There are many steps you can take to create a more comfortable home for you and your family all year long. But there are three that rise to the top of any conversation about improving home performance: energy audits, air sealing and insulation.
Often, these three steps can be all you need to see a significant difference in energy savings and comfort, but it’s important to note that each of them depends on the others to provide an overall solution.
A home energy audit, air sealing and insulation work together to provide the greatest measure of improved year-round comfort for homes in and around Peoria, Illinois. Here’s why:
1. Home Energy Audit
An energy audit is the first step toward improving home performance. The results of your audit tell you exactly where to invest your money to make the most significant impact on your home’s comfort and energy efficiency.
AAA Northgate takes a whole-home approach to audits, inspecting every part of your home, inside and out. We test appliances and HVAC systems for energy efficiency, safety and performance to learn just how your home consumes and wastes energy. Every home energy audit includes a blower door test and infrared scans of your entire home to find hot and cool spots and locate air leaks, as well as detailed inspection of your insulation.
If you schedule work without an audit, you’re shooting in the dark. There’s no way to know if the services you’re paying for are going to provide the solutions you need. Rather than spend thousands of dollars on home improvements that do little or nothing to improve your comfort and leave you paying the same high energy bills, let AAA Northgate perform a free home energy audit so you can put your money where it will have the most impact.
2. Air Sealing
Unless it’s been recently professionally air sealed, every home has tiny spaces throughout that allow outside air to move in and inside air to move out. Outside air brings with it moisture that can cause damaging and unhealthy mold and mildew. It also carries pollutants, dust and allergens that reduce the quality of the air you breath in your home. These toxins can cause or exacerbate respiratory illness so that your own home can actually make you sick.
During your energy audit, we’re able to pinpoint just where these leaks are—even the smallest gaps and cracks, from your attic down to your basement —so when it’s time for air sealing, we can fill them with the appropriate materials. This creates a tight seal that protects you from outside contaminants and moisture, and keeps your heated or cooled air from leaking out. But air sealing is only part of the solution.
3. Insulation
Insulation completes the trio. You don’t need to heat your attic in winter, for example (unless it really is living space) and you definitely don’t want to heat your roof, as this causes ice dams.
Insulation creates a thermal envelope for your conditioned living area, allowing your home to heat or cool more consistently. It stops drafts and cold floors in winter and keeps your attic from heating you up in summer. Insulation also makes life much easier on your HVAC system. Your heater or air conditioner runs for shorter periods and runs less often, using less fuel, lowering energy costs and prolonging the life of your equipment.
Take the First Step Today
Ready to stop living in a drafty home, improve your indoor air quality and lower your energy bills? Contact AAA Northgate for a free home energy audit and make more informed decisions about improving your home’s energy performance. Our knowledgeable, trained staff will answer all your questions and provide you with the same exceptional service we’ve been helping central Illinois homeowners with since 1948.