8 Easy Ways to Seal Air Leaks Around the House

Chip Plumley

Prudential Fox & Roach REALTORS^®

For what the typical family wastes every year on air leaks--about $350--you can plug energy-robbing gaps, start saving money, and enjoy a more comfortable home.

A typical family spends about a third of its annual heating and cooling budget-roughly $350-on air that leaks into or out of the house through unintended gaps and cracks. With the money you waste in just one year, you can plug many of those leaks yourself. It's among the most cost-effective things you can do to conserve energy and increase comfort, according to Energy Star. Start in the attic, since that's where you'll find some of the biggest energy drains. Then tackle the basement, to prevent cold air that enters there from being sucked into upstairs rooms. Finally, seal air leaks in the rest of the house. Here are eight places to start.

1. Insulate around recessed lights

Most recessed lights have vents that open into the attic, a direct route for heated or cooled air to escape. When you consider that many homes have 30 or 40 of these fixtures, it's easy to see why researchers at the Pennsylvania Housing Research/Resource Center pinpointed them as a leading cause of household air leaks. Lights labeled ICAT, for "insulation contact and air tight," are already sealed; look for the label next to the bulb. If you don't see it, assume yours leaks. An airtight baffle ($8-$30 at the home center) is a quick fix. Remove the bulb, push the baffle up into the housing, then replace the bulb.

2. Plug open stud cavities

Most of your house probably has an inner skin of drywall or plaster between living space and unheated areas. But builders in the past often skipped this cover behind knee walls (partial-height walls where the roof angles down into the top floor), above dropped ceilings or soffits, and above angled ceilings over stairs.
Up in the attic, you may need to push insulation away to see if the stud cavities are open. If they are, seal them with unfaced fiberglass insulation ($1.30 a square foot) stuffed into plastic garbage bags; the bag is key to blocking air flow. Close large gaps with scraps of drywall or pieces of reflective foil insulation ($2 a square foot). Once you've covered the openings, smooth the insulation back into place. To see these repairs in action, consult Energy Star's DIY guide to air sealing.

3. Close gaps around flues and chimneys

Building codes require that wood framing be kept at least one inch from metal flues and two inches from brick chimneys. But that creates gaps where air can flow through. Cover the gaps with aluminum flashing ($12) cut to fit and sealed into place with high-temperature silicone caulk ($20). To keep insulation away from the hot flue pipe, form a barrier by wrapping a cylinder of flashing around the flue, leaving a one-inch space in between. To maintain the spacing, cut and bend a series of inch-deep tabs in the cylinder's top and bottom edges.

4. Weatherstrip the attic access door

A quarter-inch gap around pull-down attic stairs or an attic hatch lets through the same amount of air as a bedroom heating duct. Seal it by caulking between the stair frame and the rough opening, or by installing foam weatherstripping around the perimeter of the hatch opening. Or you can buy a pre-insulated hatch cover kit, such as the Energy Guardian from ESS Energy Products ($150).

5. Squirt foam in the medium-size gaps

Once the biggest attic gaps are plugged, move on to the medium-size ones. Low-expansion polyurethane foam in a can is great for plugging openings 1/4-inch to three inches wide, such as those around plumbing pipes and vents. A standard 12-ounce can ($5) is good for 250 feet of bead about half an inch thick. The plastic straw applicator seals shut within two hours of the first use, so to get the most mileage out of a can, squirt a lubricant such as WD-40 onto a pipe cleaner and stuff that into the applicator tube between uses.

6. Caulk the skinny gaps

Caulk makes the best gap-filler for openings less than 1/4-inch wide, such as those cut around electrical boxes. Silicone costs the most ($8 a tube) but works better next to nonporous materials, such as metal flashing, or where there are temperature extremes, as in attics. Acrylic latex caulk ($2 a tube) is less messy to work with and cleans up with water.

7. Plug gaps in the basement

Gaps low on a foundation wall matter if you're trying to fix a wet basement, but only those above the outside soil level let air in. Seal those with the same materials you'd use in an attic: caulk for gaps up to 1/4-inch wide and spray foam for wider ones. Use high-temperature caulk around vent pipes that get hot, such as those for the furnace or water heater. Shoot foam around wider holes for wires, pipes, and ducts that pass through basement walls to the outside.

In most older houses with basements, air seeps in where the house framing sits on the foundation. Spread a bead of caulk between the foundation and the sill plate (the wood immediately above the foundation), and along the top and bottom edges of the rim joist (the piece that sits atop the sill plate).

