Insider Secrets Magazine by ecoMaster

TIP
09
It is common to detect
draughts coming out from
around dishwashers. This
can be explained when taking
a closer look at kitchen
construction. When you
have a look at a new kitchen
from a draught viewpoint,
there are a number of factors
at play: what type of kickers,
whether there is skirting,
penetrations through the
walls and the floor, and the
level of adjustment required
to screw the cupboards to
the walls.
DRAUGHTS
WHO KNEW THAT
YOUR DISHWASHER
SOAKS YOUR DISHES
AND SOAKS YOUR
ENERGY COSTS
youtu.be/347VHk1-AAw
This means that between all of these holes and gaps there is
airflow around, underneath and behind the cupboards. Similarly
in European style kitchens, because there are adjustable legs
under the cupboards, there is unrestricted airflow underneath
the cupboards.
So when investigating a dishwasher draught, make sure that the
cupboards are sealed (caulked) against the wall, if there is no
skirting then check that the gap between the floor and wall is
sealed, that the kickers are well-sealed on each side and all the
pipe penetrations are sealed.
If it’s a European style kitchen, you may need to fill under the
cupboards as well. This is a little more tricky, but a “Chimney
Draught Stopper” is a great way to stop the draught from
underneath the cupboards and the dishwasher recess.
TIP #10
DRAUGHTS
DID YOU
REALLY MEAN
TO HAVE
YOUR FLOORS
SO COLD?
If you have got gas ducted heating with outlets in a timber floor,
then this Insider Secret is for you.
Sometimes there are gaps you’re not aware of inside the heating
duct that you can locate by lifting the register off the outlet.
Underneath that is what is called the “boot”. The boot fits into
the register and adapts the round ducting under the floor into the
rectangular opening that the register fits into.
How well the boot fits the register opening is important. If there are
significant gaps between the boot and the floor, heating can be lost
youtu.be/CZq89C48H-Y
into the subfloor. Furthermore,
when the heating is off, there can
be a draught coming into your
home.
But there is a way to treat this.
If the boot is loose, then you
need to secure it. You can do
this by putting a screw through
it, into the side of the floor so
that it won’t fall out. The next
step is to seal the gaps between
the boots and the floor. This can
be done using a sealant. Unless
it is a massive gap, I would
suggest HB Fuller’s UltraClear or
FulaSeal which you can use with
a caulking gun.
That will seal up the boot to the
floor so no more leakage of your
heating and no more draughts
from your underfloor heating
system!
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