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Oct
21

Protect Your Home from Winter's Wrath With These Simple Chores

Protect Your Home From Winter's Wrath

As fall starts to settle in, it’s hard not to think about the fact that winter is just around the corner. But now that the weather is cooling off, it’s time to start preparing your house for the winter. This means that you need to concentrate on how your house holds in heat and how it will stand up against winter’s snow and ice.

Conduct an Energy Audit

Start by taking a look at how well your house is holding in heat. For many families in Ohio, household heating bills are a major part of the winter budget. The better insulated your home is, the more likely it is that you can keep your energy costs down. While there are plenty of ways to check for air leaks on your own, the most efficient way to do it is to get a home energy audit.

A home energy audit is performed by a professional who will scan your home using infrared cameras and other tools to check for leaks. These audits can also identify other issues, such as outdated appliances or light fixtures that are using too much energy. Because so many households spend the majority of their energy budget on heating and cooling costs, however, these audits focus a lot of attention on the condition of doors, windows and insulation.

With a home energy audit it’s possible to determine the exact locations where heat is escaping from your home. Once you know where these locations are, you can take steps to correct the problem. Mike Sikora’s Dayton Home Improvement is capable of making many of the repairs that are suggested by a home energy audit. These include replacing doors and windows, improving weather-stripping and, most importantly, replacing and/or installing insulation in the attic.

Make Sure Your Insulation is Intact

Maintain Your Attic Insulation

Even without a home energy audit, every home owner needs to take time during the autumn to inspect the insulation in their attic and other areas of their home. The heat and stresses on a house during the summer can cause insulation to wear out and become corroded. If you spot any holes or tears in the insulation, it needs to be replaced. Damaged insulation not only allows heat to escape, it also eliminates a barrier between the elements and the structure of a home, leading to maintenance issues later on.

At Mike Sikora’s Dayton Home Improvement, we use Owens Corning Blown-In PINK Fiberglas, which installs much faster than traditional attic insulation. It also exhibits superior resistance to heat flow, ensuring superb insulating power that will reduce your energy consumption, saving you money and making your home more eco-friendly.

If you need home repairs or insulation installed before winter hits, give us a call. Your home will be better prepared to deal with the harsh winter cold, and you’ll have peace of mind knowing your home is set and that you’re saving money on your energy bills.

 

Jan
13

The Benefits of Attic-blown Insulation

The attic is one of the weakest points in your home's energy envelope for three reasons. First, heat rises, so during the winter, heated air rises out of your home and cold air sinks in. Second, most attics have little ventilation, so during the summer, heat builds up inside your attic from the sun beating down on your roof, and this heat radiates down into your home. Third, most home builders leave the attic poorly insulated both to add storage space and to cut their construction costs.

If you're looking for a home improvement project that will slash your heating and cooling costs, blown in attic insulation will probably give you the best return on your money. The insulation works just like its name suggests — a layer of insulation is literally blown throughout your attic and into every nook and cranny. When the insulation settles, instead of having a thin layer of ceiling between your home and hostile attic temperatures, you have several inches of high quality insulation preventing heat loss. Most homes can be insulated for under $2,000, and if you can permanently slash your energy bills by 10 percent or more, the investment will very quickly pay for itself.

Attic Blown Insulation

In addition to the financial benefits, blown in installation is also one of the easiest home improvement projects. Insulation is delivered in a truck that's almost like a fire truck but with an insulation hose instead of a water hose. The hose is run up into your attic and the insulation is directly applied to it's existing surfaces. There's no need to tear up your walls or ceilings, and there's no clean up afterwards.

You also don't have to worry about losing any existing utility from your attic. If you use it for storage, you'll just need to temporarily remove your belongings. Once the insulation is added, new floorboards can be installed over the insulation to give you the same storage space and crawl space access to your heating and cooling ducts.

To get a quote for attic blown insulation for your home, contact Mike Sikora's Dayton Home Improvement today.

Jan
06

How Adding Insulation to Your Home Can Cut Down on Energy Costs

All homeowners have to deal with the burden of paying exorbitantly high amounts for their heating and cooling bills throughout the year. And while there are plenty of home improvement projects homeowners can take on that may improve their overall energy efficiency (installing new windows, upgrading the HVAC system, etc.), many of these projects tend to require a large up-front investment.

