We’re looking toward a very hot summer in the Chicagoland area, if June is any indication of the weeks and months to come. If you run an office or manage a business complex or apartment building of some sort, you’re likely going to want to leverage air conditions to get your tenants through the heat without much complaint. Or, if you’re a homeowner, air conditioning is a must – why own a home in the first place?

However, if you have leaky windows or air conditioning ducts in your building, you’ll end up cooling the world outside as much (or more) than indoors. What are some ways to deal with buildings that leak cold air during the summertime?

Air conditioning ducts

According to the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers, leaky air conditioning ducts can lose between 20 to 40 percent of the cooling energy of your building’s air conditioning unit. If you have a lot of people in your dwelling, 40 percent less cooling – let alone 20 percent – can be felt acutely by your sweaty, irritated occupants.

If your system’s ducts pass outside through a garage, attic or other building attachment, these is where a lot of that cooling energy can escape, according to the ASHRAE. You’ll want to make sure those ducts especially are insulated with a material such as mastic, a sticky material that can seal any duct leaks.

Leaky windows

An obvious way in which your air conditioning can become ineffective very quickly is if you have poor seals on your doors, windows and other openings in the buildings. If you find that your air conditioning is not very effective this summer, this is a great place to start.

Part of the function of air conditioners is to circulate air throughout the building to help level out particularly humid or warm rooms. If air is circulating throughout the building, the air will do what air naturally does and creep out even the tiniest of gaps and cracks in the walls around windows and doors.

Moisture leaks

A key purpose of air conditioning is to balance the humidity in the building. A balanced humidity level can help make buildings more comfortable for occupants; humidity levels that are too high – especially when it’s hot outside – can lead to physical discomfort, mold growth and other issues you’ll want to avoid.

That’s why you need to square away any water leakage in your building. Water leakage can occur form pipes throughout the building or during rainy weather, when rain can seep through your masonry.

Get help from Arrow Masonry and Exteriors

For more information on cool air leaks and our leak detection services, visit our website. You may also contact us by email, by using our online form, or by calling us at (312) 329-0750 for more information about the services we provide.