During D. Smith’s energy audit, we noticed that no drafts flowed from the windows and doors. However, we did identify a large draft coming from the garage side wall of his half bath on the main floor. He said the slit where the bathroom floor and the wall met acted like an energy ATM, only it sucked money out of his wallet.
As we went from the basement to the top floor, we noticed a drastic difference in the temperatures. In essence, the basement was a meat locker, and the first floor was temperate. The homeowner wasn’t joking when he told us that there was a ten-degree difference between the top floor and the first floor. The air up top felt like heat from an old radiator.
We prescribed duct sealing with Aeroseal, increasing his insulation in the attic to code with an air seal, and whole-house ventilation to get the air going. The homeowner agreed that the air in the house was poorly circulated. We also performed some specialty projects with spray foam in the basement and worked on that draft in his half bath downstairs.
All told, the client was very happy with the results. We not only tightened his house while also increasing ventilation and circulation of the air, but now he doesn’t have to worry about cold feet in the winter from a draft in his half bath. In addition to lowering his energy bill by 20%, he was elated at the temperature difference between his top and first floors having plummeted to only 1 degree.
In his own words, “The Aeroseal worked like magic!” I think his wife appreciates us getting rid of the draft more than he did. Her chair sits right in front of that half bath, and, as the queen of the house, she was happy that unwanted air no longer gushed in from that space.
Atlas Home Energy
