How to Keep Your Home Comfortable Despite Exterior Influences

Making your home as efficient as possible is going to improve your family’s comfort and save you quite a bit of money. The average homeowner spends hundreds of dollars a month on heating and cooling, and those bills add up over time. Here are a few tactics and strategies that you can use to improve the efficiency of your home and reduce your carbon footprint.

Seal the Openings

Some experts believe that around 20 percent of all air leakage in residential homes takes place around doors and windows. Even if you have relatively new doors and windows, there could be unwanted gaps and pinholes around the frames. In addition to sealing the windows with all-purpose caulking, you should also consider investing in a few draft excluders. A draft excluder is nothing more than a thin strip of foam that attaches to the bottom of a door to keep out drafts.

Strategically Use Fans and Windows

Properly using all of the windows and ceiling fans throughout your home will have a major impact on the interior temperature. Cracking open the windows and setting the fans to spin counterclockwise could lower the temperature by quite a few degrees during the warm summer months. When it is cold outside, your fans should be on the lowest setting and spinning clockwise to push the warm air down. You also need to invest in thick curtains that further insulate the windows.

Schedule Biannual HVAC Service Calls

Most HVAC contractors agree that heating and cooling systems must be serviced at least twice a year. Well before the weather starts to cool off, you should contact a local heating system repair and service company to have your furnace thoroughly inspected and tested. During the first few weeks of spring, you can schedule a follow-up appointment to have the ducts and outdoor condenser cleaned. Those contractors can also help you avoid major breakdowns by catching minor issues early on.

Upgrade to Blow-in Insulation

Traditional rolls of insulation only come in a handful of sizes, and that can result in unwanted gaps that allow air to escape. Blow-in insulation is made from recycled fiberglass that clings to almost any surface imaginable. It can be used to completely insulate empty spaces or improve the current insulation. Many companies offer discounts on their blow-in insulation services during their slow seasons.

If you are still struggling with unmanageable energy bills during the hottest and coldest months of the year, then you might need to schedule a home energy audit. An experienced auditor will carefully inspect your property for any efficiency issues that might be impacting your monthly bills.