Do-It-Yourself Home Energy Audit
Are your energy bills at an all time high? Then it might be time to do an energy audit in your home to find out where you’re losing energy (and money).
What you’ll need: a large window fan, incense sticks
- Write a list of all the areas throughout your home where there may be drafts
- Close all exterior doors, windows, and fireplace flues.
- Turn off combustion appliances (like a gas-burning furnace or water heater – just remember to turn these back on after your audit!)
- Turn on all of the exhaust fans around your home (in your bathrooms and kitchen). If you don’t have exhaust fans, use the large window fan to blow air out of your home. The circulation of the fans increases infiltration through cracks and gaps in the housing structure – making them easier to find.
- Light an incense stick and pay attention to the way the plume of smoke wavers or flows. Direction of the smoke indicates the direction of air leakage.
- Walk around and pause in different areas of your home (refer back to the list you made in step 1) to see if you can detect unusual smoke movement.
- Inspect for air movement around wall switches and outlets.
- Check storm windows to make sure they’re fitted properly and not broken.
- See if your home’s windows and doors are snug in their frames. Apply pressure against them and see if they rattle when closed. Movement indicates possible gaps and the source of air leaks.
- Look for light entering through cracks around your windows and door frames.
- Once you’ve located the areas where there are air leaks, take the necessary steps to fix them!
Having trouble finding air leaks in your home? Need a professional to come in to help you fix them? Call A-Abel today!
