Use a Candle to Find Mysterious Air Leaks in Your Home
With temperatures plummeting across the country over the past few days, any air leaks in your home have likely become especially noticeable. Perhaps you knew about these cracks and crevices, but have not yet bothered to deal with them. Or maybe you took the time to properly seal your home and thought you had all the leaks taken care of, but the constant flow of cold air coming out of your wall suggests otherwise.
It seems like it should be easy enough to find additional leaks and then seal them up. But sometimes, no matter how hard you try, you just can’t find the leak. Here’s what to do if you encounter this problem.
How to use a candle to find air leaks in your home
One way to find a mysterious air leak in your home is to use a candle. Here’s what to do:
Find the right candle
Generally speaking, longer, thinner candles—like the kind you put in candlesticks or use in a candlelight vigil—work better than candles in glass jars. This is because you need the flame to be open and accessible.
Some experts, including those from the US Department of Energy (DOE), suggest lighting an incense stick instead of a candle. While it will certainly get the job done, it will also make your home smell like incense (which not everyone agrees with).
Switch off any sources of purge air
This method of detecting air leaks is much more effective if there is no air flow coming from fans or forced air heating systems. Turning off any fans should be fairly easy, but if you don’t want to turn off the stove, at least wait until it stops actively blowing air through the vents. (Or cover or temporarily block the vents.)
Pass through your home
Now light the candle and get to work. Starting from the wall, floor, or general area where you sensed an air leak, slowly and very carefully move the candle around the room, paying particular attention each time you pass over or near areas prone to air leakage , such as windows. , doors, baseboards and switches.
If the flame flickers or goes out completely in a certain area, you have probably found a leak. But to be sure, hold a lit candle perfectly still near the same spot to see if the flame flickers or goes out again. (In case it happened the first time because you moved the candle.)