DIY Energy Audit

1. DIY Energy Audit Even while a professional home energy assessment with Energy Consultant is the most effective approach to find out where your home is wasting energy and where you can make savings, you can perform your own straightforward but thorough walk-through and find many issues in any property. Although a professional home Energy Audit will be more comprehensive, this "do-it-yourself" examination can flag out some more straightforward problems. Keep a list of the areas you have checked and the issues you have discovered as you travel around your house. You can use this list to prioritize your energy-efficiency improvements. Do not assume that there are no options to save energy because your home is new or recently built. Over the past few years, energy-saving technology has advanced quickly, outperforming the standard training many builders, including some of the most reputable, have access to. First, look for air leaks. It makes it logical to start with drafts as they are one of the primary sources of energy loss in your home, and eliminating them can help you save between 4 and 50 percent of your annual energy bills. The quickest and most effective technique to find them is as follows: All windows, outside doors, and fireplace flues should be closed, but internal doors should remain unlocked.

2. Turn on any outdoor-facing exhaust fans, such as those in your stove, bathroom, and clothes dryer. Electric outlets, switch plates, door/window frames, attic hatches, vents, and everywhere where two distinct materials meet are typical leak sites. Light an incense stick and pass it along the margins of these areas. Check your ceiling insulation in step two. The U.S. Department of Energy states that if the insulation levels are lower than the advised minimum, "Heat loss through the roof and walls in your home could be very considerable." Your home's Energy Consultant most likely used the recommended quantity of insulation at the time it was constructed. The level of insulation may not be appropriate given current energy costs (and likely increased future costs), mainly if your home is older. Step 3: Examine the space heaters and air conditioners you have. The highest energy expenses in most homes and apartments, heating and air conditioning, maybe the most significant component of your Energy Audit. Examine the nameplates on your heating and cooling equipment and contrast them with what is currently on the market. Just remember that various equipment uses different efficiency ratings: EER, also known as the Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio, is frequently used by air conditioners (SEER). The Annual Fuel Utilization Efficiency is used by combustion-based heating systems (AFUE). I used the Heating Seasonal Performance Factor, air-source heat pumps (HSPF). Each efficiency grade has a unique definition and calculation process, but you can contrast them with a car's gas mileage (mpg). For a given workload, the operating cost of heating and cooling systems reduces as the rated efficiency rises. Final Advice from Our Energy Auditor Once you've determined where energy is wasted at your house, you may prioritize the improvements that will increase effectiveness. Simple solutions with a rapid payback period are an excellent place to start since the money they save can be used to fund more intricate initiatives. The length of your stay in a house should be taken into account when adopting energy efficiency solutions. You won't gain from an energy efficiency project with an 8-year payback period, for instance, if you intend to rent or sell your home in 4 years.