Old houses are full of charm, but they’re also full of inefficiencies. Common problems in an old house, like cold drafts, hot spots, temperature swings between rooms, and high energy bills, can almost always be traced back to energy efficiency issues.
If you want to make improvements but are worried about the impact they’ll have on your home’s character, Neeeco can help. We specialize in home efficiency and have helped hundreds of Massachusetts residents upgrade their old and historic homes while maintaining their charm and integrity.
1. Start with a Home Energy Assessment
The first step toward improving your home’s energy efficiency is a Home Energy Assessment. A Home Energy Assessment is a comprehensive evaluation of your home’s current energy usage showing where and how energy is being lost. It uncovers problem areas and identifies the best opportunities for energy-saving upgrades in your home.
Neeeco offers no-cost Mass Save® Home Energy Assessments, which include a complete assessment of your home’s energy efficiency along with recommendations for energy-saving measures and assistance qualifying for Mass Save rebates and incentives.
2. Upgrade Your Insulation
When making upgrades to an older home, insulation is almost always at the top of the list. Insulation is essential to keeping your home comfortable and your energy bills in check, but 9 out of 10 houses in the United States are under-insulated! If you have hot or cold spots in your home, a hot second floor in the summer, cold floors in the winter, or ice dams on your roof, you probably need better insulation.
There are a few key areas to add insulation in an old house: the attic, the basement or crawl space, and the exterior walls. During your Home Energy Assessment, we’ll identify where your insulation is lacking and recommend the best places to upgrade it. If wall insulation is needed, it is possible to install it without tearing down walls by drilling small holes and using a hose to blow cellulose insulation into the wall cavities. Insulation improvements can pay for themselves through energy bill savings, making them one of the best home efficiency upgrades you can make. Plus, you can save 75-100% off your insulation upgrade with Mass Save rebates.
3. Seal Air Leaks
Is your house drafty? Do you feel like the wind blows right through it? You probably need to air seal. Modern houses are built with a tight seal that blocks outside air from flowing in freely, but older houses were not built to the same standards. They tend to be riddled with small gaps and openings, called air leaks, that let outside air in and heated or cooled air out.
Air sealing is the process of locating and closing these openings to create a tightly sealed home. This creates a more comfortable and energy efficient home, and it can also make it healthier by blocking out moisture, which can cause mold growth, and outdoor air pollutants. It’s one of the most cost-effective ways to improve your home’s energy efficiency and, with Mass Save incentives, you can receive no-cost air sealing.
4. Install Mini Split Heat Pumps for Heat & AC
Most old houses don’t have central air conditioning, so you end up installing window ACs, which are inefficient, and usually pretty ineffective, too. Installing ductless mini split heat pumps is the best way to add AC to an old house because they don’t require ductwork and are fairly unobtrusive to install. Plus, they’re an all-in-one heating and cooling system, so you can use them for heat, too. They are all-electric and don’t burn fossil fuels, making them a great replacement for your aging heating system. Neeeco can help you save up to $16,000 on installation costs with Mass Save heat pump rebates
5. Replace Single-Pane Windows
If your house still has its original windows (or if they haven’t been replaced in a few decades) it’s time for an upgrade. Replacing single-pane windows with ENERGY STAR Most Efficient certified windows can save you $101 to $583 a year on your energy bills. You can also receive a $75 rebate per window with Mass Save rebates.
*Some restrictions apply. Offers are subject to change or cancellation. Visit MassSave.com/HEA for full details.