We all know that owning a home is a huge responsibility. As soon as one thing is fixed, something else breaks. There are also “the jobs” you can’t afford to put off.

Now that it’s summertime, you need to get started sealing up your home.

• Air seal the trim. The first step is air sealing the finish trim and enclosure around the attic hatch. Carefully pull down the finish trim. (Pray that the installer used finish nails and not, say, ring-shank nails.) Set aside the trim and, using caulk for smaller gaps (less than 1/4″) or foam sealant for larger ones, seal the gap between the attic hatch framing and the rough cut drywall.
• Apply a bead of caulk on the inside and outside edges of the trim, and then reattach it.
• Air seal the hatch perimeter. The plywood hatch rests on a small wood strip lip. The standard air sealing recommendation is to install a compression bulb weather-strip. This can also be beefed up to a sealing gasket like the one on your refrigerator door. Gaskets are generally more durable and produce a tighter seal.
• Insulate the hatch. Cut foam board to 1/2″ less than the size of the hatch on each side.
• Foil-faced polyiso is the greenest and best-performing of the rigid foam options. Apply a bead of foam-compatible glue to it and attach it to the plywood hatch. Wash, rinse and repeat until you have added at least 4 inches of foam (but preferably 8 inches + of foam).
• Fasteners. Add a handle and several hook-and-eye fasteners situated so that when the hatch is forcefully pulled down, it tightly compresses the gasket.

Just so you know, attic hatches are the start of house efficiency problems. They’re in plain sight but rarely addressed adequately. Insulate and air seal your attic hatch to save money and improve your house’s comfort.