You may already know where some air leakage occurs in your home, such as an under-the-door draft, but you'll need to find the less obvious gaps to properly air seal your home.

For a thorough and accurate measurement of air leakage in your home, hire a qualified technician to conduct an energy audit, particularly a blower door test. A blower door test, which depressurizes a home, can reveal the location of many leaks. A complete energy assessment will also help determine areas in your home that need more insulation.

Without a blower door test, there are ways to find some air leaks yourself.

Maximize your HVAC system's efficiency to stay comfortable during any season.

Controlling your electricity usage and home temperature is easier than you may think.

Learn how to modify your habits and use alternative tools to save money and electricity. Staying connected and up-to-date is important, but your home office and computer may be using more electricity than you need. Your desktop computer and rechargeable electronics make an impact on your usage. 

Improvements to the lighting in your home can help make a difference in your electricity bills. Small changes can bring brighter days. Lighting can enhance your home, but it can easily become expensive and waste energy. 

Follow these quick tips before you take a dip. Swimming pools are a great way to beat the heat, but can they can cost more than you might think. Regular maintenance on your pool will allow you to swim in savings and lessen the amount of energy you use. 

Save on your electricity bill and beautify your outdoor spaces. Strategically planting dense trees and shrubs can help you reduce electricity usage inside your home. 

The electricity usage in your home is affected by the type of windows you have. Learn how you can maximize savings and lessen your energy use. Whether you would like to replace or keep your current windows, you have options.

You can use weatherstripping in your home to seal air leaks around movable building components, such as doors or operable windows. For stationary components, caulk is the appropriate material for filling cracks and gaps.

Before applying weatherstripping in an existing home, you will need to detect the air leaks and assess your ventilation needs to ensure adequate indoor air quality.

Caulk is a flexible material used to seal air leaks through cracks, gaps, or joints less than 1-quarter-inch wide between stationary building components and materials. For components that move -- doors and operable windows, for example -- weatherstripping is the appropriate material.

Before caulking air leaks in an existing home, you will need to detect the leaks and assess your ventilation needs to ensure adequate indoor air quality. In addition to sealing air leaks, caulking can also prevent water damage inside and outside of the home when applied around faucets, ceiling fixtures, water pipes, drains, bathtubs, and other plumbing fixtures.

Before selecting new windows for your home, determine what types of windows will work best and where to improve your home's energy efficiency. It's a good idea to understand the energy performance ratings of windows so you’ll know what energy performance ratings you need for your windows based on your climate and the home's design.
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For labeling energy-efficient windows, ENERGY STAR® has established minimum energy performance rating criteria by climate. However, these criteria don't account for a home's design, such as window orientation.

Windows can be one of your home's most attractive features. Windows provide views, daylighting, ventilation, and heat from the sun in the winter. Unfortunately, they can also account for 10% to 25% of your heating bill by letting heat out.

During the summer, your air conditioner must work harder to cool hot air from sunny windows. Install ENERGY STAR®-qualified windows and use curtains and shade to give your air conditioner and energy bill a break.

​If your home has single-pane windows, consider replacing them with double-pane windows with high-performance glass—low-e or spectrally selective coatings. In colder climates, select gas-filled windows with low-e coatings to reduce heat loss. In warmer climates, select windows with spectrally selective coatings to reduce heat gain.
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If you decide not to replace your windows, consider following these tips to improve their performance.

While a professional home energy audit is the best way to determine where your home is losing energy and where you can save, you can conduct your own simple but diligent walk-through and spot many problems in any type of house. This "do-it-yourself" home energy audit will not be as thorough as a professional home energy assessment, but it can help you pinpoint some of the easier areas to address. When walking through your home, keep a checklist of areas you have inspected and problems you found. This list will help you prioritize your energy efficiency upgrades. Do not assume that just because your home is recently constructed–or even new–that there are no opportunities to save energy. Energy-saving technology has evolved rapidly over the past few years, outpacing training commonly available to many builders, including some of the most reputable.

You'll find that you have several options to consider when selecting what type of windows you should use in your home.

When selecting windows for energy efficiency, it's important to first consider their energy performance ratings in relation to your climate and your home's design. This will help narrow your selection.