Draft protection in the house
In addition to ventilation, which is necessary to create the necessary microclimate in the house, for the correct and safe operation of heating appliances - the house is attacked by uncontrolled drafts. As a result of significant heat loss, drafts bring significant discomfort to a person's life. After spending some money, install anti-draft equipment.
Content
- How to find drafts
- Threshold anti-skid seals
- Slots around doors and swing windows
- Entry Door Sealing Kits
How to find drafts
To identify drafts, you need to start with external doors and windows. Since there should be natural air circulation between the rooms, therefore only the most purged ones are equipped from the internal doors, from the drafts, for example, a room with small children, where the draft can endanger the health of the child.
Examine other sources of drafts, such as gaps in the skirting boards, gaps between the floorboards, the hatch door to the attic, overflow plumbing pipes. When searching for drafts in the apartment, a lit candle or a lit long torch is brought to the proposed places.
After such an examination, you will see how much air moves. To remove drafts, at present, many manufacturers produce anti-draft seals - screens.
Threshold anti-skid seals
flexible strip seals
The simplest threshold anti-skid seal is a flexible strip of plastic or rubber, which adheres to the floor covering and slides along it, closing the gap.
This type of sealant is a prototype of door sealing in former times with the help of scraps of warm cloth, which was nailed to the bottom of the door, thereby preventing the penetration of cold air into the house.
Most modern models of the seal have a rigid profile made of plastic or aluminum, which is fastened with screws to the door, a flexible seal is attached to the rigid profile, it fits well to the floor. Such a flexible sealant works well on floors with a smooth coating.
brush seals
For relatively uneven floors, or texture flooring, long brushes with nylon pile inserted in a metal or plastic profile are used.
Brush seals can be installed on swing and sliding doors.
flexible arch seal
This sealant consists of a curved vinyl insert in a shallow aluminum profile, this profile is pressed to the lower end of the door, and is screwed to the floor, which does not allow it to be installed on the cement floor.
To seal the draft of the entrance doors, the option with additional sealing is used, which prevents water from leaking under the seal.
door sill kits
An anti-draft complex, which includes an aluminum drain, drain plate (it must drain rainwater) and a sealing strip with a tubular anti-draft seal made of rubber or plastic, is the best solution for the front door.
The drainage plate is fixed with screws to the door, and the seal is attached to the threshold. Manufacturers produce a wide range of threshold kits, but they all operate on the same principle.
Slots around doors and swing windows
A very important point when protecting against drafts are well-fitted doors and windows. At a well-fitted door, the gaps should be no more than 2 mm., But also a lot of heat comes out through such slots, i.e. their sealing is necessary, for this there are gaskets. Swing and pivot windows are insulated with the same seals, but at the same time, they must be weather-resistant.
soft foam seals
These are old, well-known seals that have proven themselves for many decades in the successful fight against drafts. But modern foam seals are produced in the form of a self-adhesive strip of soft foam, it is glued into a special groove, pressed by a door or window, thereby sealing the gap.
The cheapest foam sealant will last no more than two seasons and is suitable only for interior doors. A rubber sealant coated with vinyl polyurethane is more durable and not exposed to sunlight.
When sticking on the foam seal, do not stretch it, as this may reduce efficiency. After installing such a seal, the door may close with difficulty, but gradually everything will fall into place.
folding sealing pads
In some cases, after sticking a soft foam seal, the hinged window or door closes very poorly, in which case a sealing strip is installed made of a strip bent along the length in the shape of the letter V.
This sealant, also self-adhesive, is used to seal the gap around the perimeter of the door or window, and can be attached to the stop so that the door or window is pressed against it. Such heaters are not expensive, but fitting will be required to completely eliminate drafts.
Entry Door Sealing Kits
Only rubber or plastic models are suitable for entrance doors, and soft foam seals are not suitable. Currently, the production of sealing sets for entrance doors has been established, it consists of three segments of an aluminum profile with a plastic or rubber strip, this strip is pressed to the outer side of the door at the top and sides.
A flat strip is placed on top and on the porch side (side of the door), and a curved strip is attached on the hinge side. It is important not to confuse, as if improperly installed, the sealing deteriorates. When installing profiles, they are cut to size, and if the flexible insert becomes wrinkled, it must be straightened.
To straighten, clamp one end of the insert with pliers, pulling the other end, straighten it, then at the same end, squeeze the profile, so you save the tension of the insert. After closing the door, attach a short profile up the door frame so that the flexible insert is pressed against the door. After making sure that the pressure is even, tighten the seal.
Check the tightness of its fit, using the screws, adjust the position of the seal. Repeat the process on the other side of the door. In each upper corner, if necessary, make cut-outs for the seals to fit completely together.