8. Tighten up around windows and doors

In the main living areas of your home, the most significant drafts tend to occur around windows and doors. If you have old windows, caulking and adding new weatherstripping goes a long way toward tightening them up. Bronze weatherstripping ($12 for 17 feet) lasts for decades but is time-consuming to install, while some self-stick plastic types are easy to put on but don't last very long. Adhesive-backed EPDM rubber ($8 for 10 feet) is a good compromise, rated to last at least 10 years. Nifty gadgets called pulley seals ($9 a pair) block air from streaming though the holes where cords disappear into the frames.

Weatherstripping also works wonders on doors. If a draft comes in at the bottom, install a new door sweep ($9).

Before working in the attic, take some precautions

Try to do attic work on a cool day. Wear protective gear: disposable clothes, gloves, and a double-elastic mask or half-face respirator. Bring along a droplight with a fluorescent bulb, plus at least two pieces of plywood big enough to span two or three joists to support you as you work. To save trips up and down a ladder, try to move up all of the materials you need before you get started. One warning: If you find vermiculite insulation, hold off until you've had it checked for asbestos; your health department or air-quality agency can recommend a lab.

Chip Plumley can be reached at (610) 444-9090 or (610) 357-8635. Prudential Fox & Roach is an independently owned and operated member of Prudential Real Estate Affiliates, Inc., a Prudential Financial company. Equal Housing Opportunity.

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7 Tips for Saving Energy with Home Lighting

Chip Plumley

Prudential Fox & Roach REALTORS^®

Lighting eats up as much as 20% of your annual electric bill, but using energy-efficient bulbs and making other simple changes can cut lighting costs dramatically.

Lighting is one of the biggest energy gobblers in your house, eating up between 10% and 20% of your total electric bill. But it's also one area of the home where a minimal effort can yield major returns. Simply replacing standard incandescent light bulbs with compact fluorescents can lower operating costs by as much as 75% per bulb. And in places where you can't-or don't want to-switch to CFLs, you can use higher-efficiency incandescents and even make your existing conventional lighting cheaper to operate. When new federal legislation takes effect in 2012, all light bulbs will have to meet tougher energy-efficiency standards. But with a few small changes, you can start saving money right now.

For the greatest savings, switch to compact fluorescents

CFLs remain the go-to choice for energy efficiency. They last longer and consume less electricity than a standard incandescent. A 13-watt CFL, for example, gives off the same amount of light as a 60-watt incandescent and burns for 10,000 hours, compared with 1,000 hours for the conventional bulb. A typical CFL saves about $30 in operating costs over its lifetime.

Early CFLs didn't always deliver on light quality or convenience, but aesthetic performance has improved vastly in recent years. They now come in warm, neutral, and cool "colors," and major manufacturers like GE have started enclosing the telltale spiral in a conventional bulb shape so it's less obtrusive.

You get the biggest bang for your buck with CFLs in places where you would otherwise use incandescent bulbs: floor and table lamps and standard overhead fixtures. They last longer when they're not flipped on and off constantly, so they're especially good in rooms that see a lot of activity throughout the day, such as a kitchen or a playroom.

A couple of caveats: CFLs can be glary, so they're not the best choice in downward-pointing fixtures like chandeliers, and most don't work with dimmers or timers. Because the bulbs contain mercury, they can't be thrown out in the regular trash. If you bought them at a home center, you should be able to return them there for recycling, or log on to recycleabulb.com to find a disposal center near you.

Cost and savings: Expect to pay $2 to $15 for a CFL, versus 50 cents to $1 for a comparable incandescent, but the CFL will last at least 10 times longer and cost up to 75% less to operate.

Make your existing incandescents less expensive to run

By simply lowering the wattage of an incandescent bulb by 15 watts-from 75 to 60, for example-you can knock 15% off the operating cost. And you may not even notice the difference in brightness. "A small reduction in wattage isn't discernible to the eye," says Brett Sawyer, a consultant who blogs about sustainable home design. If the light is on a dimmer, for every 10% you lower the brightness, you'll double the bulb's life.

Try this next weekend:

Replace your most-used bulbs with ones at least 10 watts lower. If you don't notice the difference, then replace all the incandescents you can with lower-wattage bulbs. Combine that with CFLs in selected fixtures, and you'll achieve a "light layering" effect that saves money without compromising light quality, and without a hefty upfront investment.

Cost and savings: For every 15-watt reduction, you reduce energy use by 15%. And a $10 dimmer, once installed, costs nothing to use.

