What's the Best Way to Prep My Home for Cold Weather?
Q: What's the best way to prep my home for cold weather?
A: When trying to get your home ready for the upcoming cold temperatures, you'll want to make sure you’ve blocked off many of the ways that cold air enters your house. There are a lot of potential fixes and preparations you can make, so here are a few suggestions to give you an idea of the sort of things you could do:
Check the caulking and weatherstripping on your doors and windows, making repairs as needed.
Check the insulation in your attic, replacing any that’s tattered or upgrading all of it to insulation with a higher R value.
Inspect your roof for signs of damage and repair any leaks or damaged shingles.
Look for cracks or other damage in both your windowpanes and the frames of the windows.
Store away any window air conditioners or close their vents and cover them with an insulated cover.
If needed, cover windows with a layer of thermal plastic on the inside, using a heat gun or hair dryer to shrink the plastic once it’s in place to create a strong barrier to heat transfer.
Place covers or sheets of wall insulation over crawl space doors and other areas where cold air might get under your house.
These preparations should be done alongside any other winter prep that you do, such as turning off your outdoor water supply, applying insulating pipe covers and covering outdoor faucets to prevent possible pipe freezes.
(Courtesy of HomeKeepr)