I know it’s good to seal up air leaks in your house, but is it possible to have a house that’s sealed too tight?

Without fresh air, indoor pollutants can conspire to reduce the air quality in your home. Dust, smoke from cooking, carbon dioxide from your breath, and household cleaning chemicals need to be ventilated. If your home is so well sealed that air cannot get in or out, then these pollutants can build up to dangerous levels.

The good news is that, if you live in an older home, there’s little danger of over sealing. The cracks and gaps in the floors and walls will generally provide more than enough ventilation. Of course, the down side of all that air being exchanged is that your air conditioner is working harder to keep up with the constant change in air pressure.

So if having a house that’s too tight can cause air quality problems while having a house that’s too leaky is inefficient, how do you know if your house is properly ventilated? The most common solution is to have a blower door test performed. This test, which is free for Denton Municipal Electric customers, uses a temporary seal with a calibrated fan to measure the exact amount of air leakage in a home. By factoring in the size of the home as well as the number of occupants it has, this test can help you decide the steps to take to maximize your home’s air quality and become more energy efficient.

If you have a question about energy efficiency, ask the Energy Expert by visiting www.dmepower.com