There’s nothing comfier and more relaxing than enjoying a snowy winter from the inside of your warm home. Although this is a lovely experience, there can be some drawbacks to living in a snowy area during the coldest months.
If your home lacks proper insulation, you could experience some high energy bills and temperature discrepancies in the different rooms of your house. Cold drafts can easily lead to you not being able to relax in your home during the cold months.
There are some key areas in every house that need to be insulated properly to prevent heat loss.
The Attic
Warm air rises, so let’s start at the topmost room in your home. Homeowners often ignore attics when insulating their house, which means that significant amounts of heat end up lost. Whenever this happens, your heating systems need to keep chugging out warm air to replace the lost air, which makes your utility bills skyrocket.
When you insulate your attic, especially its floor, you can keep the warm air centered in your living space. Insulating attic walls will also reduce heat leakage into the outside world.
Air Ducts
The ductwork moves the warm air throughout your home during the colder months. If your air ducts have leaky spots, you may notice cold spots or uneven temperatures between the rooms and floors in your home. This can lead to higher energy bills as your HVAC system will be trying to make up for the differences.
If you want your home’s heating to run more efficiently, proper ductwork insulation is a must. It will improve comfort, save money, and also improve the quality of air in your home. If you have any respiratory issues or allergies, you will benefit from having insulated air ducts.
Windows
One of the biggest culprits of air leakages is windows that lack proper insulation. Whenever there are small gaps in your windows installations, warm air leaves your home, and cold air enters. You can replace loose and damaged windows weatherstripping, but buying a windows replacement is always the best option for insulation.
Modern windows are designed to prevent air leakage and limit heat loss. They will keep the warm air inside of your home and help reduce condensation and frost.
Doors
Doors are the second biggest culprit when it comes to leaking conditioned air. Whenever your door has issues with its weatherstripping, the door sweep, and other components that create cracks, the warm air easily escapes your house, and cold air seeps inside.
As with windows, you can replace any of these components, but replacing your door with a modern one is often the best solution. You should also contact a professional carpenter when installing a new door, as they can realign the door perfectly so that there are no gaps.
Exterior and Foundation Walls
Walls create a barrier between your home and the outside world; if this barrier is compromised due to air leaks, you will start noticing drafts in certain areas of your home, uneven temperatures, and higher utility bills.
If your exterior walls are insulated properly, you can avoid losing conditioned air. Insulating foundation walls will also prevent the buildup of moisture in your home.
Garage
If your home has a garage that you use often, you might want to consider insulating it. Garages are often left unfinished in newer homes, which makes them prone to air leakage and cold temperatures.
If you mainly use your garage to park your car and store items, insulation may not be required.
The Crawl Space
The crawl space is often left overlooked when people insulate their homes. This is actually a critical point in your home, and if you haven’t insulated it, you could experience higher energy bills, less comfort, and mold buildup.
Crawl space insulation is a must for protecting you during wintertime. It blocks animals from coming into your home, protects you from moisture buildup, and prevents high energy bills.
What Are the Signs That You Need to Replace Your Insulation?
Some of the most common signs of damaged insulation include high monthly utility bills, uneven temperatures in your home, and lower air quality. You might also experience moisture and mold buildup within the walls of your home.
If you want to improve your home’s insulation, YourHomeFix can get you in touch with the best professionals in your area and set you up with a free inspection!