Buying a home often comes with unexpected challenges, including dealing with the mistakes of previous owners. One homeowner captured attention on Reddit after detailing how a past owner's oversight left them sweating in the summer.
The Reddit user wrote that they recently bought a house in Missouri and spent their first summer at the property. On especially sweltering summer days, when temperatures reached 100 degrees and above, they quickly noticed that their HVAC system wasn't keeping their home cool.
The homeowner wrote, "I have done a few things to combat this: -sealed any leaks in our ductwork, and any window/door cracks -had our entire ducting cleaned including condenser, evaporator, and furnace -had an HVAC guy come by to refill refrigerant since we were low."
None of these maintenance attempts fixed the issue. The homeowner, however, wrote that the home lacks attic insulation and asked fellow Redditors if that could be causing the trouble. Many commenters advised that this missing insulation was "abso frakin lutely" the root of the problem.
"That missing insulation is definitely a major issue," one commenter wrote, adding, "I have gotten a rebate in a past home for adding insulation in the attic."
"That's a good idea," the homeowner responded. "I didn't even think about rebates for getting this done."
Luckily, this Missouri-based homeowner can take advantage of rebates and tax credits through the Inflation Reduction Act, making any insulation upgrades more affordable. Passed in 2022, the IRA is Congress' most significant climate action to date, allocating nearly $370 billion to environmental initiatives. Some of that money can go straight into your pocket when you make eligible updates to your home — such as adding attic insulation.
The IRA offers a rebate of up to $1,600 on weatherization, including insulation, air sealing, and ventilation.
As Reddit commenters explained, insulation is essential to a home's energy efficiency, preventing heat from entering in the summer and keeping heat from escaping in the winter. With good insulation, you'll maintain a more comfortable indoor temperature without overrelying on your HVAC system, lowering your home energy usage and bills. According to the U.S. Department of Energy, weatherization upgrades save households $372 or more annually on average.
🗣️ Do you feel like your home is well-insulated?
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🗳️ Click your choice to see results and speak your mind
To help make finding and claiming rebates and tax credits easy, the nonprofit Rewiring America offers free tools to help you discover incentives, including those that apply to weatherization. To see if you qualify for IRA rebates and credits — and how much you can save — visit Rewiring America's Incentive Calculator for complete and customized recommendations. And you likely want to do so sooner rather than later.
With President-elect Donald Trump set to take office this month, the future of IRA benefits is unknown. Trump has said he plans to roll back the IRA, pledging to eliminate rebates and tax credits related to climate action. However, significant changes to the IRA would require an act of Congress.
Given that uncertain future, taking advantage of IRA incentives now could save you thousands.
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