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I am considering getting a home energy audit done by a professional. I'd like someone to be able to come into my home and tell us how we can make it more energy efficient. Has anyone else had this done? I'm not sure what type of companies provide this service. Do they need a special license or something? Names and experiences are appreciated (if allowed by TOS that is).
I think energy audits are great. I do have a thought on the subject though ; You may want to first take care of the obvious like adding insulation, closing up the crawlspace, weatherstripping, etc and then bring them in.They can really fine tune the house and that is what they excel at. If you shore up the major standard items first, the minor may be much more noticeable to devices they use when you bring the experts in.
I believe there are a couple posters on here that are directly involved in that business too. I know MikeNC29 is well versed in the subject. One great starting point would be Advanced Energy, an Energy Efficiency Services Firm
They are a group of building scientists out of N.C. State that basically wrote the book energy savings and have a wealth of information. If you have crawlspace or insulation related questions, that is an area of expertise for me and will be happy to give you advice in direct message.
Thanks for this info. I will be watching this thread. Have been wanted to do the same, but worried that energy audits have been one of the "hot fields" that tons of people are hanging out a shingle and say is there profession after taking a short course. Those people may be fine after they get some experience, but I wanted to make sure I got someone experienced and was not just trying to sell me insulation or something.
Thanks for this info. I will be watching this thread. Have been wanted to do the same, but worried that energy audits have been one of the "hot fields" that tons of people are hanging out a shingle and say is there profession after taking a short course. Those people may be fine after they get some experience, but I wanted to make sure I got someone experienced and was not just trying to sell me insulation or something.
There is plenty of truth in that statement. You can take a relatively short course and become an "expert". There are plenty of bona fide experts though, just do your diligence in checking them out.
My family's company does energy audits, and I totally agree with this:
Quote:
but worried that energy audits have been one of the "hot fields" that tons of people are hanging out a shingle and say is there profession after taking a short course. Those people may be fine after they get some experience, but I wanted to make sure I got someone experienced and was not just trying to sell me insulation or something.
First, you need someone BPI certified to do the audit, and second, find someone who has been doing it a while.
As for the PSNC audit, it's a start...but you get what you pay for. We've done weatherization for people who've had the PSNC audits and we've often had to do another audit to 'interpret' their results. That said, they're only $25, so you might as well go for it and see what they say. Depending on your home and what you understand about weatherization and energy efficiency already it might work for you.
I'd also be wary of companies that do a free audit and follow up with a list of improvements. It's hard to tell if what they want you to do is legit or not. You can find plenty of energy auditors who operate independently, or you can go with a company that does both, but charges you for the audit and follows up with a quote, which you can then compare to a quote from other weatherization companies. Our company follows the 2nd model, but we'll also quote on work suggested by other auditors.
Hope that makes sense! An energy audit can really, really pay off in the long run.
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Yes, thanks for the link. I've been thinking about doing this for a while so I filled out the contact form on the PSNC site. I figure for $25 I'll at least become more knowledgeable about the subject and decide if I need a more thorough audit and/or if I can so some stuff by myself. I'll post about how it goes with them.
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