstrip around doors and windows.
- Seal leaks around electric switches and outlets. Gaskets are available that fit behind the switch plates and outlets to prevent drafts. Don't underestimate this one.
- To hold loose window panes in place and seal them, use window putty (also called glazing compound), available at hardware stores.
- Install sweeps or shoes to stop air from sneaking in under outside doors. If the crack under your door is too wide for store-bought weatherstripping, make a cloth snake, fill it with sand or beans and lay it against the bottom of the door to block the air.
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