Save 20% on Your Utilities!
by
Becky at Flipping the Flip
(IC: blogger)
1 Material
$2.00
15 Minutes
Easy
Yeah, I was skeptical too. Save 20%? Huh? Really? 20% seems a hefty sum, right?
They hooked me. I clicked the links: "Insulate your outlets and save 20% on your utility bills!" the websites I saw cried out. It seemed like a stretch but I thought about it.
I checked out the Menards website and sure enough, they had the foam sealers. I figured since we have so many outlets and switches on outside walls, likely uninsulated walls, this might be a good thing to do, 20% utility bill savings or not.
As you can see, this particular brand had ones you can use either on outlets or switches. Just pop out the corresponding rectangle.
Super easy to install. The right thing to do is shut off the power to the outlets and switches you're working on, open them up, pop on the foam piece and reattach the cover plate. More details are on my blog at humboldtartdept.blogspot.com.
I came across instances with two switches. The foam overlapped so after a minor amount of trimming, I was able to get the cover plates back on securely to the wall.
In other instances, an outlet took up half the opening so I put a foam piece on just one half. Easy peasy. Will they save us 20% on our bills? Let's hope so but that remains to be seen. They have vastly improved a draft we have that comes down our staircase, so for just a couple of bucks, it was already worth it. I was pleasantly surprised! Come read the whole story over on my blog, Flipping the Flip! Click the link below for this and more fun stories!
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Want more details about this and other DIY projects? Check out my blog post!
Published December 1st, 2014 7:48 PM
Comments
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4 of 137 comments
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Tira on Jan 11, 2019
Check with your utility company, mine gives them away free every fall. They do work.
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Becky at Flipping the Flip on Jan 11, 2019
Great tip! Thanks for sharing!
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Ellen on Jan 12, 2019
I use styrofoam egg cartons cut to shape cheaper then buying the pre-cut
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Becky at Flipping the Flip on Jan 12, 2019
Be sure to do some research and make sure this is safe as the foam is different and it's not UL rated, otherwise it's a clever idea!
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Frequently asked questions
Have a question about this project?
Should you do this to ALL outlets or just the ones on the walls by the exterior of the house
Yes, Im wondering the same as above...all the outlets, or just those on outside walls?
Wouldn't the foam be a fire risk