You could fix your draughty windows with this easy DIY hack.
Many of us do whatever we can to keep ourselves warm in the cold winter months. Energy bills are still a concern, so it’s important to be able to keep heating costs down while not being uncomfortably cold in our own homes.
But did you know that you can make your home more energy efficient simply by looking at your windows? You may live with draughty windows without realising it, and these small gaps can cause cold air to enter our homes.
This air makes our heating work harder to warm each room of your house, but what’s more, the gaps also cause hot air to escape – which all leads to more expensive energy bills.
But if you’ve got draughty windows, worry not. One DIY expert has gone viral on TikTok with an easy fix you can use to get rid of the small gaps and make your home more energy efficient in no time.
In her video, a woman named Emma claimed you can first test your windows with a feather to work out where the draught is coming from. She said you simply need to hold a feather up to different parts of your window, and you’ll be able to see where the air is coming in when the feather moves.
Once you’ve located the draught, the fix could be as easy as manually adjusting the compression settings that can be found where your window opens.
Emma said: “Many new PVC windows have adjustable compression settings. Open your window and look out for the locking cams. In the winter, you want these to be tighter, as the windows naturally expand and contract as the seasons change.
“There may also be a small notch on the cams to indicate its compression. Typically, if the notch is facing towards the frame that means the cam is at its tightest, and if the notch faces away, it’s at its loosest.
“You can confirm the draught is gone with another feather test.”
Emma changed her window’s compression settings using an allen key, which she slotted into the cam and used to turn it to the right level of tightness to get rid of the draught.
If your window doesn’t have manual compression adjustments or if changing them doesn’t get rid of the draught, Emma said you may need to replace the rubber seals that run around the edge of your window, or use some draught excluding tape as a temporary fix to get you through the cold months.
Commenters on Emma’s video were thankful for her advice, as many said they “genuinely didn’t know” about compression adjustments and were pleased to have stumbled upon the handy hack.
One person said: “Thank you so much! I’m so glad this came up. Appreciate your sharing of knowledge.”
Another added: “Thank you so much! I was literally considering calling a worker out to fix our draughty windows. You’ve just saved me a fortune.”
According to the Eco Experts, windows are a major cause of energy loss and in 2022, Historic England estimated as much as one-fifth of heating is lost due to draughts.
On their website, they shared a list of DIY jobs you can try to make your windows more energy efficient this winter, including using self-adhesive foam strips to fill any gaps, placing a door snake or draught excluder across the bottom of your window, and even simply hanging heavy curtains that can help keep cold winds at bay.
