Do you ever walk by a window and feel the cold gust of air? Do you double check to make sure the window is actually closed only to find out that it is? Is it even locked? If it feels like air is permeating through your closed fixtures, it is obviously going to be much more difficult to heat your home during the winter. No matter how efficient your furnace is, you're going to lose a lot of heat through these old and leaky fixtures. As windows age, that glazing on the glass can wear off, the panes can become loose within the frames, and the sashes can become warped so that they no longer close to create a perfectly airtight seal.

Basically, as time goes on, you have to expect that your window fixtures are going to become less efficient in every way. So, what can you do to combat aging and inefficient windows? Since it is probably too expensive to go right out and buy new window fixtures, this article explains how you can, for less than $100, make your windows air tight and increase the glass efficiency.

By adding weatherstripping to movable sashes and window film to the glass, you can definitely increase the performance of pretty much any fixture in your home. Both of these projects are simple DIY jobs that can be done with products you can pick up at a home improvement store.

Window Film

Window film is sold in kits that include the film and special adhesive to apply it. The only other thing you need is a razor blade to cut to film to the right size. These kits come with detailed instructions that explain how you can apply a professional quality film to a standard size window within a matter of minutes. You have the option of buying clear or tinted windows on this. Tinted window films should only be used if the glass is exposed to a lot of direct sunlight. Otherwise, the tint can make the room darker, which most people don't like. Even a clear film can be very effective because it reduces the rate of heat transfer through the glass.

Weatherstripping

Felt and rubber weatherstripping are also very easy to apply. They come in sticker form, so you basically just stick it to the inside of the sash. The hardest part of this job might be removing the old weatherstripping that may have started to fall off or became so flat that it no longer does anything.

As you can see, these are not very technical or expensive projects, but they are worth it if you want to make your home a little more efficient. For more help, contact a company like Allstate Siding and Windows today.