As colder temperatures hit the Dayton area, this is a good time to go around home checking for cold air leaks. These leaks might seem minor, but they can cause significant problems. Use the following tips to find these leaks in your Dayton home.
Problems with Cold Air Leaks
When you have these leaks in your home, cold air from outside is able to enter all winter long. Your HVAC system then has to work much harder to keep your home comfortably warm, which can increase wear and tear. The increase in energy usage also causes much higher heating bills.
Checking for Leaks
You can check for cold air leaks in a few different ways, such as the following:
- Look for gaps, cracks and other openings in certain areas inside your home, including around doors, windows, electrical outlets, switch plates, baseboards and attic hatches. Seeing any daylight around window and door frames indicates that there’s an opening. You should also look for openings in the exterior of your home that could be letting cold air in, such as around outdoor faucets.
- Put a dollar bill in a door or window frame, then close the door or window. You should not be able to slide the dollar bill out easily. If you can do this, then you have a gap that is allowing air to leak inside.
- Get your hand damp, then feel around door and window frames for air leaks. The dampness should make it easy to feel cool air coming into your home in these areas.
When to Call a Technician
If you’re unable to find cold air leaks and you’re still losing heat in your home, have a professional HVAC technician do an inspection. Technicians can bring equipment over to check for leaks that are allowing cold air to enter your home. They can also provide you with guidance on sealing up these leaks.
If you need more help improving your home’s energy efficiency to keep your heating bills down, contact Ace Hardware Home Services. We offer high-quality HVAC maintenance, installation and repair services for Dayton homeowners.
Our goal is to help educate our customers in Dayton, Ohio about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems).
