I learned this week on Avista’s website that an 1/8-inch gap around a door or a window is equivalent to a softball-sized hole in the wall.
I have some very old windows in my house. I think some of them are original, since they still have ropes to pull them open and leaded patterns in the glass. Along the bottom, there are some pretty wide gaps, so I spent this week trying to block them.
Rope caulk is an easy fix for gaps around doors and windows that you want to keep closed during cold winter months. A box will run you about $3, so it’s a cheap fix, too.
I didn’t need any tools for this job. I first washed and dried the sill to make sure all the dust was clear of my workspace. I pinched off the amount I needed and stuffed it in the crack. The caulk broke apart pretty easily, so if that happened before I finished, I could just pinch off another strip and keep going. It took me maybe five minutes to seal off the gaps of my bedroom windows.
The thing I liked the best about this fix is that it isn’t permanent. Next summer when I’m ready to open my windows again, I can just peel off the caulk and I’m done.
Lisa, an Avista customer, bought her 1910 house because she loved the old-world character, some of which doesn’t make her house very energy efficient. Lisa is sharing her experience on taking some simple do-it-yourself improvements to inspire others to do the same. You’ll find her stories right here every Tuesday morning.