Angie's List

PHILADELPHIA (CBS 3) ― Was your heating bill through the roof last year? Well get ready, experts say the cost could go up by as much as 33 percent this winter! It is believed that more than half the homes in the United States are under-insulated. If your home is extra drafty, it could be a sign that your home needs more insulation too.

Proper insulation helps maximize the efficiency of your heating system and will help you save on monthly energy costs. According to Angie Hicks, founder of Angie's List, "insulation will act as a barrier to your house to keep it warmer in the winter and cooler in the summer and guaranteed when you open your utility bills it will pay off. it will cost you less to heat or cool your home with more insulation."

Angie says one way to find determine if your home has enough insulation is to start with an energy audit. She says, "all you have to do is call your local utility company, they'll be happy to provide one for you. and that's going to show you exactly where your house might be less efficient that it needs to be."

If you do need additional insulation, be sure to thoroughly check out any contractor before giving them your money. Angie recommends, "you also want to check out the quality of the insulation they are going to use, ask to see the quality of the insulation they are going to provide in your house. if it's coming in unmarked bags, you probably don't want it because you're not going to know what kind of quality that insulation is going to be."

Adding insulation is often one of the lowest cost options for improving the energy efficiency of your home. If you want to tackle it yourself, Angie has these tips:

For the do-it-yourselfers, there are multiple options for checking your insulation levels, but the first step is to always proceed with caution:

- Look in your attic, if you see exposed two-by-four's, you are probably due for some more insulation.

- Measure how much is in your attic. The proper amount of insulation you should have depends on the climate you live in. Obviously, the colder the weather the more you need. Homes in the coldest climates might require up to 19 inches of attic insulation to ensure maximum energy efficiency.

- Measuring the insulation in the walls is a little more difficult. Find a spot in the wall, preferably in the closet where it's not seen, and make a small puncture in the hole with a wire. If there is resistance and you feel insulation, you should be fine.

- Take your ceiling's temperature. You can purchase a thermometer gun with laser sighting. Point the thermometer at a place in your house you know won't have insulation, like right up next to a ceiling fan, and get the temperature reading. Then move to another spot where there is nothing on the ceiling and get another reading. The spot not by the fan should be at a higher temperature than the other.

- If you are checking your windows for proper insulation, you can do a couple of different things. Walk around feeling the edges of your windows to feel for any air coming in that should not be. You can also turn your air off and walk around with lit incense to look for drafts, which will pull the smoke in that direction.

If you want to do the insulation yourself, then you'll need to rent supplies and buy the insulation, which you can purchase at most any big-box hardware stores. Depending on what type you choose, you may need to rent an insulation blower. Also, it's always safest to wear a respirator, gloves and clothing that cover your skin. Be aware that adding insulation to your attic could be dangerous; you may step through the ceiling or even fall through it. For this project, you might just want to find a trusted contractor that will do the job for you.

Be sure to check the materials. Different companies use different types of insulation. You may want to first find out what type of insulation you already have. It is not recommended to put a heavier insulation on top of the existing insulation. Insulation is available in various forms. The common types of installing insulation are batt and rolls, loose fill (blown in) and spray applied foam insulation. Fiberglass and cellulose are two of the most common, but there are other forms you can use, so you will need to research or ask the company what your options are and the differences between the varieties of insulation. If possible, use insulation that is free of volatile organic compounds.

There are plenty of reasons to make sure your home is well-insulated. There are even tax credits available to homeowners who are energy efficient. The first step is to find the right person to do the job. One Angie's List member hired a service provider to insulate her attic and the contractor went beyond the customer's expectations by adding leftover insulation above her garage, honoring a competitor's coupon and sharing details on the tax incentives. We also had a member who had an unscrupulous experience. The service provider showed up with the wrong material. When he returned with the right type of insulation, he still didn't have enough and was short-staffed to boot. Remember to do your homework and find a highly-rated insulation specialist, so you're not left out in the cold.

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