Get Your Windows Ready for Winter
Are you ready for winter?
It?s fall. The days are getting shorter, the nights are getting cooler, and soon it will be cold. Are you ready for the wind and rain and snow of the fall and winter season? To stay warm this winter, you?ll need an efficient home, or much of your gas or electric bill will head out the window. If you want to avoid heating up the outdoors, you can look to your windows for help.
Windows are lovely things. They let the winter light in, brightening our days in this cold and dark season. However, they?re also poor insulators. While your walls keep your house at a good temperature, the function of windows is to let light in, not to insulate. If you want a well-insulated home, you?ll need to work with those windows to help them become better insulators.
Thick, Efficient Windows Are the Best Solution
The most expensive and best solution to poor window efficiency is to make sure that your windows are double-glazed. Many older homes have thin windows that let a lot of heat out. Some have storm windows that are single-glazed but slide over each other. This is also less than ideal. Unfortunately, installing new windows can be expensive. If you?re not able to do this, then you?ll need to look for other solutions while you save to fix up your windows.
Checking For Drafts
First, check around your windows to see whether they?re letting a lot of air in and out. How do the edges look? How is the base of the window? Is your sliding storm window collecting moisture on the inside? Close your windows and place a thin piece of paper near the edges. You can also place a draft snake across the leak. Draft snakes are tubes that are stuffed with fabric. You can place these across the bottoms of windows are doors, but they aren?t as efficient as caulking the actual leak.If it moves, you have air moving in and out of your house. You can usually seal window leaks by caulking around the window.
If you notice a lot of moisture around the window and rotten wood, or the air motion seems to be very large, it might be time to call in a professional to make sure that your windows and frames are structurally sound.
Placing Barriers Across the Windows
To prevent heat from moving out of the windows, you can place a barrier across the windows. If you have blackout blinds from the summer, these thick blinds work well as a window barrier during the winter. Keep them closed as much as possible. Cellular shades also act as a window barrier, providing some entry for the light while keeping windows from losing a lot of heat. You can also place a thick layer of window film plastic across your windows. This plastic acts as a temporary barrier to seal up the window for the winter and can be removed when the weather warms up.
The Blower Door Test
Perhaps your windows aren?t your biggest source of energy leakage. If you?d like to determine how to make your entire house more energy efficient, you can find the sources of leaks using a blower door test. This test is done by a professional and reveals where air moves in and out of your house.
When your windows are efficient, this saves you money during the long, cold winter. It also keeps your home warm. Even a small investment in your windows can pay off in smaller energy bills this winter.
Source: http://www.toptvstuff.com/blog/home-improvement/get-your-windows-ready-for-winter/
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