Turn the material inside out so you have a long cylinder that is open at both ends, with the prettier side of the fabric on the outside. Stitch together one of the ends - I did this with a row of stitches about 3cm in. You can fold the material over to stitch it.

There are also draught excluders made from the leg of old jeans, an old pair of tights or old woolly jumper sleeves. They can be stuffed with newspaper, rice, lentils, the pad from an old cushion, polystyrene foam, peanuts, bubble wrap or carrier bags – whatever you have at home. You can also make a laminate fabric one, too, which is easy to clean. Areas to focus on are floor boards, skirting boards, where window and door frames meet the wall and the ceiling-to-wall junctions. The less obvious areas are keyholes, kitchen cupboards (where pipes are likely to penetrate walls), loft hatches and downlights.

Fitting a draught excluder with a brush strip

They didn't cost much because I used fabric discarded from some curtains I had altered, and they've allowed me to turn my heating down a notch. So at least I'm saving money (and doing my bit for the environment). Last weekend I discover my new home is about as well insulated as a beach hut. Everywhere I go there seems to be a draught. As it's a rental property, I have to get permission from my landlord to alter any of the fixtures, so I got out my sewing machine to make some draught excluders instead. As we're slowly coming up to the colder months, there is no better time to learn how to make a draught excluder for your home with our free sewing pattern and simple tutorial. verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ In Australia, sand-filled draught excluders are called door snakes. All you need is a soft filling that is compact enough to prevent draughts and you can get started.

In this step-by-step tutorial for how to make a draught excluder, we'll show you how to make a simple draught excluder using some left-over fabric from your other sewing projects. You don’t need to be able to sew or even have a sewing machine to make this simple draught excluder and if you’re new to sewing, it’s a perfect beginner’s project. Why making a draught excluder is easier than you may think The difference between draughts and ventilation is one of control. Draughts are uncontrolled, while ventilation is ours to switch on and off at will. Home ventilation in the form of extractor fans and cooker hoods will ensure that condensation is properly dealt with, at source. His interest in renewable energy and sustainability was first inspired by visits to the Royal Festival Hall heat pump and the Edmonton heat-from-waste projects. In 1979 Moving in 2002 to a small-holding in South Wales, providing as it did access to a wider range of natural resources, fanned his enthusiasm for sustainability. He went on to install renewable technology at the property, including biomass boiler and wind turbine. ok,so the boiler broke down on Christmas Eve, and we are consequently trying to make our very draughty house (which we have yet to renovate 6 years after buying... )a little more economocal until we can afford a new boiler in a month or two.

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Optional: To make a snake draught excluder, simply sew on two buttons for eyes and a piece of red ribbon (with a V-shaped piece cut out of one end) for a forked tongue.