Temperature naturally moves from heat toward cold. In winter, your heated indoor air tries to expand outward into the cooler outdoors. In summer, the heat from the outdoors tends to travel inside toward the cooled interior. The one thing that blocks this process is insulation.
Before the onset of summer is an optimum time to check your insulation levels. Heat from outdoors can travel through floors, walls and ceilings. Upgrading your insulation keeps all that hot, summer air from penetrating your home’s shell and saves you in cooling costs.
The U. S. Department of Energy lists our Metro-East area in Zone 4. Their recommended insulation guidelines for this climate zone is a minimum of R-13 for walls, R-25 for floors and R-38 in attics. Having these levels surrounding the home dramatically reduces heat penetration and lowers your cooling costs.
The single greatest benefit of properly installed insulation is its ability to slow heat transfer. That keeps your air conditioning from working harder to maintain the proper indoor temperature. It’s a one-time expense, requires no maintenance, uses no energy, and functions at the same level season after season, year after year. Getting the proper insulation levels in walls, floors and ceilings makes upgrading an investment more than an expense. Reduced monthly energy costs are the returns and dividends for this investment.
If you believe your energy costs can be lowered by an upgrade, contact our staff at Ernst Heating and Cooling. We can check your insulation levels and determine what’s needed to lower your cooling costs for the coming summer season. Good air conditioning makes your home comfortable; keeping that cool air inside lowers your operating costs. Contact us to find out if your levels are adequate or if you may need an upgrade. We’re always ready to help you keep your home comfort affordable.
Our goal is to help educate our customers about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems).
Ernst Heating & Cooling services Hamel, Illinois and the surrounding areas.