The attic is the last protection in your home to guard against heat loss. The "stack effect" of hot air rising (and escaping from the attic) draws cold outside air into the lower parts of the house, causing the cold drafts that you feel while in the home. Shutting down all the places where air can escape INTO the attic is a key strategy to reducing heat loss and reducing heating costs. Sealing and caulking all holes, cracks and gaps that lead to the attic from the rest of the house can save a lot of money.

Adding insulation to the attic floor prevents the transfer of heat from the warm air in the main part of the house to the cold air in the attic itself.

What to do:

1. Locate and caulk or seal every hole, crack, and gap that leads into the attic. Targets to concentrate on include: pipe and wire holes; the attic hatch and stairwell; damaged ceilings that lead directly into the attic. For best results hire a BPI accredited contractor to perform a blower door test.
2. And remember, you can also slow down the “stack effect” loss of warm air into the attic by sealing and caulking the gaps, cracks and openings in the foundation, basement, crawlspaces, windows, and elsewhere in the lower floors of your home.
3. Add insulation to your attic floor. Homes in Central NY should have enough attic insulation to achieve an R50 rating. However, remember to make sure you have adequate ventilation in your attic before you add insulation.
4. If you can only do a limited amount: If you cannot do everything the most important places to start include (1) sealing the cracks around the attic hatch door and (2) around pipes that go up into the attic, and (3) insulating above the hatch door if there is no insulation there. Adding a few more inches of blown-in cellulose insulation on top of the insulation already there is also quite cheap and not that difficult BUT BE SURE NOT to cover any vents. (For more information check our Vents and Ventilation pages).

Savings:

You can save 10-20% of the cost of heating by sealing all leaks and gaps in your home, and up to another 10-20% by adding insulation. The total savings for an average home in Central NY could be more than $700-$800/year. The older and more drafty or “leaky” your home is the more likely you are to save a much larger percentage of your total fuel bill if you seal all openings and add insulation to your attic.