Is Your Home Freezing Cold in Winter? How to Find and Fix the Problem

As a Realtor, I sometimes walk into homes that are extremely cold in winter, even though the heat is on full crank. A home that is allowing cold air in often becomes uncomfortable, even unsafe for children and babies. And the high heat oftentimes dries them out, causing dry skin and nosebleeds.

Not to mention, leaks can lead to high heating bills. So how can you have a more comfortable temperature at home? Ask different contractors, and you will get a whole range of answers and estimates. Your HVAC needs to be updated. Your windows are poor quality and need to be changed. You need to pump insulation into the walls. You need to weather-strip windows. These fixes range from a few bucks (caulk or weather-stripping) to thousands of dollars.

Rather than guess why your home is cold, and spend the money to fix one issue, why not find out what the problem really is? A $30 thermal leak detector is a great buy, even if you are currently renting. The machine is simple to use, you first point it to an interior wall, then the source of the possible leak. Blue light means cooler that the base temperature and red means warmer. The digital display reads the temperatures as well.

If the light turns blue in the middle of an exterior wall, it could be the insulation has settled or is missing. Have a handyman rent a insulation blower machine from Home Depot and blow some insulation into the wall.

If windows are at fault, always check first if they are properly closed. Then check for visible cracks and gaps and caulk them. Home Depot has an entire seasonal section dedicated to weather strippers, door draft stoppers, and window kits that can make your home much more comfortable. New windows should be your last resort, because they cost $500-$1500 each, so this can be a sizable investment that might take years to recoup in lower energy bills.

Don't forget to check the baseboards. Sometimes there is a large gap between the sheet rock and the floor, and the base molding is still letting the air in. A foam gap/crack filler and caulk can solve that issue. Another common area cold air enters the room is outlets, and you can plug them with child safety caps. If you have a working wood burning fireplace, check that the damper is effective in keeping the chimney closed when the fireplace is not in use.

If the ambient temperature in a particular room is much colder than the others, for example on a particular floor, this could indicate a problem with the HVAC vents, or the furnace itself. However, this is a complicated, albeit rare problem, and should be left to the HVAC experts.

Don’t settle for a cold home or high heating bills because it is too expensive to fix leaks. You might be surprised at how quick and cheap a fix might be.

Dalia Tole

Salesperson, Global Property Specialist

KW City Life

732-788-6560

dalia.tole@kw.com