Weatherproofing the home is not as difficult as some might believe. You don’t have to tear your home apart or spend thousands on professional in order to fix some existing problems. Reducing the amount of drafts that come into your home can be done with a few simple items and about an hour to spare. The items in a weatherization kit make sealing drafts simple, quick, and cost-effective.
A weatherization kit is filled with items that make it harder for the cold air to come in, and the warm air to go out.
- Shrink & Seal Window Kit – Place the plastic from this kit over the windows, smoothing out any wrinkles by passing a hair dryer over it, and it keeps the cold air from coming through the window.
- Replaceable Cord Weatherstrip – Also used for windows, caulking rope is applied around the edges of windows, to cover the cracks and gaps that can’t be reached with a caulking gun or tube. Insulating windows can reduce energy loss by 10 to 25 percent in the average home.
- M-D High Density Foam Tape 02253 – The closed cell foam tape reduces air infiltration from doors (and window sashes). Apply it to the clean, dry surface of door jambs, and cut off any excess. Doors make up as much as 11 percent of all heat loss in a home. Air easily slips in and out through doors that are not properly insulated.
- Foam Outlet and Switch Gaskets – These handy little tools are placed behind the plate covers of electrical outlets and switches that are located on exterior walls. Stopping air from escaping here eliminates about 5 percent of total home energy loss.
All of the items in a weatherization kit are low-cost, making the kit itself a low-cost investment. It is available for about $11, and pays for itself easily with the amount of energy that is saved during winter.