Keep an eye on new bulb technologies

Spurred on by new energy requirements set to go into effect in 2012, bulb manufacturers are working feverishly to come up with more efficient versions of the standard incandescent. Presently, companies including GE, Sylvania, and Philips offer high-efficiency incandescent and halogen bulbs that use less energy than standard incandescents while delivering the same light quality. And research is proceeding apace on how to bring the dramatic energy efficiency of LED technology to residential products. These lights, which require very little current and last even longer than CFLs, are prohibitively expensive for home use (except in certain applications like under-cabinet strip lighting), but that's likely to change in the coming years.

Think beyond the bulb to save on lighting costs

Changing bulbs is one way to reduce your lighting bill, but it's not the only way.

Motion sensors: Great in rooms where the occupants can't be counted on to turn off the light, such as a kids' playroom. Devices cost $15 to $50 and take about an hour to install.

Door-jamb switches: Best in a pantry or closet; opening the door activates the light. As much a convenience as it is an energy saver-as long as you remember to close the door. Devices starts at about $15.

Windows: You'd be surprised at how much a simple window cleaning can instantly improve natural light.

Energy Star fixtures: Designed for CFL and LED lights, these can save up to $70 a year in energy costs. Go to energystar.gov to find links to manufacturers.

Chip Plumley can be reached at (610) 444-9090 or (610) 357-8635. Prudential Fox & Roach is an independently owned and operated member of Prudential Real Estate Affiliates, Inc., a Prudential Financial company. Equal Housing Opportunity.

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Water Heaters: 5 Tips for Saving Energy

Chip Plumley

Prudential Fox & Roach REALTORS^®

Water heating accounts for up to 25% of household energy costs, but there are inexpensive things you can do to increase efficiency and reduce energy bills.

In the fight to save energy, your water heater is a born loser. That's because most houses in this country have a conventional storage-type water heater. That 50-gallon tank in the basement wants to keep water hot, so it will be ready whenever you turn on the tap. But as the water sits, it naturally begins to cool down, a process known as standby heat loss. When it does, the burner or heating element kicks on to warm it up again, in a constantly repeating cycle. According to the Department of Energy, water heating accounts for 14% to 25% of your household's total energy costs. But there are easy, low-cost steps you can take to reduce standby losses-and your hot-water bill, too. Try these five, and you'll start seeing a difference right away.

Wrap your heater in a blanket

Just as you wouldn't send little Susie out into the cold without a jacket, your water heater needs help to stay warm, especially if it's in an unheated space. A fiberglass insulating blanket can cut heat loss by 25% to 40% and save 4% to 9% on the average water-heating bill of $308, according to the American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy (ACEEE).

Insulating blankets are cheap, usually less than $30 at the home center, and it's easy to install one yourself. Follow the included directions, and take care not to block the thermostat on an electric water heater or the air inlet, exhaust, or top of the tank on a gas unit.

If your water heater is fairly new, check the manufacturer's recommendations first. Many newer units already have insulating foam built in; on these models, an after-market jacket could block a critical component.

Install low-flow fixtures

One of the surest ways to cut hot water costs is to use less of it. According to the ACEEE, a family of four uses 700 gallons of hot water per week. By installing low-flow showerheads and faucet aerators, which cost as little as $10 to $20 each, you can cut hot water consumption by 25% to 60%. These devices are easy to install and will save 14,000 gallons of hot water annually, plus the energy it takes to heat it. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency estimates the average U.S. household water bill at $474 a year. By cutting water consumption in half, you'll save more than $200 annually.

Turn down the temperature

Many water heaters come from the factory with the temperature set needlessly high. For every 10 degrees you turn it down, you'll save another 3% to 5% on your bill, according to ACEEE. A setting between 120 and 140 degrees is plenty hot for most uses. Just don't go below 120 degrees, which could lead to the unsafe growth of bacteria inside the tank.

If the thermostat on your water heater doesn't have a numbered gauge, put it midway between the "low" and "medium" marks. Wait a day, then measure the temperature at the tap with a standard cooking thermometer. Keep adjusting this way until you hit your target temperature.

Drain the sediment

Tanks naturally build up sediment, which reduces the unit's efficiency and makes it more expensive to operate. Imagine an inch of sand inside your water heater. When you get a layer at the bottom of the tank, you have to heat up that sediment before you can heat up the water.

Draining the tank is relatively easy. Turn off the water and power to the unit (set the burner on a gas unit to "pilot"). Then connect a garden hose to the spigot at the base of the tank. With the other end of the hose at a lower spot outside the house where discharging hot water poses no danger, carefully lift the pressure-relief valve at the top of the tank and turn on the spigot; water should begin to flow. While most manufacturers recommend draining the tank once or twice a year, you don't have to drain it completely; in fact, the Department of Energy recommends draining less water more often-just a quart every three months.

