Five Halloween House Horrors and How to Fix Them

*Written by the Van Helsings of Energy Efficiency, Pearl’s Contractor Sales & Success Teams

Are the waste-wolves lurking in your attic, your basement, and the corners of your hallways haunting your comfort, health, and budget? Under-insulated attics and unsealed basements are pathways for these little demons. These secret passageways are openings for the energy vampires to suck all the heat out of your home and the money out of your wallet!

Here’s five common house-haunting issues and how to solve them!

1. Spooky spiders in your house? A typical reason for spiders (and other creepy crawlies) is that there are lots of little gaps and cracks in your house that spiders crawl through. If you notice a lot of the offending creatures in a particular area, some simple air sealing can close up the gaps and keep the bugs out and your conditioned air in!
   *Added freaky fact about spiders: They build their webs where there is airflow because they catch dinner, but also catch the condensation for a drink.
2. Mold and mildew and mites, oh my! These off-putting things exist in homes that have a high moisture content and uncontrolled humidity. Typically, controlling ventilation will solve the problem. You want air to move through an area so that it carries the moisture out and doesn’t remain in a particular location.
3. Gas bill goblins are terrifying! It is that time of year when the high energy bills start to creep into your mailbox and bank account. Frighteningly high bills showing up can be a direct result of the deep dark corners of your home you may not know are haunted. Consider getting a home energy audit to survey and analyze your home’s energy flow and evaluate what measures you can take to make your home more energy efficient. An assessment will show you problems that may, when corrected, save you significant amounts of money over time.
4. CO/combustion gases seeping into your home like a witch’s poison? Every good contractor has a story about a time they diagnosed a house with a big CO problem. In one case, a homeowner that always backed their car into the garage and used the autostart during the winter to warm the car up, started having headaches and feeling drowsy every morning. The problem was the air handler and a return were in the garage… right behind the car. Simply turning the car around and opening the garage door is a simple solution to that problem!
5. Snakes a-slitherin’ inside your home? Snakes and other vermin can slip into our homes through poorly sealed areas or even by normal design features like vented crawlspaces. Encapsulate those crawlspaces! What garlic is to a vampire, well-sealed floor and foundation areas are to the creepy crawlies. Crawlspace encapsulation divides the area below your home from your actual living space, or building envelope. When done correctly, it prevents the passage of air from the crawlspace to your living environment and creates healthier living conditions.

So what should you do if your house becomes a horror show? Call a Pearl Contractor to the rescue. Not just any contractor will do!

The last thing you need to add to your house horror situation is a creepy contractor. Have you had trouble in the past getting contractors to return your calls? Do they not show when they are supposed to, or track mud into your home? How about their quality of work? With an elite Pearl Network Contractor, all those slithering worries are eliminated.

Pearl accepts only a small number of elite contractors from each city into its Network. Contractors are screened to ensure that they have professional training, positive consumer ratings, and quality control processes and software to address customer issues.

A Pearl Contractor’s work is certified by Pearl Certification. When they finish the job, their customers receive a Pearl Certification Report and documentation for the appraiser. Only Pearl Contractors can provide these documents.

Wishing you a very happy, energy-leaking, bug and snake-free Halloween!