Go Green
Energy Efficiency Audits
Did you know that the sources of many household energy leaks are hidden and difficult to find? Most homeowners know about sealing windows and doors and insulating pipes and exterior walls, but many homes are still leaking energy from places that are invisible to the eye.
If you are interested in getting specific recommendations for improving the efficiency of your home, consider contacting a professional Home Energy Auditor. A professional auditor can use a variety of techniques and equipment to determine the energy efficiency of your home. Thorough audits often use equipment such as blower doors, which measure the extent of leaks in the building envelope, and infrared cameras which reveal hard-to-detect areas of air infiltration and missing insulation.
An energy audit with an infrared camera is highly recommended. Experienced inspectors can help you find sources of energy leaks in little time. Finding the sources can help homeowners decide what problems to fix first, based on what will help save the most amount of money in the least amount of time. Replacing an old water heater or furnace may start saving money in eight or ten years, but what if there’s something else that’s been overlooked? What if there’s something that could be fixed that will help you save on energy bills immediately?
An infared scan is non-invasive and reads your home like an x-ray, providing information needed to determine which leaks require immediate action. Trained inspectors conduct a thorough examination of your home and provide a printed report on the spot at the end of the energy audit. A professional report should contain infrared photos of problems areas discovered during the inspection, digital photos of obvious problem areas in the home, a detailed list of all items that can be addressed to improve energy efficiency of the home. Itemizations include estimated costs for fixing each item, returns on investment analysis of each item, as well as estimated years until cost is recouped for each item.
There are many companies currently doing energy audits. There are not any standard best practices for energy audits and you will find there is a wide range of what an energy audit includes. Also, many of these energy audits are being conducted for free or at a small cost by utility companies or manufacturers who want to sell “their solution” whether it be double-paned windows or a new furnace. Often, these audits do not comprehensively examine homes in ways that an unbiased home inspection will.
But remember, audits alone don't save energy; recommended improvements must be implemented to produce results. |
