A Wind-Powered Energy Audit

Our electricity was restored an hour ago after being off for 26 hours. We made good use of flashlights, candles, the fireplace, extra blankets, and even the outdoor grill, so I won't complain about the discomforts. Instead let me share a benefit: we found out where cold air is leaking into our house!

Last night we had pulled down the insulated shades and closed the curtains. With high winds charging around outside, it soon became apparent that three windows were leaking air because the shades started moving when the wind gusts became violent. (Forty MPH winds were expected but I bet some of the gusts were 60 MPH. Trees were blown down all over the ridge.)

So our energy-stealing culprits are a window in the master bedroom (which we already knew about), the sliding door in the dining room (a surprise), and the crank-out window in the kitchen (old crank-out windows are often leaky, so I shouldn't be surprised at that one). Also the fireplace lets out heat when the damper is open, of course. Closing that damper was a no-brainer when the wind started blowing down the chimney! Of course, that meant no fire to warm us up while the winds were high, so we piled on blankets. This morning the winds died down and we were able to enjoy a fire. And at lunchtime we cooked a meal on the barbecue grill.

Early this winter we tried to get an energy audit but our power company here doesn't do them and we couldn't locate any who did them in Shenandoah County. Now nature has done one for us, showing us the leaks that steal our electricity dollars.