5 Benefits of Air Sealing Your Attic
5 Benefits of Air Sealing Your Attic Homes will protect you from the natural elements of the outside world, but sometimes the outdoor elements can
As winter comes to an end and spring blooms, many homeowners begin to clean their homes, attics, and general living spaces. As you dive into spring cleaning, the attic is one of the most challenging yet overlooked areas of the house to clean. Yet it is a vital area and should not be left uncleaned. By ensuring your attic gets a proper cleanout, you’ll also have the opportunity to make any needed repairs.
Whether your attic is a small unfinished space or a functioning living/storage space, you should include your attic in your spring cleaning.
Your attic is often the forgotten area of your home, as some say, out of sight, out of mind. But yearly cleaning of your attic is essential. Letting your attic become damaged, dirty, or cluttered can affect your home, your health, and your family.
According to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), if you come into contact with pests and their feces, it can cause several conditions and diseases, one being Lyme Disease. Certain insects, such as mites and flies, are also unsanitary in your attic. Having an unclean attic can attract rodents and insects, leading to infestation.
Once you have ensured that your attic is rodent-free and have replaced any damage, you should take the proper steps to rodent-proof your attic.
If you notice mold in your attic, you should address it immediately. Mold spores in attic spaces may become dislodged and can begin to circulate through your home’s HVAC system. According to the EPA, mold can cause headaches, aggregate allergies, immune system disorders, fatigue, and other conditions.
Additionally, attics are one of the spaces where homeowners may store chemicals such as pesticides and cleaning solutions. As the temperature fluctuates in your attic, this can become hazardous. It’s always best to store cleaning solutions and other chemicals in temperature-appropriate rooms in your home.
When having an attic cleaning, you can eliminate chemical hazards. Making an attic cleanout part of your spring cleaning can ensure that you’re also performing an annual inspection of the structural integrity of your home.
Attics are generally located at the top of the house, making them prone to hot weather during the summer and extreme cold during the winter. Spring is the best time of year to perform an attic cleanout because your attic isn’t cold or hot, which can often make working conditions unbearable.
With comfortable working conditions, you’ll be able to accomplish more and cross more items off your to-do list.
It’s challenging to perform an attic cleanout in a cluttered space, so to make cleaning more manageable, you should start by removing the clutter and organizing your belongings in your attic. Remove heavy bulk items, so you have more space to work, then use a box or container to collect smaller items.
When returning items & belongings back to the attic after the attic cleanup, you should remove all dust or grime that may have accumulated on your items after sitting for an extended period of time. If you’re having a professional perform an attic cleanup, ask a family member or friend to assist you with eliminating belongings if needed to speed up the process.
While attics stored in your attic are typically fine and out of harm’s way, you may encounter moldy or damaged items if you’ve had roof leaks, rodent infestation, or just a generally high-humidity attic. Since most homeowners don’t frequently visit their attic, a leak may have caused damage before you even notice you have a problem.
If you have poor ventilation in your attic, this can lead to dust buildup. Homeowners are typically shocked to find how quickly dust can accumulate in a year due to poor ventilation. If you suspect your ventilation is less than efficient, an attic professional can determine if your attic needs new ventilation.
When dusting your attic, it’s best to work from top to bottom. Doing a good dusting can also remove dust mites that might be living in your attic. While these are typically harmless, they may pose problems for those with specific allergies.
An attic cleanup combined with efficient ventilation will keep your attic dust-free.
If your attic has no floor, you must focus on moving carefully around the space. An attic without a floor is typically just insulation above drywall and between the joists. Simply stepping in the wrong place can cause you to fall between joists and cause injury.
If you’re unsure about the safety or how to perform an attic cleanup, a well-trained professional has the required experience to navigate these problematic areas.
Once you have cleared your attic of belongings, you should walk through the area to check surfaces to ensure no leaks. Look for areas of moisture or moisture stains, especially along attic insulation and rafters. Some evidence of leaks can include mold, wet spots, unpleasant odors, or mildew.
If signs of a leak are present, you should address it immediately prolonging how much time you allow the leak to be present can result in damages that go beyond just your attic and will start affecting your entire home. In most cases, a professional will need to be called to determine the source of the leak and to find a solution. Once the leak is fixed depending on how bad the damages are, you will likely need to replace your attic insulation.
If you’ve heard unusual noises in your attic, this could be a sign you’re dealing with a rodent infestation. It’s common for rodents to make nests in your attic during winter to keep out of the cold. By including checking for rodents in your spring cleaning to-list, you’ll have a better chance of discovering any signs or evidence of rodents and dealing with the issue before it gets out of control.
Attics are an ideal environment for mice, rats, squirrels, and raccoons. Rodents tend to cause damage to your roof, insulation, and electrical wiring by either using the material as nest-building material or chewing threw it to get in or out of your attic. If you find evidence of rodents, you should contact a professional so they can perform an attic cleanup and adequately sanitize and disinfect the area.
Once completed, ask about rodent-proofing options to rid your attic of rodents for good.
Having sufficient attic insulation can help you save on overall energy costs. If your attic insulation is contaminated by mold or rodent feces, you will need to replace it. Once your insulation is contaminated by rodents or has developed mold due to environment issues it is considered a severe contamination and youll need to have a professional remove & replace your attic insulation. While your Attic Insulation is removed, you should have your attic thoroughly cleaned, rodent-proofed, and air gaps sealed.
Lastly, removing all your belongings from the attic will allow you to clean and declutter unwanted items. Homeowners tend to store items that they no longer have use for in their attics, which leads to a large accumulation of clutter. Over time, the clutter becomes overwhelming.
Performing an attic cleanout yearly in the spring will allow you to minimize the clutter build-up and allow you to go through your items and separate the sentimental belongings from items you wish to discard. By discarding unnecessary clutter from the winter, you can complete your entire spring cleaning checklist.
Master Attic offers attic cleaning in New Jersey and Eastern Pennsylvania; our attic experts can provide a full assessment of your attic. Being that Master Attic specializes in attics overall, we can do a full inspection of your attic and determine what damage, if any needs to be repaired, insulation replaced, or attic rodent-proofed. Contact us today for your attic cleaning, insulation, and rodent-proofing needs.
To rid your attic of dust, you should ensure your attic has proper ventilation to prevent accumulation.
It is essential to keep your attic well-maintained as a dirty or damaged attic can be dangerous to your health and increase energy costs.
To get rid of rodents in your attic, you should have an attic cleanup followed by rodent-proofing services to ensure rodents remain outdoors.
Check for rodents and monitor your energy bills to determine if your attic insulation is damaged and needs replacing.
5 Benefits of Air Sealing Your Attic Homes will protect you from the natural elements of the outside world, but sometimes the outdoor elements can
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