Keep Your Home Cool in Extreme Heat

Keep Your Home Cool in Extreme Heat

During the summer months, the Richmond and Hampton Roads areas consistently experience extreme temperatures, leaving residents hot and uncomfortable. As our HVAC systems work overtime trying to keep our homes cool, our energy costs rise, making those summer electrical bills double or even triple those of prior months.

Choosing between comfort and cost when cooling your home can be tough for a lot of families. You might be using band-aid fixes like adding fans or buying a portable air conditioner to help cool down that second floor, or the room that’s always hot and humid, but this is costing you money and energy, too.

How can Virginia families keep their home cool in extreme heat, save energy & money, and be comfortable in their home, year-round? Home efficiency’s best friend for comfort and energy savings is air sealing and insulation, but where to start?

The Solution: Air Sealing & Insulation

All areas that could benefit from air sealing are not created equally. Air sealing in some areas makes far more of a difference in your home’s energy efficiency and comfort than others. For this reason, we developed an ABC air sealing strategy.

·         A is for attic, which is where most air leaks out of your home.

·         B is for bottom (basement or crawl space) where most air leaks into your home.

·         C is for conditioned space, where most windows and doors are located.

For the biggest impact, we start with the attic.

Why Your Attic Is The #1 Priority

In the summer, your roofing heats up in the sun, and this heat radiates down from the underside of your roof to your attic, heating your attic up to as much as 130 degrees. Your drywall or plaster ceiling then radiates down into your rooms, heating the air and everything in them. As this occurs, your HVAC system is trying to keep up, and on really hot days or when the sun peaks in the afternoon, it may not be able to.

If your ductwork is in your attic, it’s subject to the extreme heat and warms up conditioned air before it ever makes it to the rooms you’re trying to cool.

3 Steps to Comfort & Efficiency

Air sealing and adding insulation to your attic is a permanent solution. It’s important to note that insulation alone does not stop air leaks (unless it’s closed cell spray foam). To learn more about different insulation types and their effectiveness,s read Home Insulation - The Basics: What You Need to Know About Insulating Your Home

Air sealing will reduce the air leaking out of the top of your home through top plates, duct chases, bath fans, and electrical or plumbing penetrations. This benefits you in both the summer and winter months by keeping conditioned air in.

For ductwork, spray foam insulation is an excellent option for protecting it from the extreme conditions of your attic and getting that air you paid to cool to the rooms it’s intended to cool. Ductwork is naturally leaky, letting in dust, dirt, and allergens, and notoriously under-insulated. Spray foam both air seals and insulates your duct work, protecting it from extreme temperatures and keeping out dust, dirt, and allergens.

Once you’ve air-sealed your attic and ductwork, a blanket of cellulose insulation, often referred to as blown-in or blown insulation, should be installed. This insulation has a higher R-value than fiberglass, is made of 85% recycled material, and contains a borate solution that helps to deter pests.

These three steps to insulate and air seal your attic space not only make a major difference in your comfort year-round, but they pay for themselves in energy savings over time! Most homes see a return anywhere from 2-10 years, but most fall in the middle of that range.

Beat the heat for good. Contact The Drying Company today for a free evaluation of your home’s insulation. 1-757-566-8622 / 1-757-566-8622.