Owners of older homes often ask, “What can I do to make my home more energy efficient?” This article will explain the steps that homeowners can take to assess the condition of their house from an energy problems perspective.

Inspect the basement
If your house has a basement, that’s a good place to start your inspection. (If your house has a crawlspace or an above-grade mechanical room, some of the advice in this section also applies to those areas.) The most important tool for this type of inspection is a powerful flashlight.

Attic inspection
Now get out your step ladder, tape measure, and flashlight, and head for the attic. If you’re unfamiliar with attics, you should know that you can easily step through the ceiling if you don’t place your feet carefully on the joists spanning the attic floor. If you don’t like balancing on joists, bring a couple of 2-ft. by 3-ft. pieces of plywood to step on while inspecting your attic.

Inspect your windows
How many layers of glazing? Does your house have single-pane windows, double-pane windows, or single-pane windows with storms?

Assess your appliances
How old is your refrigerator? If your refrigerator is more than 20 years old, you should consider replacing it with a newer, more energy-efficient model.

Check your lightbulbs
Get rid of your incandescent bulbs. Last but not least, check all of your light fixtures to make sure that your home is incandescent-free. Replacing incandescent bulbs with compact-fluorescent lamps is one of the most cost-effective energy-saving measures you can perform.

Credit: Finehomebuilidng

OK, I finished the inspection. Now what?
Now that you have finished inspecting your house, you have a much better idea of the home’s condition than when you started, and you may have identified a few serious flaws that need to be remedied. Contact Westhill Construction today and we can help you fix your house and energy problems.