Fortunately, there's one option for cutting down on home energy costs that doesn't have to cost an arm and a leg: updating and adding insulation. This project can help you save up to $300 per year on your energy costs. Read on to explore a few noteworthy insulation options.

Fiberglass Insulation

Photo: Wikimedia Commons

Fiberglass Insulation

Fiberglass insulation is one of the most common types used in homes, perhaps because it's among the most affordable yet effective options. Not to mention, because traditional fiberglass insulation typically comes in large rolls, it can easily be cut to fit any space (and can even be a DIY job for experienced homeowners). 

Ideally, fiberglass insulation should be used between joists, beams, and in between fitted studs for the best results. If you've got any unfinished walls or new drywall going up in your home, this is a great option to consider.

Spray foam insulation

Photo: Wikimedia Commons

Spray-On Insulation

Another popular home insulation option these days is that of spray-on insulation. This particular type of insulation typically requires installation by a professional, as the material itself needs to be carefully sprayed on using a pressure-controlled container. Either way, spray-on insulation is ideal for areas with irregularly-shaped spaces that would otherwise be difficult to properly insulate with fiberglass insulation rolls. It's also a viable choice for adding insulation to unfinished areas of the home.

Attic-Blown Cellulose Insulation

Photo: Healthy Building Science

Attic-Blown Insulation

Finally, attic-blown insulation is specifically made for use in attics and crawl spaces that are otherwise not very well protected from the outdoor elements. This type of insulation also requires a professional, as it comes in small pieces of cellulose that need to be carefully blown into the desired space.

If you've got an attic with poor insulation, you could be wasting a lot of money. Consider having blown-in insulation added to your existing attic space for a significant energy savings.

These are just a few of the most popular insulation options worth considering for homeowners who want to improve energy efficiency within their homes without spending a fortune in the process. Be sure to give some of these options a try for yourself and begin enjoying the cost savings right away. No matter which type of insulation you're interested in, Dayton Home Improvement – Mike Sikora can help.

Jan
15

It's Not Too Late To Winterize Your Home

The Midwest has already received its first couple rounds of snow, complete with ice and biting temperatures. Maybe that list of to-do’s you had before winter still has a few items on it, and as a result, you could be losing energy – and money – heating your home. Well, it’s not too late to save yourself some of that money… after all, winter still lasts until March. Here is where to start:

Plug those gaps. If you can feel cold air entering your home from gaps in your window frames, doors, outlets or dryer vents, that means you’re losing precious heating dollars. However, this is one of the easiest problems to identify… as simple as feeling for a draft by all your windows, or around the cracks of your doors. Getting rid of the gaps in your doors can be as simple as putting in some weather-stripping.

For gaps in windows, caulking can be a good solution. Although it is best to apply it before winter when the weather is above 40 degrees, you can always try to take advantage of a break in the cold snap. If you’re in a pinch, make sure you’re storing water-soluble caulk at room temperature for a full day. Blowing a hot air dryer on the surface you’re caulking will make the surface warmer and help make sure the caulk stays in place. In extremely cold temperatures, a high-performance polyurethane caulking product is helpful. Plastic window film insulation kits – while temporary – are a good way to stop warm air from leaking from the inside.

Wrap your pipes. The US Department of Energy estimates that up to one-third of the average homeowner’s utility dollars are spent on heating water. Keep the water in your hot water tank – and the pipes leading from it – warm by wrapping them with special insulation.

Reverse your ceiling fans. Here’s another easy one. Reversing the direction on your ceiling fans will circulate the warm air on the ceiling back down to your living areas.

Have your furnace checked. A well-tuned furnace saves on energy and energy dollars because a clean heating system doesn’t have to work as hard. Make sure your furnace is in good working order by having a heating professional inspect it once a year. You ideally want to do this at the beginning of cold weather season, but it is not too late to do it. You should also be sure to change your furnace filter regularly – heating professionals recommend doing so about once a month, especially in the very hot and cool months.

So, even if you missed the winter deadline, you don’t have to sweat how much money is being wasted if you take care of a few small things… even now. Even if you have to bundle up a little bit, it’s worth the effort for peace of mind and more importantly, money saved.

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