Air exchange through unplanned openings contributes significantly to energy loss in homes. Most heat loss occurs around windows and doors where cracks and gaps allow air to flow freely in and out. A simple and inexpensive way to reduce this air exchange is to create draft stoppers out of recycled materials like fabric, and place them under leaky doors and windows. The document provides instructions for making a draft stopper by cutting and sewing a fabric tube, filling it with materials like sand or beans, and placing it on the floor to block drafts. Placing a homemade draft stopper under a drafty door was found to noticeably reduce cold air flow into the home.

2. Did you know?
 Approximately 20 to 40% of heating and
cooling is due to air exchange
 Air exchange contributes greatly to your
comfort (or discomfort) in your home
 Unplanned, unintentional, and unmanaged
airflows are one of the primary causes of
residential energy performance failures

3. To have air exchange…
 You must have hole or path out and pressure
difference
 Air in must equal air out

4. How do we decrease Air
Exchange?
 Most heat loss occurs in cracks under the
doors and windows
 We can stop this loss of heat by making a
draft stopper, which is a barrier that we can
place under leaky doors and windows

5. What can I do?
 When the temperature drops and the cold
winds of winter blow, a draft door stopper is a
great way to keep your house warm and cozy
 This simple sewing project will not only make
your house warmer, but will also help keep
your electric bills under control

6. What you need:
 Fabric (feel free to use old drapes, jeans, or pants)
 A sewing machine
 Filler (dry corn, dry beans, rice, aquarium gravel, play
sand or kitty litter, but consider whether you will be
tempting mice with your stuffing or how likely it is to get
wet)
 A funnel
 Decorations (optional)

7. How to make a draft stopper:
Step 1
 First you will want to pick the material you are
going to use to make your draft stopper
 Your fabric choice should be of medium to
heavy weight
 If you don’t want to go out and buy fabric you
could use old drapes, jeans, or pants for this
project

8. How to make a draft stopper:
Step 1 cont.
 I chose to use a durable fabric that was
similar to the fabric used in sweatshirts

9. How to make a draft stopper:
Step 2
 Next, to know how much fabric you will need,
measure the area where the draft stopper will
be placed
 The average door is 36 inches wide, but
measuring gives a better starting point
 Add 3 to 8 inches to your measurement for
seams and draft zone overlap

10. How to make a draft stopper:
Step 2 cont.
 The width dimension will depend on how large
you want your stopper, I would suggest 8-10
inches

11. How to make a draft stopper:
Step 3
 Cut your fabric to the needed dimensions

12. How to make a draft stopper:
Step 4
 Fold your rectangle pattern in half “hot dog
style”, so the length is the same but the width
is half
 If there is a side of the fabric that you want to
be on the outside of your stopper, have that
side facing in

13. How to make a draft stopper:
Step 5
 Sew along one of the short edges and the
long open edge
 On the remaining open edge, only sew
halfway down

14. How to make a draft stopper:
Step 5 cont.
 If there is a lot of fabric bordering after it has
been sewn, cut down to about a cm

15. How to make a draft stopper:
Step 6
 By now you should have something like a
tube
 In order to fill it we must flip it so what is now
on the outside will be on the inside

16. How to make a draft stopper:
Step 6 cont.
 Go through the remaining open part and pull
the other side through it until it fully reversed
 This may take a little time depending on how
large this opening is

17. How to make a draft stopper:
Step 7
 You are now ready to start filling
 Put a funnel through the remaining hole and
pour your chosen filling into it (I chose sand)

18. How to make a draft stopper:
Step 7 cont.
 If your stopper is too long due to a mistake in
measuring or your fabric stretching just cut off
the end to 2-3 inches above your fill point, fold
the edges in, and sew up the whole end

19. How to make a draft stopper:
Step 8
 The last step is to sew the hole so there are
no more openings

20. Congratulations!
 You now have made your very own draft
stopper!
 Just place it under a door or window that is
drafty and you will have reduced the amount
of heat lost from your house
 You can decorate it however you would like to
customize it to match your own home

22. Does it work?
 I put mine under the door in my entry way
which has, over time, lifted from the bottom of
the frame
 We have only had it there for a few days, but
already we notice the floor in the entryway
and kitchen is not nearly as cold as it used to
be

23. Sources:
 http://www.sciencenter.org/climatechange/d/c
art_background_draft_detectives.pdf
 https://moodle2.umn.edu/file.php/2180/8%20
Natural%20Gas%20Efficiency/Natural%20Ga
s%20Efficiency%20pdf.pdf
 http://www.sealmax.com/drafts.html