5 DIY Draft Stoppers for Reducing Electricity Costs

Do the exterior doors of your home or apartment have a small gap at the bottom?

Drafts are the largest source of heating and cooling loss in the home, including those through windows, doors, dryer vents, attic fans, and other openings. The experts at Energy.gov say reducing drafts in a home can save 10% to 20% of energy annually and make the home more comfortable.

One easy-to-fix source of drafts is the space beneath your exterior doors. And a frugal way to stop under-door drafts is to make or buy draft stoppers.

What Are Draft Stoppers?

A draft stopper, also called a draft blocker or draft dodger, is simply a device that fills that space under your door to keep the cold air out and the warm air in the winter. They can also be used in the summer to keep the cool air in and hot air out. Draft stoppers can also be placed on window sills to block drafts.

You can buy door draft dodgers for less than $20 (you’ll find a few cheap options below). But you can often make them for less.

5 Ideas for DIY Draft Stoppers

Here are five simple DIY draft-blocking ideas from our frugal readers to help you keep electric costs in check. You may already have the materials at home to make a few of these.

1. Turn a long squeegee blade into a draft blocker.

Go to a wholesale house that sells cleaning supplies, or jump online and buy a 36″ rubber squeegee replacement blade (most doors are 36″). Then screw it to the door so it just touches the floor. No more drafts and it is always in place!
Erich

2. Block drafts with repurposed old jeans.

To stop cold drafts from unused rooms, I used to put rolled-up towels in front of the doors. I was constantly tripping over them or having to put them back in place, so I came up with the idea to make a permanent one.

I took a piece of denim from an old pant leg, the width of the door, doubled it, sewed the ends together, and put enough sand in it to hold it to the floor. Then I fastened it to the door with a strip of wood so it would just touch the floor.

No more drafts and it is always in place.
Mike

3. Turn foam pipe insulators into draft stoppers.

In my old farmhouse, I found that the best way to stop drafts under doors is by using two foam pipe insulators. First, I made a fabric sleeve that was big enough to hold the two pipe insulators plus the depth of the door (it is as long as the door is wide). Then, I just tucked the end closed so that I could remove the pipe insulators and wash the fabric as needed. Installation was as easy as sliding it under the door, with one foam insulator on each side.

I no longer have to worry about the kids remembering to put the draft stopper back because it stays on the bottom of the door.
Jennifer

If you’re not a DIY-er, you can buy this style of draft stopper on Amazon for less than $15.

4. Create no-sew fabric DIY draft dodgers from old pillowcases.

There are those of us who cannot sew. But I was able to create simple draft dodgers for the bottom of doors using old pillowcases that color-coordinated with the different rooms in my home. I put clothes slated for Goodwill into the pillowcases and used raffia (you could use yarn or string) to tie them every six inches. They work great! When dirty, I simply toss them into the washer and dryer. Recycle, reuse, and redirect the drafts!
Jacque