Don’t heat up the whole outdoors this winter!!! You can cut your energy usage between 5 and 30% per year by tracking down and plugging up openings in the outside walls of your home that allow the air inside to escape, according to the U.S. Dept. of Energy. You can do a lot even in winter just from the inside to eliminate these leaks to help you keep your heat in winter (and your cool in summer).

Leaks are likely any place that there’s a break in your outside walls for such things as air conditioners, water pipes leading to outside valves for watering your lawn and garden in the summer, mail slots, attic vents, electrical outlets and switch plates, foundation seals, and fireplace dampers. Double check whatever weather stripping and caulking has been put in these places is still solid and free of gaps.

The most prevalent opportunities for air leaking out of your home are, of course, the joints where your windows and

doors are set into your exterior walls. Try to rattle your windows and exterior doors, and check to see if daylight is coming in around them; these could be signals that air is moving from inside your home to the outside. Be sure that any weather stripping and storm windows in place are snug and tight.

Be sure, too, that you have adequate ventilation for the combustion appliances you have that burn fuel oil, natural gas, propane and/or wood – including furnaces, cooking appliances, fireplaces, water heaters. For professional advice on how to make sure that the air in your home is being used efficiently and safely, contact your professional heating and air conditioning contractor or visit www.PAMCANI.org for more information.