Insulate exposed hot-water pipes

Like blanketing the tank, wrapping hot-water pipes with insulation reduces standby losses. Water arrives at the tap 2 to 4 degrees warmer, which means you won't have to stand around as long waiting for it to heat up, thus saving water, energy, and money. While this isn't an expensive job to do yourself-six-foot-long, self-sealing sleeves easily slip over pipes and cost about $2.50 each-it could take some effort, depending on where your hot water pipes are. Exposed pipes in the basement are an easy target, but if pipes are in a hard-to-reach crawl space or inside walls, it might not be worth the trouble.

Chip Plumley can be reached at (610) 444-9090 or (610) 357-8635. Prudential Fox & Roach is an independently owned and operated member of Prudential Real Estate Affiliates, Inc., a Prudential Financial company. Equal Housing Opportunity.

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Make Sure Your Home Stands Tall In A Competitive Market!

Chip Plumley

Prudential Fox & Roach REALTORS^®

Home sellers today must convince a new era of buyers returning to the market that their homes stand for value and quality.

The time-honored open house event remains a terrific way to expose your property to many consumers and gain distinction from the competition. While your real estate professional will advertise and manage the event, it is up to you to ensure that your home is seen in the best light possible. Remember, you only have one chance to make a first impression, so approach your open house event as your property’s showcase. Here are several ways to make your property shine, inside and out.

Start with the outside. Do a visual check of the front of the house from across the street. Does your property have curb appeal? It should look inviting, with a trimmed lawn and flowerbed and a freshly painted front door. Polish door handles and knockers and replace worn items such as a rusty doorbell. Consider adding a new doormat and flowering plants at the entrance. Don’t forget to wash your windows and clean any oil or rust spots from the driveway.

Be sure to inspect the side and back yards. Add some flowering plants to the back as well. Clean and rearrange the outdoor furniture to look inviting. Put away gardening tools, and tidy around the grill area.

Now focus on the inside of the home where cleanliness, space, smell and lighting are vital. First get your house in tip-top condition by cleaning and clearing away clutter. Steam clean and vacuum the carpet. Make sure your floors are waxed and shiny. Touch up nicks on walls and make sure the porcelain sinks and tubs and metallic fixtures shine.

Be conscious of any lingering odors such as smoke, pets or strong-smelling foods. You may need to air out your home prior to your open house event. Consider grinding fresh lemons in the garbage disposal. And don’t forget to empty all trash containers.

Look at your countertops in the kitchen and bathrooms and the tops of your bureaus. Do they seem cluttered? Clear away and store as much as possible. You want your home to seem spacious.

Next, set the mood. Let your prospective buyers picture your home as their own. Rearrange the furniture so that rooms look more spacious, or consider removing furniture and accessories.

Lighting is also important to creating a desirable atmosphere. Bright lights provide a cheerful environment and make a small space appear larger. Pull back all the drapes and open the blinds. Turn on all the lights. Make sure all light sockets have fresh bulbs. Use softer lights for rooms in which you want a warm, cozy feeling.

Don’t forget little touches such as fresh flowers, lighted candles in the bathrooms, new logs in the fireplace, or a bowl of fresh fruit on the kitchen counter. You may even want to set your dining-room table with color-coordinated table settings.

Home buying is steeped in emotion. Sellers shouldn’t rely on buyers to use their imagination; they must capture buyers’ imagination. Remember that buyers may see seven or eight homes in a single day. The most memorable home will be the one that seemed the brightest, the most spacious and the most cheerful.

Chip Plumley can be reached at (610) 444-9090 or (610) 357-8635. Prudential Fox & Roach is an independently owned and operated member of Prudential Real Estate Affiliates, Inc., a Prudential Financial company. Equal Housing Opportunity.

This article provides general information about tax laws and consequences, but is not intended to be relied upon by readers as tax or legal advice applicable to particular transactions or circumstances. Readers should consult a tax professional for such advice, and are reminded that tax laws may vary by jurisdiction.

ChipPlumley.com

Tax Credits For Replacing Windows, Doors and Skylights.

Chip Plumley

Prudential Fox & Roach REALTORS^®

If money seems to be escaping through drafty windows, doors, and skylights, this federal tax credit might make energy-efficient replacements more affordable.

