Drafts and air leaks can really rob you of home comfort, especially if you have an older home. Not only do they make rooms uncomfortable, they lower efficiency and make your furnace or boiler overwork to do their job, which could lead to potentially costly emergency heating system repairs and a shorter lifespan for your heating equipment.

The question is how do you eliminate – or at least reduce – those drafts in your New Jersey home? To get you started, here are 10 ways to reduce air leaks suggested by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). You can find more energy efficiency tips at their website: www.energy.gov.

1. Caulk and weather strip doors and windows that leak air.
2. Seal air leaks where plumbing, ducts, or electrical wiring comes through walls, floors, and ceilings.
3. Install foam gaskets behind outlet and switch plates on walls.
4. Inspect stained and dirty insulation for air leaks and mold. Seal leaks with low-expansion spray foam made for this purpose and install house flashing if needed.
5. Look for stains on your ceiling paint and carpet, which may indicate air leaks at interior wall/ceiling joints and wall/floor joists; caulk them.
6. Cover single-pane windows with storm windows or replace them with more efficient double-pane, low-emissivity windows.
7. Use foam sealant on larger gaps around windows, baseboards, and other places where air may leak out.
8. Replace door bottoms and thresholds with ones that have pliable door sweeps.
9. Keep the fireplace flue damper tightly closed when not in use.
10. Seal air leaks around fireplace chimneys, furnaces, and gas-fired water heater vents with fire-resistant materials such as sheet metal or sheetrock and furnace cement caulk.

It’s a good idea to check for drafts in your NJ home periodically; it may not be as well insulated as you think! Consider investing in an energy audit for your home, too, so you can take full advantage of the amazing energy savings from your high efficiency heating equipment.

Want more cold weather energy saving ideas? Give the home comfort pros at Fredericks a call today!