Are Styrofoam Plugs A Good Option For Winterizing Foundation Vents?

Winterizing your home's foundation vents is a must if you live somewhere with frequent freezing temperatures during the winter season. This prevents a vast array of issues, such as frozen pipes, higher heating bills, and unwanted critters making their way into your home to escape the cold. If you are looking to plug your vents to avoid these problems, you have a few different options to choose from. Some homeowners opt for Styrofoam plugs, however, this may not be the best decision. Unfortunately, Styrofoam can also absorb water and moisture, which is counterproductive if you are attempting to keep moisture and freezing cold air out of your vents. It is also not the sturdiest material. Flimsy Styrofoam could easily break or not even create a proper seal in the first place.

Despite the downsides of using Styrofoam to plug foundation vents, you will find that it is still recommended by many across the internet. This is no surprise considering the fact that it is an easy and affordable solution. Still, it is not the most effective way to winterize foundation vents. You might be happy to know that there are alternatives you can use to protect your home from cold weather during the winter months without worry.

You may have seen Styrofoam foundation vent plugs at home improvement stores and assumed that they are a great choice for winterizing your vents. There's a few reasons why this is not the most reliable material to use for this purpose. The flimsiness of Styrofoam not only means it may not even fill the space properly, but it is also susceptible to deteriorating over time. It can deteriorate due to the elements, and pests could easily claw or chew their way through and into your home to get out of the cold. This makes it tricky to use them to keep the cold out.

Because Styrofoam plugs cannot handle contact with moisture well, you may want to consider installing a product like the Master Flow Automatic Open/Close Foundation vent covers from Home Depot. These covers open at 70 degrees Fahrenheit, and close at 40 degrees Fahrenheit all on their own. With these cover, you won't have to worry about installing vent plugs by hand each winter. They are also made of resin rather than Styrofoam, which, unlike Styrofoam, resin is sturdy and water resistant. If your foundation vents are in need of attention, you may want to add them to your list of home repairs to complete before winter.