Learning to become energy auditors helps improve upon your basic home inspector skills and is a good review for certain things you might take for granted in your inspection process and make you more thorough in your investigations. Maybe improve upon the tools you might use as well.
The costs are something to think about when applying an energy audit to your inspection report. The tooling for such measurements and the blower door are not cheap. Quite expensive really, so check to see if you can market yourself better by going this extra mile.
The attached photograph shows a picture of a male, likely in his mid to late 40’s, conducting a blower door testing using blower door equipment that he purchased to produce such tests. Tests like this are part of a full energy audit.
The picture located here (https://www.nachi.org/gallery/?level=picture&id=2630) shows a window through an infrared lens. It appears to show moisture intrusion (I am basing that off the fact that insulation wouldn’t be present where the anomaly is). To confirm this, a moisture test would be conducted using a moisture meter.
During your initial health and safety check of the home. Inspecting systems that require gas should be checked prior to turning each system on. This picture shows a water heater that is missing a b vent and not properly vented to the exterior of the home.
The picture list above is of a gas water heater. The water heater does not have a b vent and is not vented to the exterior of the home. All systems and appliances should be checked for health and safety prior to testing.
Damage noted around interior of windows in kitchen. It appears there was water damage, unable to determine the cause. It could be from the window being left open. Recommend consulting with the seller And having a licensed contractor be sure to address that area when sealing other exterior areas.
I researched low E glass. It was very interesting, especially for the part of the country I live in, Phoenix Arizona. With the high levels of potential energy savings it could make sense for some homeowners to make the upgrade. It will be great information I can Pass along for them to ask their contractor about
The natural draft water heater flue pictured joins into a flue that was originally used for a natural draft furnace. The furnace has been replaced with a high efficiency furnace that no longer uses the larger flue. This creates a condition (orphaned) that leaves the smaller appliance using a large diameter flue. This raises the possibility of spillage due to poor draft conditions. Fortunately there is no visible indication of this condition as evidenced by lack of combustion products on top of the water heater. If one were to test the system at startup, it might indicate otherwise for a short period.
I looked at the “Cantilevered Floor Assembly” in the image gallery in conjunction with the energy audit purposes of this course, and since it had been mentioned in the video. This image illustrates quite well how an assembly should be sealed, and therefore where there are often likely to be air leakage bypasses present. These locations are good to keep in mind when auditing a home with cantilevered floor sections.
Energy audit CAZ testing, carbon monoxide levels in the ambient air around the technician must be monitored throughout out all combustion safety tests. Diagnostic evaluation and inspection must be aborted if ambient CO concentrations greater than 35 ppm are recorded.
Blower door depressurisation test, where the presence of asbestos, lead, mold and or other potentially hazardous material is known or suspected, all federal (EPA) guidelines must be followed to ensure technician and occupant safety. Blower door depressurization test may not be performed in homes where there is a risk of asbestos becoming airborne and being drawn into dwelling.
Improper venting connections are a hazard to the indoor air quality of any home that has combustible appliances. It being either improperly installed, connections that have come loose or were not sealed properly and improper venting terminations to the attic and not the outside. It is recommended to determine the existing condition of the appliance prior to doing any inspection on that appliance for safety purposes.
One of the main sources of heat/cool/moisture infiltration here in Florida are the gaps left unsealed with the installation of bathroom exhaust fans (picture) but also outlet and with boxes or any other “in wall” installation. The fix for these can be as simple as sealing such gaps with low expanding foam. The total of many small fixes can add up to a substantial gain.
The photo shows one of many openings in the attic that is not insulated or sealed.
This home had unsealed openings around wires, plumbing pipes and wall junctions. It was recommended to the home owner to have all of the areas sealed and all pot lights properly insulated and sealed.
In reading the article on saving energy, I found it very helpful to that windows and doors can waste up to 33% of heat loss. I go back to when I I was a child and my grandparents house had big heavy curtains to help insulate the windows in the summer and winter.
This is a 2013 Natural gas forced air furnace medium efficiency unit in good condition. It is matched with a 5 ton AC. The BTU rate is 72k. All burner flames are steady blue color with no fluctuations. The location is in the garage.
Inspecting for Air Sealing at Kitchen and Bathroom Exhaust Fans by Nick Gromicko, Katie McBride and Kate Tarasenko
In the article, kitchen and bathroom exhaust fans are needed for spot ventilation of those spaces. They can be the biggest culprits in the battle of unwanted air migration. This article gave insight in identifying and creative ways in sealing the leaks.
Attached in the photo is a 66,000 Btu,(3) burner natural gas forced air furnace. The gas input is 53,000 Btu, indicating it is a 80% efficient furnace. The first four digits of the serial number represent the week and year it was built indicating it was built in year 2000 making it an 18 year old furnace.
The article that I chose, was pricing and Billing for Home Inspectors. I found this interesting because I thought charging what competitors charge is the way to start my inspection business, which most had a flat rate for square footage of a home. However, this does not include salary, profit, and overhead accurately, although it may include what the local market price may be.