If your garage isn’t attached to your house, and you only use it for parking your car, there’s no need to worry. However, if your garage serves any additional purpose to you, you’ll want to pay attention to its energy efficiency. This is especially true if you use your garage as a workshop, for example.

What it comes down to is proper insulation and weather-stripping. There are many reasons why these are worthwhile investments. For an attached garage, poor insulation can be a drain on your home’s HVAC system in the winter, letting cold weather in where it doesn’t belong. Add poor weather-stripping between your home and garage to that, and you can get that cold seeping into your home.

What’s more, your garage’s poor insulation and weather-stripping can potentially be dangerous for your family! If the cold can get into your home through your garage, you run the risk of allowing harmful fumes into your home as well. These fumes may come from cars stored in your garage or from any chemicals or paints you might have stored there. This could also pose a problem if you power goes out in the winter, and the only place to set up a generator is in your garage.

With that in mind, here is a quick checklist of improvements you can make to the insulation and weather-stripping of your garage to ensure it is safely sealed.

• Insulate the surrounding walls to the garage
• Caulk the connection between the walls and concrete floors
• Seal the door between the house and garage
• Insulate your garage door
• Insulate your outlets and light switches

Looking for more great energy efficiency advice? Visit the rest of our Bright Insights blog to learn more!

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