Upgrading your home’s insulation might not be the most thrilling form of home improvement, but it’s a form that’s exceptionally important if you want to maintain your home. There are a number of ways that you might find out that it’s time to do a little work on your insulation, so let’s talk about them here.
Drafts
While a slight breeze might not be caused by an issue with your home’s insulation, feeling that one room is notably colder than the others, and losing heat in a general direction, is a particular sign that your insulation is failing.
To spot this, shut all your internal doors for a few hours, and allow heat to level out throughout the home. Then, give yourself a short tour of your home, and feel around to see if there are any rooms in which the temperature isn’t uniform. If you notice a gradual decrease in heat, it’s likely an insulation issue.
Cold floors and walls
Floors and walls are, of course, the sections of your home that interact with the outside world on a regular basis. This means that these are great signposts to let you know if there’s an issue with your insulation.
While you might need some quality building supplies to fix insulation issues in your home, you don’t need them to detect the issues. A great way to find a baseline for a room is to feel each wall at the top, bottom, and middle. Huge gulfs in temperature are a sign of an issue behind the scenes.
High energy bills
If you’ve noticed your energy bills increasing exorbitantly, and out of line with the people around you, then there may be an issue in your home that’s causing you to heat or cool unnecessarily.
Ask some friends and neighbours what their energy bills are like, and consider if yours are enormously higher than theirs. This may sound like an awkward conversation, but if you approach things calmly and honestly, letting them know that you’re just trying to understand why your bill has gone up, then they’re sure to understand. After all, high bills are a problem that everyone deals with.
Internal temperature fluctuations
This is perhaps the opposite of the test that was mentioned above, in the drafts section. To consider internal temperature fluctuations, open all your internal doors and allow heat and air to circulate through your home. After a few hours, give yourself a walkthrough, and see if any one location feels notably different to others.
If there is a notable increase or decrease in one particular location, it can be an insulation issue causing this. However, consider whether there’s another potential explanation, like a window that hasn’t been sealed properly, or a radiator that’s not working efficiently.
Pests
This is an unfortunate and unpleasant way to find out that your insulation needs replacing, but it’s worth talking about so that the knowledge is out there.
A lot of pests, typically small mammals like mice and rats, particularly like making their homes within insulation. The reason for this is that the loose texture is great for burrowing, and the insulating properties keep their burrows warm.
While one or two mice might not seem like a problem, mice rarely stay as one or two mice. A pair of mice may mate and produce many offspring, or attract other local mice to live with them. Either way, the increasing number of pests will lead to insulation damage, not to mention contamination from droppings.
These droppings can actually be a very severe ecological hazard to both you and the local environment if they’re not dealt with quickly and efficiently. Therefore, it’s wise to totally remove the affected insulation in the event of a pest infestation, and replace it with new, undamaged insulation to do the same job more effectively.
Properly insulating your home can save you a fortune on heating and cooling bills, not to mention allowing you to remain comfortable all year round. If you’ve found yourself experiencing any of the potential insulation issues that are outlined here, consider taking a closer look at your insulation. Better yet, get in touch with a local tradesperson who’s skilled at handling insulation.
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