Some quick, easy and inexpensive home insulation projects can combine to save you many hundreds of dollars every year.

Here are the best of the quick & easy energy conservation steps.

6% of average home heat or A/C energy efficiency loss is from electrical outlets and bath, kitchen, and dryer vents.

• Switch plate insulating gaskets is the easiest home insulation installation project of all. Simple place them under all outlet and switch plate covers.
• This inexpensive step takes a few minutes and is a surprisingly effective energy conservation upgrade that immediately improves the total energy efficiency of your home insulation.

• Check all bathroom, kitchen, and dryer vent baffles. It is common for baffles to not close properly.
• A hair dryer can be used to test a baffle.
• Open baffles are like open windows in the ceiling. They must be closing properly to achieve decent home energy conservation.
• Try cleaning and lubricating before adjusting or replacing baffles.
• Insulate the dryer vent hose with a 4" duct insulation sleeve. Do not use duct tape. Use a metal tape identified on the DIY Duct Insulation page to completely seal the ends.

11% of average home heat or A/C energy efficiency loss is from doors.

• Weather-stripping doors is a quick and easy way to improve the energy efficiency of your home.
• Many types and sizes of weather-stripping insulation are designed to fit the wide range of gaps between doors and jambs.
• Different gap widths may require using more than one size, density, or type of weather-stripping insulation on a door.
• The simplest, easiest, and cheapest type is the press on foam strips. They come in many thicknesses and densities. They are surprisingly effective at energy conservation.

• You may have to adjust the door lock striker plate after installing well-fitted insulation. The easy way is to use a grinding bit in a power drill to trim the leading edge of the striker plate so the lock tongue fits in correctly.
• A well-fitted bottom sweep is often the most important upgrade in the energy efficiency of a door. Several styles are available. Sometimes raising or replacing the threshold is worth the extra effort to get good comfort and energy conservation.

• Some thresholds interlock with a bottom sweep to provide a tight seal and excellent energy conservation.

14% of average home heat or A/C energy efficiency loss is from chimneys.

• A chimney flue insulator is inexpensive and easy to install.
• There are several types and sizes. Look for the best fit for your damper.
• A DIY insulation solution is to wrap a correctly sized piece of packing styrofoam or similar material in a tightly wrapped and neatly taped garbage bag.
• Clean the flue area surface before using black or clear plastic tape to neatly and securely attach the insulator over the damper opening.
• Good energy efficiency depends on taping around all edges of the DIY insulation so there are no air leaks.
• This DIY insulation solution is likely to be better at energy conservation than a typical balloon type commercial product.

13% of average home heat or A/C energy efficiency loss is from plumbing penetrations.

• Many air leaks in walls around plumbing penetrations are easy to find and seal to gain maximize home energy efficiency.
• Check under sinks and all other places where pipes enter walls including your garage and outside.
• Move the bezels that typically cover the hole where the pipe goes into the wall. Then seal the hole with good quality caulking or DIY foam insulation.
• Caulk is generally easier to work with. It has the same energy efficiency for this kind of home insulation job.

• If you do use DIY foam insulation, select water based "low expansion" products. Protect your eyes.

• Some plumbing penetrations are not easy energy conservation projects. They require hard work in attics, basements, and crawl spaces. However, when completed they do greatly improve your homes energy efficiency.

20% of average home energy cost is for heating hot water.

• Some newer hot water heaters have R-10 internal insulation. Additional insulation wraps do not increase their energy efficiency.
• Put you hand on the outside of the tank. If it feels warm, then it needs more insulation for good energy conservation.
• Hot water tank insulation installation is a great simple and quick DIY insulation project.
• Tank blankets vary in quality and energy efficiency. R-Values generally range from R-4 to R-11. Cost differences are small compared to the energy conservation benefits. Get a good one with a high R-Rating.

• Be absolutely certain to not obstruct the intake or exhaust venting of a gas heater. Cut out sections of the insulation as needed to avoid any insulation installation that blocks combustion intake or exhaust.
• Do not put insulation on the top of a gas heater.
• Carefully and completely tape all edges to get the energy efficiency you paid for. Use foil tape.
• Hot water tank insulation installation is a great energy conservation project that will normally pay for itself in less than a year.

Hot water pipes often cause a major loss of home energy efficiency.

• Insulating hot water pipes can save energy, money, and water.
• Insulation installation is easy on readily accessible hot water lines. So, do the easy ones quickly. Leave the hard ones for a later DIY or insulation contractor project.
• Pipe sleeves come in all common sizes. The better DIY insulation products are polyethylene or neoprene foam insulation. Vinyl backed fiberglass insulation for pipes is common.

• Use foil tape on the seam and ends of each section of insulation. Any air gaps will greatly reduce the energy efficiency of the insulation.
• Consider installing a Heat Dam before doing pipe insulation installation near the heater.
• Heat dams are inexpensive to buy, generally simple to install, available at most big hardware stores, and are an excellent high value long-term energy conservation step.

10% of average home heat or A/C energy efficiency loss is from windows.

• Sealing leaks with caulking and weather-stripping can be a simple, and inexpensive energy efficiency upgrade of your home insulation.

• Because windows vary so widely, it is important to get well informed on what materials and methods will work best on your windows before investing in energy conservation efforts than may not be effective at saving energy or money.
• Insulation contractors, energy auditors, or a recommended book on energy conservation will give you the answers you need.
• New thermal windows are great, but quite expensive. The investment payback often takes many years. However, improved comfort, appearance, and increased property value often make them an excellentenergy conservation choice.
• Getting three bids from qualified window contractors can help you decide what is right for your home.

Window Contractors

20-40% of average home heat or A/C energy efficiency is lost between the source and the living space.

• Energy efficient ducting is critical for good home energy conservation.
• Get well informed before deciding on installing insulation on ducts as a DIY insulation or insulation contractor project.
• Get the answers you need from an energy audit, bids from insulation contractors, or some time with a recommended book on energy conservation.
• See the Insulation.com page on DIY insulation on ducts. Duct insulation installation can be a great first big DIY energy conservation project.

Recessed light fixtures can cause a major loss of energy efficiency.

• Loosen the light bezel so high quality caulking can be carefully applied to seal the bezel to the ceiling.
• Eliminating lighting air gaps can be a surprisingly effective improvement in the total energy conservation of your home.
• Clear caulking is less visible along bezel edges.
• More sealing can be done from the attic side of the fixtures. Canned spray foam insulation is commonly used for attic sealing.
• Check for and seal any possible air leaks on standard light fixtures.

A thermal leak detector can guide you to saving energy and money.

• A thermal leak detector identifies air leaks by measuring differences in temperature.
• This relatively inexpensive (about $50) tool can enable you to more accurately find and solve energy efficiency problems.
• It can also confirm that an energy efficiency solution really is providing good energy conservation results.

Summary

• The total energy efficiency of your home is increased by each energy conservation step you take.
• No matter how small the step, it will give you money and energy saving every month for many years.