As homeowners, energy efficiency is what we always look out for when it comes to dealing with bills and our concern for the environment. If you want to decrease your home’s energy bill costs, there are always available improvements you can try. Energy efficiency is a telltale sign of whole-home health, and making sure that heating and air-conditioning are circulated and contained is vital.
Your attic is one of the most vital parts of your house. Improving your attic’s energy efficiency helps your home have a suitable temperature for you and your family’s comfort while saving you money on cooling and heating costs. Despite this, it’s easy to overlook the benefits of proper attic ventilation, radiant barriers, and energy-efficient insulation.
Here’s how you can make your attic more energy-efficient:
- Check Your Attic Access
One of the most accessible areas to improve your attic is the entrance. Whether you have an attic access hatch, or any fire-rated applications in ceilings, sealing and insulating the door to your attic can be an easy task but will also maintain the efficiency in your attic by preventing any air leakage. In addition, weatherstripping the area around the attic door removes the small gaps, especially at the front end of attic hatches where the air is prone to leak out and cause attic drafts.
- Improve Attic Insulation
Another way to improve energy efficiency in your attic is similar to the first advice. You can use the same approach on what you did to improve your attic entrance to different parts of your attic and apply the proper insulation to your attic interior. Here are examples of the most common attic insulation out in the market:
- Fiberglass
- Mineral wool
- Cellulose
Make sure that you choose a product that will function efficiently and at the same time fit right into your budget.
- Check Your Attic Ductwork
Keeping insulation in mind, if you have ductwork in your attic, you will want to make sure your attic is not leaking air. For homes that contain ductwork in the attic, energy efficiency may be challenging to maintain. These ducts are usually prone to leaks and often leak air conditioning into the attic. They tend to have weaker insulation, consequently wasting the home comfort from your air conditioning and heating to your attic instead of your living area.
Initially, homeowners should avoid having ducts in their attic. Though, for some people, this is not practical. They either have living spaces in their attic, or the original homeowner thought it best to put the ducts above. Therefore, having your ducts insulated is the solution. You can look into or research more about spray foam insulation. Lastly, you can also try looking into removing the ductwork from your attic to the conditioned spaces of the home.
- Attic Ventilation
Inadequate ventilation in your attic can cause a domino effect when enhancing energy efficiency. Improper ventilation in the attic can turn to moisture buildup, which is optimum for mold and bacterial growth. This can lead to further damages to siding, walls, and columns. It would be best to keep your attic dry by letting the moisture escape rather than trapping it inside the attic.
Takeaway
Getting rid of pollutants means maintaining good air quality and, at the same time, increasing your energy efficiency inside your attic. A consistent airflow in the will help make this possible. You can also try purchasing solar attic fans, which is a product that can help improve airflow and increase air quality.
There are still many known ways to improve the energy efficiency inside your attic. You can hire a contractor to scope out your attic and decide what type of insulation will best suit your home. Your contractor’s job is to make sure you get the proper insulation that will fit right into your budget and, at the same time, enhance energy efficiency inside your attic.
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