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Posted by jtown on January 26, 2004 at 07:54:42:
In Reply to: Boiler or Cold Floor? posted by Harz on January 26, 2004 at 07:20:49:
Go buy a 10x100 roll of 6mil plastic at your local building supply. Cut pieces that are 8in wider and taller than your basement doors. Using a good staple gun, roll 4in up and staple the corner to the interior door casing at the outer edge so the roll butts the wall if possible, do two other corners next, to get the sheet straight then roll up the edges and staple every 10in or so. Roll the plastic so it makes a tube that presses in between staples. If the door must be openable, you can make tubes to staple to the bottom of the door to act as a sweep and staple them on the door casing to act as weather strips. Do your basement windows also. And insulate the sill plate if you can get to it, especially if balloon framed. Pack insulation into platic bags and stuff it, also do top of any exterior and interior walls that open into the attic. Use newspaper crumpled up, temporarily and then replace for fire resistent. Empty balloon framing is the worst thing to have in a fire. Add plastic as above to windows in rooms where vision doesn't matter, attic hatches etc. The clear window kits are much more costly. Buy good weatherstrip kits and door sweeps for the main doors. New thresholds if needed. Make "door snakes" by rolling up old pants legs, etc into tube to lay against exterior doors not used often, or for a temporary. Put little shims in edge of windows to keep sashes tight to frames. Make snakes to lay across meeting rail if there is a gap in old windows. Make sure boiler gets enough air so the chimney is pulling out. Pipe insulation would help save heat, but don't freeze anything, insulate only on the outside of piping at exterior walls.