Home Energy Audits
Many older homes, though well built, have leaks in the attic, basement, doors, garage, and other locations like additions. Because of this, conditioned air seeps out making the home too hot or too cold, depending on the season. Homeowners may believe, incorrectly, that it’s just the way older homes are and live with high energy bills and big temperature differences between floors. When, in fact, they need to get a comprehensive energy audit and live with high energy bills and big temperature differences between floors. When, in fact, they need to get a comprehensive energy audit from the Building Performance Institute-certified consultants at Energy Efficiency Experts, based in Washington DC.
The main purpose behind Home Energy Audits is to evaluate everything in your home that uses or loses energy. If you were too cold last winter and piled on layer and layer of clothing, or if your air conditioner just can’t keep up with the heat of the summer, a home energy audit will help you locate problem areas and can help reduce your utility bills by up to 35%
What exactly happens during a home energy audit? The steps below explain what we do
1. Evaluate Usage
We measure your home and inspect a year’s worth of utility bills to evaluate efficiencies and detect potential issues.
2. Inspect the Home
We evaluate your home by reviewing systems, appliances, insulation, and attic conditions. We conduct a blower door test and collect data throughout the house. We consider room comfort, appliances, lighting, and the crawlspace or addition, if applicable.
3. Conduct Combustion Safety Test
This test evaluates the performance and safety of combustion appliances in the home. We inspect gas pipes, furnaces, water heaters, test for ambient carbon monoxide. We check for flue gases entering the living space — a potentially dangerous condition — and that carbon monoxide is within industry standards.
4. Written Report
We provide a report to the homeowner including recommendations and approximate costs. We can often provide information on eligible rebates. With our recommendations, it is possible for homeowners to decrease energy use up to 35%.
Evaluate Usage. Energy Efficiency Experts will collect a year’s worth of utility bills (not including your water bill) and compare them against statistics for efficient/inefficient houses. This information helps us identify potential problem areas.
Inspect the Home. Our inspection includes checking water systems and whether or not there is moisture in places that might indicate a problem. We look at appliances, noting their condition and checking for door seals. We check for drafts coming from doors and windows. Heating and air conditioning performance is evaluated, including the efficiency of any return duct on the top floor. The attic inspection includes a check of insulation and ventilation, attic fans, and a search for the presence of asbestos.
Combustion Safety Test. A combustion safety test evaluates furnaces and gas appliances. We also look at the age of the furnace and test its capabilities. Our combustion test will also identify whether there are any carbon monoxide leaks. This test takes about 30 minutes.
Written Report. Our report is provided within 24 – 48 hours of our visit, depending on the complexity of the issues that are discovered during our audit.
Improving Your Home. We have an in-house team to perform the work and we’ll work with the customer to determine a suitable action plan.
Energy Audits in Action.
Here we are at work. Contact us to get started on your house!
