Need to Know if Your Home is Energy Efficient? Get an Energy Audit
As the summer heats up in South Florida, many people feel there’s an impossible choice to make between blowing their budget on rising air conditioning costs or suffering in the heat. A professional home energy audit will help you find the perfect middle ground between the two.
An energy audit provides you with detailed information on the energy costs and energy efficiency of your home as well as areas that need improvement. At the end of the day, an audit done right will lead to substantial savings of energy and money.
Various tasks are undertaken during a typical home energy audit:
- Thermographic inspections of the entire house. Used to see significant variations in temperature throughout the house through thermography or infrared thermography as well. This shows where insulation is inadequate and air is leaking or infiltrating.
- The blower door test. A powerful fan is fitted into a main exterior door, pointing outside. When the fan is turned on, it sucks air out of the house. Gauges will show how quickly the air pressure inside the house returns to equilibrium, indicating the extent and location of air leaks (again, using a thermographic scan).
- Evaluating air sealing and insulation issues. The outer walls, doors, windows and other openings that separate your home from the heat are inspected for leaks and other deficiencies.
- The auditor will inspect your HVAC system, and look at your energy bills, to get an idea of the equipment’s efficiency and possible wasted energy.
- He/she should inspect your ductwork to determine whether it’s leaking or requires insulation.
All this means your home will be scrutinized for energy efficiency from 360 degrees for the best energy practices.
Some aspects of an audit can reveal factors that you may not even know affected energy costs and efficiency. For instance, did you know that the presence of houseplants affect the overall quality of your home’s air?
NisAir Air Conditioning and Heating is an expert HVAC company that has served Palm Beach, Martin and Indian River counties for 40 years successfully for the simple reason that we want to help our customers get the results they want. Please contact us to see the best possible options for air-conditioning needs for your Florida home, and how an energy audit can keep you cool at a comfortable price.
