If your walls feel cold when you touch them, then it is likely that your home is not well insulated. Fortunately, you can easily make your walls warmer by installing extra insulation and completing other home energy upgrades. This will reduce heat loss, lower carbon emissions, and save you money on utility bills.
Simply put, cold walls are caused by poor insulation. If your home is poorly insulated, it means that heat from inside the home is easily escaping to the outside. Warm air moves from inside the rooms, passing through the walls to be lost outside. Without insulation, there's no barrier to keep the heat in.
If your walls feel cold, chances are your home is not very well insulated. In a poorly insulated wall, warmth dissipates quickly to the outside, creating a cool wall in comparison to the room.
The walls, floors and ceilings of your home should feel warm and dry to the touch. When drywall and panelling inside a home feels damp or cold, that's a clear sign there's not enough insulation. Alternatively, when touching an exterior wall, it should feel cold because insulation is keeping warm air inside a home.
If you are unsure whether your walls are cold enough to be considered an issue, a general rule is that they should be no colder than the temperature of the room. If the walls feel damp, it is likely due to a lack of insulation or a draft.
Signs of Poor Insulation
Cold interior walls, floors or ceilings. High humidity or mould on the upper floor. Premature wear of the roofing. The roof thawing quickly at the end of winter, and ice forming on the gutters.
Insulate your walls
Although wall insulation is a bigger investment, and costs vary, it can keep your home warm and cosy and result in a large saving. Most homes built after 1920 have cavity walls.
Caulk and weatherstrip doors and windows that leak air. Caulk and seal air leaks where plumbing, ducting, or electrical wiring comes through walls, floors, ceilings, and soffits over cabinets. Install foam gaskets behind outlet and switch plates on walls.
Drywall mud in cold temperatures will be slow to dry (and in many cases crack) and wood flooring has to be installed in a stable, warm temperature.
Cold wall, cold home
Without adequate insulation, they're not keeping heat inside your home. As well as making them cold, that makes it harder to maintain a comfortable temperature, causing your energy bills to rise as you crank up the thermostat or leave the heating on for longer.
Your house could be cold due to an old air filter, a faulty furnace, improper insulation, or leaky ductwork. The simple fixes, like replacing an air filter, are relatively easy to complete. However, if the heater itself needs repairs, it's best to call in a professional to take a look and determine the problem.
In most cases, interior walls are not insulated during construction. Unlike exterior walls, which must meet local and state codes for insulation, interior wall insulation is rarely required. This is because interior insulation has much less impact on your home's energy efficiency – but it can still play a role.
A damp wall is a cold wall. A cold wall attracts condensation. Condensation attracts mould. Your damp and/or cold wall is certainly costing you money, it could be also costing you your health.
Cold walls can reach the dew-point for moisture in the air, meaning that it will condense and cause damp. The first solution is to improve the insulation on the wall itself. However if insulation is not a possibility, or not quite doing the job, make sure you have adequate ventilation.
Small Draughts
One of the most obvious sources of cold in your home is draughts, as you can feel the cold air on your skin. There are many places in your home which may be letting the chilly outside air into your home and, while each one may only be small, they can really add up to a real chill.
Warming up your room without a heater can be tricky, but tips such as sealing air leaks to prevent cold drafts, letting the sun in, and using thermal curtains to retain heat can be highly beneficial. Moreover, in freezing weather, switch to smart heating to maintain comfort and save on heating costs.
Light an incense stick and carefully pass it around the edges of common leak sites. Wherever the smoke wavers or is sucked out of or blown into the room, there's a draft. You can also use a damp hand to locate leaks; any drafts will feel cool to your hand.
Internal wall insulation is done by fitting rigid insulation boards to the wall, or by building a stud wall filled in with insulation material. External wall insulation involves fixing a layer of insulation material to the wall, then covering it with plasterwork or cladding.
“Thyroid hormone levels are one of the most thought-of causes of feeling cold or cold intolerant,” Dr. Morrissey said. Significant anemia, or low blood iron levels, can hurt a person's temperature regulation, as can a significant vitamin B deficiency. “Some people really do just have hypersensitive nerves,” Dr.
Cracks in Walls, Windows and Doors
Around 38% of heat loss in your home comes from cracks in your walls, windows and doors (often invisible to the naked eye). In fact, a ⅛ inch gap under a 36-inch wide door will let as much cold air into your home as a 2.4 inch hole through your wall.
You may add insulation to your walls without removing it by cutting holes into the siding. You can blow spray foam or cellulose into the walls from outside.
This means that you could be losing a significant amount of heat through your walls, resulting in higher energy bills and a less comfortable living space. If your exterior walls have no insulation, you may be facing significantly higher energy bills due to increased heat loss.