Your October Assignment

October Assignment: Find Air Leaks & Save Energy

Your October assignment is to tackle all of the outdoor and indoor home improvements by sealing up all of those cracks and gaps. These gaps will cost you valuable energy dollars. If not addressed, small spaces can turn into a large hole in the side of your house, so spend a few bucks wisely on supplies and potentially save hundreds of dollars this season.

October Assignment: Indoors

Start by checking the exterior walls of the house by feeling around the windows and doors for drafts. If you are having a hard time locating the drafts, light a stick of incense and hold it by the window and door frame. If the smoke is wavering, you may have an air leak. Remove all of the outlet covers on the exterior walls, place a pre-cut foam gasket on the backside and replace the cover. This will give you a nice tight seal and stop the air from coming in and out.

If there is a large open void around the receptacle, you can fill those in with expandable foam. If you find air leaks around the windows but notice it is coming in where the window moves up and down within the sash, you have the option of temporarily sealing that window shut for the season to stop that draft. Look for temporary caulk that’s removable and make sure not to seal all windows shut in the event one needs to be opened during an emergency.

October Assignment: Outdoors

The same thing goes for the outside of your house. Check around windows and doors to make sure that the caulk around the framework has not dried and cracked. If it has, removes the old caulk with a blade or a caulk softener and then spray the opening with bleach and water solution to kill any mold that might be growing back there. Let the area dry thoroughly and reapply a paintable latex caulk.