Where Is Your Syracuse Home Losing the Most Energy & Why Insulation Matters First
Syracuse winters aren’t just cold; they’re relentless. With snowstorms that arrive one after the other and bitter winds blowing in off Onondaga Lake, your home heating system is working overtime every single year. But staying warm in the Finger Lakes takes more than just a functioning furnace. It takes a home that’s built to hold onto heat.
At Halco Home Solutions, we’ve been helping Syracuse homeowners uncover hidden sources of heat loss for decades. And while many assume they need a bigger heating system or newer technology, the truth is: the best place to start is by stopping the heat from escaping in the first place.
Here’s how a professional home energy assessment can end with a home that’s ready for smart upgrades like heat pumps, geothermal, or solar.
Syracuse’s Housing Stock: Charm + Character = Efficiency Challenges
Much of Syracuse’s housing was built in an era before energy codes. From 1800s-era homes in Strathmore and Sedgwick to Cape Cods and ranches in Eastwood, these homes are packed with character, not insulation.
Here’s what we regularly find in Syracuse homes:
- Attics with little to no insulation, allowing warm air to escape upward
- Drafty basements and crawl spaces pulling in cold air from below
- Gaps around rim joists, plumbing penetrations, and attic hatches
- Old, oversized furnaces trying to make up for inefficient structures
You can replace your heating system, but without addressing these core inefficiencies, you’ll just spend more to still lose heat, comfort, and money.
Where Is Your Home Losing the Most Energy?
The first step in fixing energy waste is finding it. That’s why every Halco project begins with a professional home energy assessment using advanced tools like blower door testing and thermal imaging.
In Syracuse homes, we most often uncover trouble in these three critical areas:
1. The Attic
Warm air rises, and in the dead of winter, it escapes right out of under-insulated attics. This is the number one source of energy loss in the homes we inspect across Central New York. It also contributes to ice damming and roof issues during snow-heavy months.
2. The Basement or Crawl Space
Syracuse’s frost line runs deep, and so does the cold. Gaps in your basement foundation or rim joists pull freezing air upward, chilling floors and forcing your furnace to run nonstop.
3. The Pressure Boundary / Air Seal
The pressure boundary is your home’s defense line. It’s the seal between indoors and outdoors. If that seal is leaky, conditioned air escapes and outside air creeps in, no matter how efficient your heating system is.
Why Insulation and Air Sealing Come First
At Halco, we follow a building-envelope-first approach because no mechanical system can perform efficiently in a leaky, under-insulated home.
We start by insulating the top and bottom of the home (attic and basement), and air sealing all leaks in the pressure boundary. This creates a controlled, energy-efficient indoor environment that:
Reduces heating and cooling demand
Boosts indoor comfort and temperature consistency
Increases the impact of HVAC upgrades and solar
Prepares your home for clean, renewable energy options
What Comes Next? Energy Efficient, Forward-Thinking Systems
Once your home is sealed and insulated, you’re ready for next-level comfort and savings. Halco Home Solutions can help you install:
- Ducted or ductless cold-climate heat pumps
- Hybrid systems for enhanced performance
- Geothermal heat pumps, ideal for deep retrofits and long-term sustainability
- Solar energy systems and battery storage to help you generate your own power
But remember, insulation comes first. It’s not about generating more heat. It’s about keeping the heat you already paid for.
Yes, We Do That in Syracuse
Halco isn’t just another contractor. We’re your locally owned, full-service energy experts, serving Syracuse and the surrounding region for over 35 years.
Whether your home needs insulation, air sealing, a new HVAC system, updated electrical, plumbing support, or renewable energy solutions, yes, we do that. And we do it with our own in-house team, not subcontractors or out-of-town crews.
No hidden investors. No corporate red tape. Just honest, whole-home solutions from people who live and work in Central New York.
