The Best of Caulking & Air Sealing is a compilation of resources on...

Best Caulking and Air Sealing Products and Companies
Best Caulking and Air Sealing Videos
Best Weekend DIY Air Sealing projects
Best Caulking and Air Sealing Information Guides
Best way to find air sealing contractors
and... more.

Enjoy!Note: the resources listed in this page belong to the respective owners, with whom we don't maintain any affiliation. More...

Best caulking and foam products and manufacturers

The number of well-known air sealing and caulk manufacturers is small: GE, Dap, Dupont and Dow Chemical... There are also some new Chinese and Asian manufacturers but the quality of their caulks and sealants are yet rather unknown and untested.

The short number of high-rated companies makes the choice easier. But since caulks and air sealing products also vary a lot in their properties and their uses, the easy becomes difficult. Specially since there is also wide differences of quality within the same brand. See, for instance, on this issue: FactsFacts.

Anyway, here are some tips to choose the best products: GE has excellent silicone caulks, probably the best. But they haven't other types of caulks, or foams. Dap and Dupont have a larger offer, that include some very good silicone caulks. As to Dow Chemical, their classic line Great Stuff includes some the best foams in the market (foams are typically used for larger gaps, holes and openings but Dow's foams can also be used in small penetrations).

Just take into account the uses, and the types of caulking and air sealing materials. See: Caulking Products, Foam Sealants and Sealing Products.

best air sealing and caulking online videos

GreenHomes.com and FineHomeBuilding.com videos are undoubtedly between the best online videos about caulking and air sealing. Green Homes videos comprise attic and recessed lights air sealing. Fine Home Building have a much larger series of good videos on caulking and sealing issues, but they require you to create an account to watch them.

Dow Chemical has also a series of good videos for multiple air sealing projects. Look at them here.

For more specific videos involving air sealing of large surfaces (mainly in new homes) see:

ICF forms videos (walls, new homes: the Insulated Concrete Forms provide both insulation and air sealing for the home's envelope). See: Rastra (at the end of their Library page)

SIP panels video (Structural Insulated Panels provide air sealing and insulation of walls and roofs in new homes):
SIP installation video from the SIP professional association: SIPs.org
Building with SIP panels, from MichiganCodes.com: Michigan Codes Sips

Rigid insulation and air sealing foams; see: MichiganCodes.com: Michigan Codes Rigid Foam Insulation

Best guides, catalogues and documents

Here is a small list with some of the best online guides and documents on caulking and air sealing:

EnergyStar Air sealing DIY Guide
Weatherize your home - NREL
Air Sealing EERE Guide
ONRL Air Sealing

Caulking and air sealing companies also have a wide set of key information (catalogues, case studies, technical information, installation...) on their products. See namely Dow and GE.

best places to buy

Foam and caulk manufacturers have information on their sites over retailers selling their products. See Dap where to buy, Dupont where to buy, GE where to buy. As to Dow products you can find them in most home improvement stores or online in Amazon.com.

Big home improvement like Lowe's and Home Depot sell most of the caulks and sealants cited in this page.

Amazon.com is an excellent online alternative. They sell caulks, sealants and foams from the major manufacturers at very competitive prices, with the usual customer reviews.

See:
Foams Dow in Amazon
Dap caulks and sealants in Amazon
Dupont caulks and sealants in Amazon
GE Silicones in Amazon

finding the best air sealing contractors

Air sealing and caulk manufacturers can help you find air sealing contractors in your region. You may also find them in the yellow pages under “air sealing”. Since many of these contractors are also associated to insulation, take also a look at The Best of Insulation: Contractors and Associations.

In USA you can find a professional air sealing contractor through the Resnet database: Resnet Air Sealing Contractors. Another way of finding contractors in your area is through the U.S. Department of Energy's Weatherization Assistance Program. See: State weatherization contacts.

best Weekend caulking DIY projects

Home Depot has a good page for weekend projects involving foam sealants, air barrier materials and insulation and air sealing boards... See: Home Depot Dow Air Sealing and Insulation Projects. This page has a strong promotional bent and is based on the promotion of a big brand but in the overall the information and resources (including some videos) are good.

Dap manufacturers have also some suggestions for possible weekend air sealing projects for kitchen and bath, windows and doors, outside & basement, etc. You may find them here.

For some basic air sealing information on projects involving GE silicones, see GE DIY projects.

For equivalent projects involving Dupont products, see: Pick your sealing project Dupont.

Best air sealing and insulation audits

If you are unsure about the situation of your home's current insulation and air sealing, you may want to carry out an energy audit, using a thermographic camera or a blower door test... For DIY insulation and air sealing audits, see: Simple energy audits.

USA: For professional energy audits (infrared audits, blower door tests...) consider the partners suggested by the Energy Star: Energy star audit partners or a certified professional listed by Resnet (Resnet auditors). Some states have local organizations that can provide lists of energy auditors: the Maine Efficiencypros.org, the Arizona Home Performance organization and so on...

UK: Energy Saving Trust Home Energy check page. Canada: Natural Resources Canada Australia: The Australian Government Home Safety Plan

_____________

Note: Thank you for taking the time to read the stuff in this page. But please note that all the resources listed here belong to their respective owners, with whom we don't maintain any affiliation. If you know a good resource on Air sealing & Caulking that should be listed here, please let us know by email (see Home Page footer).Some resources are also promotional materials, but that's largely inevitable.