Does it feel like money is escaping through your home's drafty windows, doors, and skylights? You might be able to keep at least some of that cash in your pocket by taking advantage of federal energy tax credits for retrofitting your house with qualified energy-efficient replacements. You can claim a tax credit of up to $1,500 for upgrading the windows, exterior doors, and skylights in your primary residence during 2009 and 2010.

The credit is based on 30% of the cost of materials, so a $5,000 purchase would max it out. But a tax credit alone isn't reason enough to start calling contractors. Do a little homework first. The true value of replacing aging windows, doors, and skylights isn't always an open-and-shut case.

Follow the 15-year rule for windows

A good rule of thumb for window replacement: Don't bother if they're less than 15 years old, says Jim Rooney, a home inspector in Annapolis, Md. The savings on your energy bills likely will be negligible since window technology hasn't changed that radically and the integrity of your windows should still be intact. Shoddy installation or poor manufacturing may call for exceptions to the 15-year rule. Windows that are 20, 30, or more years old are prime candidates for replacement.

Most of your focus should be on windows, since they're more numerous, but skylights are notorious for energy loss too, not to mention water leaks. Exterior doors tend to outlast windows, so keep them unless the upgrade is purely for aesthetic reasons. Besides, weather stripping and snug sweeps can boost the energy efficiency of exterior doors for a whole lot less money.

Adding up the costs-and savings

With windows, doors, and skylights, you get what you pay for. Expect to shell out between $500 and $1,000 per window including installation, or about $10,000 total for a moderately sized house of about 2,000 square feet. New energy-credit-qualified doors and skylights are also in the $500 to $1,000 range, including installation.

The National Fenestration Rating Council, says products on the higher end of the cost scale are usually better constructed and more energy efficient. NFRC is a non-profit organization that administers the rating and labeling system for the energy performance of windows, doors, and skylights.

It could take years to recoup the upfront costs, but you should see an immediate reduction in your energy bills. In general, you'll save $126 to $465 a year if single-pane windows in a 2,000 square foot house are replaced with tax-credit-eligible windows, according to the Efficient Windows Collaborative, a trade group. That's 15% to 40% off the typical energy bill.

Do my replacements qualify?

A label alone doesn't guarantee your new windows, doors, and skylights qualify for the energy tax credit, but it does provide critical information related to eligibility. To qualify, windows, doors, and skylights must have a U-factor of 0.30 or less and a Solar Heat Gain Coefficient (SHGC) of 0.30 or less. The U-factor measures how well a product prevents heat from escaping, and the SHGC gauges how well a product blocks heat from the sun. Labels also carry information on light transmission, air leakage, and condensation resistance.

Herron, of the NFRC, says about 80% to 85% of the manufacturers in North America provide NFRC labels. All Energy Star qualified windows carry an NFRC label, according to Energy Star, a joint program of the U.S. Department of Energy and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency that promotes energy-efficient products and practices.

Resist the urge to trim costs by purchasing cheaper windows, doors, and skylights with poor U-factor and SHGC ratings. Not only will you miss out on the tax credit, energy bills won't come down much.

Taking advantage of the tax credit

A credit is especially valuable because it directly reduces the amount of tax owed, as opposed to a deduction, which lowers the amount of taxable income. To be eligible for the full credit you must owe more in federal taxes than you're trying to claim. Use IRS Form 5695 to take advantage of the credit, which is cumulative for 2009 and 2010 only. You can't claim $1,500 for each tax year, but you can spread the $1,500 over the two-year period.

Uncle Sam may want proof that your new windows, doors, and skylights meet energy-efficiency standards, so be sure to save receipts, product stickers, and certification statements. The latter can often be found on packaging or manufacturers' web sites. As for receipts, ask contractors to itemize expenses. Installation costs aren't eligible for the credit; only materials are.

Keep in mind that a variety of energy-efficiency improvements to your existing home, including insulation, roofs, and HVAC, count toward the credit limit. You can't claim separate $1,500 credits for each upgrade, nor can you claim the credit for a newly built home. San Francisco-based Sustainable Spaces, says homeowners can often lower energy costs for a lot less, and still get the tax credit, by insulating attics instead.

Chip Plumley can be reached at (610) 444-9090 or (610) 357-8635. Prudential Fox & Roach is an independently owned and operated member of Prudential Real Estate Affiliates, Inc., a Prudential Financial company. Equal Housing Opportunity.

This article provides general information about tax laws and consequences, but is not intended to be relied upon by readers as tax or legal advice applicable to particular transactions or circumstances. Readers should consult a tax professional for such advice, and are reminded that tax laws may vary by jurisdiction.

ChipPlumley.com