Perhaps your home wasn’t built using today’s high-quality, energy-efficient products or techniques. Perhaps previous occupants never took care of problems. Perhaps your heating and cooling bills are higher than you’d like. Where might energy be leaking from your home?

It might be going out the window—literally. Some homes have enough leaks around windows and doors to equal a wide open three foot by three foot window! Check your home’s first line of defense against the elements—the outer shell—the roof, walls, floors, windows, and doors. It pays to deal with air leaks first to get the maximum savings from your heating and cooling systems and other energy-efficiency measures.

Power$mart Tips : Put the Power in Your Hands

• Installing appropriate insulation for your climate (based on R-values) can increase your comfort, make your home quieter and cleaner, and reduce your heating and cooling costs up to 20 percent. Start with attic insulation, followed by exterior and basement walls, floors, and crawl spaces. www.energystar.gov/homesealing
• If you’re shopping for new windows, glass doors, or skylights, look for the ENERGY STAR®. Today’s ENERGY STAR® qualified high-efficiency windows with double or triple panes can save $125 to $340 per household annually over single pane windows, depending on climate. They also improve comfort in both winter and summer. www.efficientwindows.org and www.energystar.gov
• Find and plug those leaks. On a windy day, hold a lit incense stick next to your doors, windows, fixtures and electrical outlets to check for drafts. Or wet your fingertips and run them around the door or window frame—or hold up a tissue and see if it waves. Seal leaks between moving parts (between door or window and its frame) with weather-stripping. Fill leaks between nonmoving parts (between window frame and wall) with long-lasting indoor/outdoor clear caulk.
• Install storm windows if you only have single-pane windows. If you can’t afford that, consider temporary fixes for your older or leaky windows, such as plastic film kits that create the effect of an interior storm window.

FACT
Gas-filled, double-pane windows with low-e coatings, such as those recommended by ENERGY STAR®, not only can lower your heating and cooling bills by as much as 30 percent, but will also increase comfort, reduce fading of home furnishings, reduce maintenance, and increase the resale value of your home.