Insulate for Winter: Save Energy, Money, and Your Roof

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Many homeowners with older homes wonder if insulating their home is even possible with the required work. In fact, every home can be insulated – and it is usually older homes that need it the most.

When homes were built decades ago, there were no strict energy codes for builders to follow. People didn’t worry so much about energy consumption in their homes, and neither did the builders. Because builders had no codes to follow, they often found the cheapest design possible to construct. These cheap designs meant skimping on insulation in the walls and an absence of insulation in the attic.

Even if your home falls into the category far from following today’s energy codes, you can still insulate your home and turn it into both a timeless and energy efficient place. As we get deeper into fall and winter approaches, insulating your home should be a top priority if you want to save energy and money in the coming months.

In many of the older, under-insulated homes, heat rises and easily escapes out of the roof. This movement of air pulls cold air in through the bottom of your home and releases the warm air to outside. When the warm temperatures hit your snow-covered roof in our New England climate, the heat from inside your home melts the snow.

At first glance, this seems like a helpful way to remove snow from your roof – but the effects have lasting damage to both your roof and gutters. Melting snow turns into water, and water naturally collects in your gutter. In the cold winter, the water in your gutters does not last long before turning into ice. Soon enough, you have gutters overflowing with ice.

This movement of snow, to water, to ice in your gutters is called “ice blocking.” Ice builds up in your gutters, putting a lot of weight on gutters that are not meant to hold ice. This added weight causes the seams of your gutter and between your gutter and roof to split apart.

The ice does not melt quickly in the constant cold weather, and thus causes water damage to the surface of your gutters. Built-up ice is very detrimental to your gutters, but it is also very preventable if you simply insulate your home. Insulating inside prevents damage to the outside of your home while keeping you warm.

Winter will be here before we know it—prepare your home now. Do not discard the possibility of insulating your home because of its age; it is possible to add different types of insulation to every home. Prevent ice blocking and ice dams, prevent roof damage, and stay warm this winter. It is possible to save energy, money, and your roof all by insulating your walls and attic. Get started on saving, contact Dolphin for a home estimate.