Living in Wisconsin, you have probably experienced ice damming on your home. If you are lucky, your roof was properly installed and this has not caused any damage to your home. Ice and water shield installed several feet from eaves and in valleys is an essential step in protecting your home that is often overlooked by “bargain basement” roofing companies and their unsuspecting clients. High quality materials and installation of roofing will protect your assets, however, many people still wonder why they continue to see the ice dams even after the roof is replaced. The simple answer is that the roof has absolutely nothing to do with the formation of ice dams. In fact, ice damming is due primarily to heated indoor air warming the underside of the roof deck and escaping through the roof. How can this be prevented? Proper attic insulation and air sealing. The level of insulation in the attic of most homes (even newer ones) is completely insufficient, and air sealing is practically non-existent. To properly address this, air sealing entails the use of expanding foams, caulks, etc, to seal any and all penetrations from the attic to the heated living space. This includes: around the chimney, plumbing stack(s), electrical boxes and lights, top plates, etc. After proper air sealing measures are taken, add blown-in cellulose insulation to achieve a level of R-50 to R-60. To check the r-value of your current insulation, you can look at the label of fiberglass rolls, or figure an R-value of 2.2 per inch of depth for old, existing blown-in product.

When you think about improving the comfort level and energy-efficiency of your home, what is the first thing that comes to mind? Replacement windows? A new furnace? The truth is, these items do in fact provide increased comfort and savings, and are worthwhile investments, however most times they are not the going to deliver the best “bang for the buck”. Your home has to be looked at as an entire “system” with multiple components that control its efficiency. The goal is for YOU, not mother nature to be able to dictate the operation and efficiency of your home, and this is done by getting your home sealed as well as possible. Due to the principles of convection and radiation, the greatest area of heat loss for your home is through the attic. That is why air sealing, insulation, and proper ventilation of your attic is one of the most important AND cost-effective ways to increase the efficiency and comfort level in your home. Attic insulation is not the most glamorous improvement you can make, and you won’t be able to SEE the fruits of your investment on a daily basis, however you will FEEL them, and your energy-bill will show them.

Now that we are in the middle of winter, it becomes a bit easier to tell where you home’s heat retention shortcomings reside. Maybe your walls are cold, your basement is freezing, or you can feel (or even see) a cold draft coming in around your doors and windows. Obviously it would be ideal to get replacement windows, doors, or insulation, but sometimes it just isn’t in the budget. Here are a few tips to save you some money, and add some comfort in your home for a low-cost.
As mentioned in previous posts, windows and doors can be a huge source of heat loss. There are a few things you can do to improve this short of window replacement. First, is the good-old window plastic. It is ugly, inconvenient, and a pain to apply, however it really does work when properly installed. A slightly more visually appealling option altough it doesn’t work quite as well, would be “seal and peel” caulking. This is a type a clear caulk that you can apply to areas of the windows that experience air-infiltration. It will semi-harden, and be ready to peel off in spring just like the plastic would be. One thing to keep in mind with either of these methods however, is that they can pull paint or finish off when removed.
On doors, you can actually do a more effective, somewhat permanent fix by replacing (or adding) weather stripping around the opening, as well as the threshold. You should be able to pick up the proper products to seal up one door for around $10-$20 from any hardware or home store.