WHOLE HOUSE ENERGY AUDIT
Professional Home Energy Audits Professional energy audits generally go into great detail. The energy auditor will do a room-by-room examination of the residence, as well as a thorough examination of past utility bills. We will include a blower door test. It will also include a thermographic scan. There's also another type of test—the PFT air infiltration measurement technique—but it is rarely offered. Preparing for an Energy Audit Before the energy auditor visits your house, make a list of any existing problems such as condensation and uncomfortable or drafty rooms. Have copies or a summary of the home's yearly energy bills. (Your utility can get these for you.) Auditors use this information to establish what to look for during the audit. The auditor first examines the outside of the home to determine the size of the house and its features (i.e., wall area, number and size of windows). The auditor then will analyze the residents' behavior: Is anyone home during working hours? What is the average thermostat setting for summer and winter? How many people live here? Is every room in use? Your answers may help uncover some simple ways to reduce your household's energy consumption. Walk through your home with the auditors as they work, and ask questions. We will use equipment to detect sources of energy loss, such as blower doors, infrared cameras, furnace efficiency meters and surface thermeters.
THERMAL INFARED SCAN
How They Work Thermography measures surface temperatures by using infrared video and still cameras. These tools see light that is in the heat spectrum. Images on the video or film record the temperature variations of the building's skin, ranging from white for warm regions to black for cooler areas. The resulting images help the auditor determine whether insulation is needed. They also serve as a quality control tool, to ensure that insulation has been installed correctly.
BLOWER DOOR TEST
Blower Door Tests Professional energy auditors use blower door tests to help determine a home's airtightness. These are some reasons for establishing the proper building tightness: Reducing energy consumption due to air leakage Avoiding moisture condensation problems Avoiding uncomfortable drafts caused by cold air leaking in from the outdoors Making sure that the home's air quality is not too contaminated by indoor air pollution. How They Work A blower door is a powerful fan that mounts into the frame of an exterior door. The fan pulls air out of the house, lowering the air pressure inside. The higher outside air pressure then flows in through all unsealed cracks and openings. The auditors may use a smoke pencil to detect air leaks. These tests determine the air infiltration rate of a building. Blower doors consist of a frame and flexible panel that you can place in a doorway, a variable-speed fan, a pressure gauge to measure the pressure differences inside and outside the home, and an airflow manometer and hoses for measuring airflow.
WINDOW EVALUATION
Windows, Doors, and Skylights Energy-efficient windows, doors, and skylights—also known as fenestration—can help lower a home's heating, cooling, and lighting costs.
LIGHTING EVALUATION
Artificial lighting consumes almost 15% of a household's electricity use. Use of new lighting technologies can reduce lighting energy use in homes by 50%–75%. You can reduce lighting energy use by selecting lighting and sources that use energy more efficiently, and by installing lighting controls. Here you'll find the following information:
HVAC UNIT INSPECTION AND SIZING
Space Heating and Cooling Heating and cooling account for about 56% of the energy use in a typical U.S. home, making it the largest energy expense for most homes. A wide variety of technologies are available for heating and cooling your home, and they achieve a wide range of efficiencies in converting their energy sources into useful heat or cool air for your home. In addition, many heating and cooling systems have certain supporting equipment in common, such as thermostats and ducts, which provide opportunities for saving energy. When looking for ways to save energy in your home, be sure to think about not only improving your existing heating and cooling system, but also consider the energy efficiency of the supporting equipment and the possibility of either adding supplementary sources of heating or cooling or simply replacing your system altogether. Selecting and Replacing Heating and Cooling Systems When replacing or upgrading an existing heating and cooling system, it's important to first consider the limitations imposed by your current system and available energy sources. When selecting a heating and cooling system for a new house, your options are generally much wider, although your builder or developer may place limitations on your choices. Cooling Systems Depending on where you live, cooling your home can be as simple as opening a window or as complex as using a central air conditioning unit. A wide variety of cooling technologies are available. Heating Systems Although most U.S. homes use either a furnace or a boiler, other approaches range from wood stoves to active solar heating systems. Heat Pump Systems Heat pump systems provide both heating and cooling and offer the benefit of delivering more useful energy than they consume. Supporting Equipment for Heating and Cooling Systems Thermostats and ducts provide opportunities for saving energy. Dehumidifying heat pipes allow central air conditioners and heat pumps to deliver drier air. Electric and gas meters allow you to track your energy use closely.
**GENERAL VISUAL INSPECTION**
This type of inspection can offten be the most cost effective .For a trained eye can find many deficiencys in many areas of the building and have very cost effective solutions. We will start in the attic and work our way down to the floor.A list of corrections will be compiled to remedy the problems,that can either be done by the homeowner or a contractor such as AES.