Energy Audit!
I thought I should start writing some energy tips as I really could have used this knowledge a couple of years ago... I'll try to use this to document what I'm doing to save energy and money (in the long run).
One of the things I needed was to see where I needed to insulate my house. I thought that the house was pretty air tight with the addition of weather beater windows in the basement. I was looking for metal roofing for my house and the post office, but found much more. I happened on a website, www.vainfrared.com and there they did roof inspections with an infrared camera and was starting to use the camera for whole home inspections. I called and talked to owner Damon Galeassi and he explained that he would inspect my house with the camera for a pre-determined price. He explained that we needed a day where there was a difference in the temperature in the house and outside of 15 degrees. It was spring, so we wanted 85 degrees outside temperature.
We went around the house and took pictures of areas that showed temperature differences. The following is some of the many pictures.
This is the picture of the front stoop that was cracking the foundation as it was being forced at an angle against the wall. The picture to the right shows that cool air was flowing from the left side of the concrete pad. After demolition of the pad and sidewalk, a huge hole was found and that is where critters got in and energy got out.
These are pictures of the ceiling in the living room. Clearly the cellulose insulation has shifted and moved away from the edges and corners of the ceiling. This shows that I need to spread the insulation out or replace with something that will stay put. I'm looking at raking the insulation back and replacing with foam to assure that any air leaks will be sealed.
Oh, remember that expensive doggy door from Security Boss Manufacturing named MaxSeal that I wrote about in "Windows and Doggy Doors". This is a picture of it showing very little temperature difference. The crosshair and the "68.9" temperature is actually cooler than the concrete block walls. The one on the right shows Boo (the dog) halfway through the door (with a wet tennis ball in her mouth). It has performed well and may pay for itself in a few years. I may want to fill the blocks to help insulate the basement... I didn't need a picture to know that the old doggy door needed replacement!
I also found that some of the windows in the house needs some attention. Left is one of my bedroom where I have a air conditioner and the right is a shade over a window on the south side of the house. I do need to find a better way to insulate the windows with air conditioners and maybe some insulating shades for the south side of the house.
Damon said that he would come and do a quick follow up when I get some repairs...
(To be continued)