How to Prepare Your Attic for Temperate Winters

When considering energy efficiency improvements to your attic, it’s also important to recognize that much of the insulation marketed in the industry is targeted to more frigid climates, like those in Midwest and Northeastern areas. These homeowners have to prepare their attics for severe winters. So, if you plan to handle your own insulation, you want to be sure to purchase the right materials.

For our milder winters here in North Carolina, you would want to steer clear of bulkier insulations and consider those formulated for more temperate climates. Homeowners in the Southeast can formulate a multi-prong approach that combines several means of air loss prevention. Sealing air leaks, insulating your attic, and encapsulating your crawl space can yield significant savings!

Where to Start When Preparing Your Attic This Winter

When you’re ready to start winterizing your home and preparing for colder months, it’s easy to forget about your attic. Even if you don’t visit your attic often, you need to head upstairs and check out the area where your home is most vulnerable to air leaks and temperature control issues.

Attics are notoriously susceptible to air leaks from poorly sealed entry points, which create an imbalance between fresh and heated air within your home. This condition is referred to as infiltration, and professional air sealing can solve this air loss issue. Air leaks and subsequent infiltration account for a full third of all your home’s heating inconsistency. Air sealing and attic insulation create energy efficiency and can yield big savings by eliminating energy waste.

Your attic is most vulnerable to losses in many areas, and your sealing efforts should be targeted to:

• Attic Hatches
• Attic Doors
• Floor Holes
• Fireplace Gaps
• Furnace Holes

Preparing your home for winter by air sealing and insulating your attic is just like layering a turtleneck and sweater before putting on a coat. On cold winter days, you want layers! This layering effect is the same for your house. You wouldn’t want the cold winter winds slicing through your winter clothing, and similarly, you don’t want to leave your home exposed to the elements when the temperature plummets outside.

By trapping heated air inside your house, you prevent your heating system from working overtime to control internal temperature. So, if you already have insulation in your attic, but it doesn’t seem to be getting the job done, you may have air loss from leaks. An energy audit and inspection will give you a better idea about how to move forward to control the air losses in your attic.

3 Reasons to Insulate Your Attic Before Winter Begins

• Energy Savings: Insulating your attic this winter can mean big savings. Your home will instantly become more energy-efficient by insulating your attic, which translates to substantial savings from reduced utility spending. When the temperature outside drops too low or rises too high, we all are guilty of running for the thermostat! This type of erratic system usage suggests air leaks are to blame for temperature control issues. When the external temperature changes, your home should remain at your preset temperature levels. When you have to change your home's temperature drastically, you are using significant amounts of energy.
• Comfort: The obvious reason for insulating your attic and winterizing your home is so you can remain warm when the temperature outside drops. When your home is insulated correctly, you save money and stabilize the temperature inside your home. During the coldest days of winter, we all want to retreat inside our warm and toasty home. You will be able to enjoy the comforts of a well-regulated HVAC system with the right amount of insulation in your home. You shouldn’t have to wear a coat inside the house or add layers of extra blankets to the bed. You can solve all those problems with a few simple improvements to your home’s efficiency.
• Long-lasting Improvement: One of the most significant benefits after the savings is that once you’ve insulated your home, it will serve you year-round. Once winter is over, your house won’t suddenly stop being insulated. In the winter, your home loses warm air through the ceilings, but in the summer months, the sun bakes your ceiling and warms the cooled air created by your HVAC system. Your newly insulated attic will also prevent your cool air from being warmed by the sun, which saves energy and helps your air conditioner run more efficiently.

Key Benefits of Insulating Your Attic This Winter

The insulation in your attic provides a fitted and secured layer of material to separate your interior walls, floors, and ceiling from the exterior of your home or office. Your attic is a source of air loss because if it is not properly insulated, hot and cool air will enter and exit through the roof as it rises from the living areas into the rafters. When your attic has adequate insulation, the external temperature will have less impact on your internal comfort system.

You don’t want your HVAC system working overtime to heat your home because all of the warm air is escaping from your attic. In warmer climates like North Carolina, we often focus on insulating the floored section of the attic, but complete insulation can help you fully insulate your home all year long.

Benefits of attic insulation:

• Your home will have better temperature control
• Your home will be more energy-efficient
• You will experience a reduction in greenhouse gases
• Your home will have better soundproofing from external noise pollution

The most important thing to remember when preparing your home for the winter season is that improvements to your home are long-lasting. You can winterize your home and prepare your attic for the coming season, but you are also preparing your home for yearlong comfort and temperature control.

There isn’t a standard insulation solution for every attic, so it’s best to bring in a professional like our team at Day & Night Heating & Air Conditioning Co. We can help you inspect your attic and determine the best course of action.

Are you concerned about air loss in your home? Contact Day & Night Heating & Air Conditioning Co. at (910) 933-2338 for more information about attic insulation and air sealing services.