Cold slips through window frames the way whispers slip under a door: quiet, sneaky, relentless. Bills rise, rooms feel edgy, and comfort becomes a moving target. There’s a tiny, old-school trick to find the culprits and fix them for the price of a coffee.
Outside, scooters drone. Inside, a curtain lifts as if someone just walked past. The radiator is on, the floor warm, yet there’s that faint shiver across the skin — the one you notice only when you stop talking. I light a candle and hold it close to the frame. The flame bows, then steadies, then bows again, like it’s greeting a guest I can’t see. Somewhere between the latch and the sill, air is slinking in. I move a little slower. The room seems to hush, listening. The wax smells faintly of honey. The window says nothing. The flame told the truth.
Spifferi dalle finestre: the quiet leak that drains your comfort
Draughts don’t roar; they nibble. They creep in through gaps thinner than a credit card and then find their way into your bones. You heat the air, the air escapes, you turn up the thermostat, and the little cycle repeats. What looks like a harmless flutter of a curtain can be the reason your living room never quite feels settled. We’ve all had that moment when a room looks cozy and still feels a shade too cold. Energy slips away in silence, and your budget gets tapped for it.
Here’s a number that sticks: a 3 mm gap running the length of a window can leak as much air as a hole the size of your fist. In older buildings, infiltration can account for a surprising chunk of heat loss — think a quarter of what you’re paying to keep warm. Lucia, who lives two floors up in a 1960s block, told me she used to shove a scarf against the bedroom window. The scarf moved. That’s how obvious the draft was. She spent €1.99 on self-adhesive foam and stopped hearing the curtain whisper.
Why a candle works is simple physics. Moving air disturbs a flame far more than still air does, and even the slightest draft shows up as a quiver. By tracing the flame along the frame, hinges, latch, and sill, you map pressure differences. In air-tight corners the flame stands vertical; near leaks it leans, dances, or sputters. Your job is to spot those reactions and mark them. Then you fill the paths with something that blocks air: foam tape, rope caulk, or a bead of silicone. Small inputs. Big returns.
The candle test method — then seal the leaks for roughly €2
Pick a calm moment. Turn off fans, close doors, and light a stubby candle you can grip firmly. Hold it 1–2 cm from the frame, starting at the top and moving slowly along every edge. Watch for a flicker or a pull in one direction. Circle suspicious spots with a pencil or a piece of painter’s tape. Want to make drafts show themselves faster? Run the bathroom and kitchen exhaust for five minutes to create a gentle pull from outside to in. Move the flame inch by inch. It takes five quiet minutes.
Now for the €2 fix. Grab a roll of self-adhesive foam weatherstrip or felt (often €1–€2 at hardware shops), or a small coil of rope caulk. Clean the frame with a damp cloth and let it dry. Stick foam along the inner stops where sash meets frame, or press rope caulk right into the gap you marked. Latches leaking? Add a thin pad under the catch to tighten the close. Soyons honnêtes : personne ne fait vraiment ça tous les jours. Do it once, and you’ll feel the room settle. Two euros can change your winter.
People often rush, and that’s where things go sideways. Don’t block drainage holes at the bottom of the frame — those little slots keep water out of your walls. Keep the flame away from curtains and blinds, and hold a saucer under the candle to catch drips. If the leak is at the hinge, try a skinny strip of foam on the meeting edge; if it’s at the sill, consider a thin bead of clear silicone you can peel off in spring. A flicker equals a leak.
“The candle doesn’t lie. If the flame moves, air is moving — and if air moves, your heat moves.”
- Best €2 buys: 6–9 mm foam strip, felt tape, rope caulk.
- Mark leaks first, then seal — not the other way around.
- Work one window at a time to feel the difference.
- Leave weep holes free so frames can breathe.
What you gain when you stop the whisper
There’s the obvious benefit — warmth — and then there’s everything else. Quieter rooms because gaps don’t just carry air; they carry noise. Fewer dust streaks around the sill. Less condensation on cold glass, since warm air isn’t sneaking to the edge to hit a cold shock. And that subtle shift in how the place feels when you wake up. You walk to the window, your breath doesn’t fog. The handle clicks shut with a cushioned clamp because the seal now meets the frame like a handshake, not a shrug. Seal the leak the same day. You’ll feel it tonight.
| Point clé | Détail | Intérêt pour le lecteur |
|---|---|---|
| Candle test | Move a lit candle along frames, watch for flickers | Find invisible leaks in minutes |
| €2 seal | Use foam tape or rope caulk on marked gaps | Fast, cheap comfort boost |
| Do/don’t | Clean first; don’t block drainage; go slow | Better results, no frame damage |
FAQ :
- Can I use incense instead of a candle?Yes. Smoke makes leaks visible, and it’s safer near curtains. Move the stick slowly and watch the plume bend.
- What if my frames are warped?Layer foam tape in thin strips or use rope caulk, which molds to odd shapes. For big warps, a latch shim can help pull the sash tighter.
- Will tape damage paint or wood?Foam weatherstrip and felt are low-tack and removable. Clean residue with mild soapy water in spring.
- How long will a €2 fix last?Through a season, often longer. Foam may compress over time. Replace it in five minutes next autumn.
- Is open flame safe for this test?Only if you keep distance from fabrics and work with a drip tray. A tealight in a holder or an incense stick is a calmer choice.
