ARC Insulation offers weatherization and air sealing services throughout Naperville and the surrounding Chicagoland area. We specialize in whole-home weatherization that involves each component in your home’s system and creates a more comfortable, energy efficient, and healthy environment for you and your family.
During an energy assessment of your home, our team will discover weak points in the physical barrier between your home and the outdoors—known as your building envelope—that lead to significant energy loss and contribute to uncomfortable temperatures. We utilize a mixture of caulking, weather-stripping, spray foam, and other types of insulation depending on your home’s specific needs.
What Is Weatherization?
Weatherization is the process of upgrading a home to protect its living spaces from the outdoor elements, reduce energy consumption, and increase comfortability. Weatherization focuses on the building envelope and can include moisture control, air sealing, ventilation, and insulation.
What Is Air Sealing?
Air sealing involves closing gaps and holes around a home that allow conditioned or heated air to escape while also bringing outdoor air in. Air leaks in a home not only lead to unnecessary energy loss but can also contribute to poor indoor air quality and moisture intrusion that causes mold growth. While air sealing is a part of the weatherization process, it is also often offered in tandem with insulation upgrades to enhance their benefits.
Signs You Could Benefit From Weatherization & Air Sealing
The best way to determine if your home has significant air leaks or other fractures in its building envelope is with an energy assessment. However, poorly weatherized homes are susceptible to various issues that can indicate a need for weatherization, such as:
- Ice dams in the winter
- Moisture issues
- Drafty or stuffy rooms
- High energy bills
- Increased asthma or allergy symptoms
Why Protecting Your Home’s Building Envelope Matters
An improperly sealed home is prone to what building scientists refer to as the stack or chimney effect. This phenomenon occurs year-round and can create extra wear and tear on your HVAC system, increase your energy costs, and affect your home comfort.
As attic specialists, we know that in the winter, the stack effect will cause cold air to infiltrate your home, usually through the crawl space or basement rim joists, and force warm air out through leaks in your attic as the heat rises. In the summer the process is reversed, where hot outdoor air forces its way inside through the attic and pushes cool, conditioned air out through your crawl space or basement rim joists.
The stack effect is just one example of what can happen when your home’s building envelope is left unprotected. Gaps and cracks that allow unwanted airflow in and out of your home can also create a pathway for pollutants, pests, and moisture. These infiltrations often lead to comfort and IAQ issues, mold growth, or even structural damage to your home.
Benefits of Weatherizing & Air Sealing Your Home
By weatherizing and air sealing your Chicagoland home, you can prevent the stack effect from occurring, along with providing several other benefits, such as:
Improved HVAC Efficiency
Whether you have a traditional furnace and air conditioner or a heat pump, weatherizing and air sealing your home takes extra stress away from your HVAC, optimizing its performance and extending its lifespan.
Stronger Home Structure
When moisture accumulates in your home’s foundation or structure, it can lead to wood rot and costly structural repairs. Air sealing and weatherization prevent moisture from getting into your home’s vulnerable areas, keeping it safe from water damage.
Improved Indoor Air Quality
By sealing off gaps and cracks found throughout your home, you’ll be cutting off the point of entry for many IAQ pollutants, including dust, pollen, pests, humidity, and moisture.
More Home Comfort
Since weatherizing and air sealing your home secure your building envelope and allow your HVAC to operate at peak performance, you’ll also notice more consistent temperatures, less draft rooms in the winter, and more overall comfort.
Reduced Energy Costs
Air sealing and weatherization allow each component in your whole-home system to run more efficiently. This leads to lower heating and cooling costs throughout the entire year.
ARC Insulation Is Your Go-To Home Improvement Contractor
Our team is state-certified in weatherization and BPI-certified in air sealing, allowing us to determine where your home needs these crucial improvements. Our highly-trained team can also help you find the most effective, custom solution for its needs so you can reap the benefits of a tightly sealed home.
ARC Insulation also stays up-to-date with the currently available weatherization and air sealing incentives throughout Chicagoland! We can not only help you maximize your energy savings with our weatherization and air sealing services, but we can help make them more affordable too.
