Lighting is an easy way to add aesthetic appeal to your home but did you know that your choice of lighting could be affecting your HVAC systems efficiency?

The largest culprit of this is the most common bulb for a sleek appeal, the pot light. Recessed lights are tucked up into the ceiling which requires a large hole making them an easy place for air to escape. This means major drafts and major energy waste for every room that has recessed lighting. To make matters worse this is a year round issue drawing hot air into your home instead of cool in the summer and cool air instead of hot in the winter.

Unfortunately, this can be a difficult thing to fix but if you are willing to put in a little work with your local technician your savings over the years to come can be very beneficial.

Start by evaluating your standings:

First, check over your home and determine what kind of recessed light fixtures you have throughout. There are two main types of recessed lights you need to know about, insulation contact and non-insulation contact. Insulated Contact fixtures are lower in wattage and produce less heat making them safer to use. While Non-insulation Contact produces more heat and they should not be in direct contact with insulation material thus causing these lights to have larger air leak issues.

You should also evaluate how the light is fixed to the ceiling. There should be a tight caulk seal attaching the light directly to the ceiling. If the light is just bolted to your ceiling or wedged into place there are many places air can escape too.

After completing your evaluation you should go on to select a solution that best fits your budget:

The solution to this issue depends on how much you want to invest in improving your energy efficiency. You can start by spending a small amount by buying caulk to upgrade the seal around your lights but this will not boost your energy saving as much as say upgrading your fixtures.

Upgrading your fixtures to insulation contact bulbs will allow you to insulate around your light fixtures creating a tighter seal. When taking this route, you must make sure to use heat-resistant insulation and caulk around the top of the fixture to get the best seal possible.

If you want to remove all possible leaks you can remodel your home and remove all recessed lighting in your home. You can replace them with hanging fixtures, track lighting, wall sconces or floor lamps. Fully filling in the holes where the recessed lights are is the most HVAC-friendly choice you can make to boost your energy efficiency.