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Proven Advice To Eliminate "Bad" Air And Save Tons Of Energy – By An Expert

Hot or cold or drafty rooms. Excessive dust. High utility bills. Air that is too dry or too humid. Concerns about the air quality in your home. These are common issues for homeowners. In fact, over 90% of homes have hidden air control problems. Rather than focusing on a single component, like old heating or air conditioning systems, single pane windows, inadequate insulation levels or leaky ductwork, you should be assessing how all of these components can work together for the best results. A House Checkup is the answer. 

Many air leaks in homes are fairly obvious, such as around doors, windows, or electrical outlets. Others like those from attics, around chimneys and through recessed lighting fixtures are often not as obvious and, usually, a much more significant source of energy loss in a home. It’s critical to seal air leaks to improve the overall performance and efficiency of your home. Sometimes additional insulation should be added because many older homes are not well-insulated or not at all.  

Many homes have leaky ductwork and poor system airflow. The Department of Energy estimates that typical duct systems lose up to 40 percent of the energy from the comfort system. Duct leaks have a dramatic effect on comfort and energy efficiency. Sealing duct leaks helps get total system airflow to proper levels so heating and cooling equipment operates more efficiently. Additionally, pressure balances are maintained between the living space and the unconditioned spaces like basements and attics. 

Once ductwork is sealed, system airflow should be balanced to ensure each area or room is getting the correct amount of airflow to adequately heat or cool comfortably. Just blowing air into a space does not ensure it will heat or cool effectively. Proper air volumes are best determined based on a load calculation for your entire home. However, sometimes your system can adequately balance by taking the total flow and prorating it based on the size of each space. 

During a House Checkup your home’s air tightness is determined using an Infiltrometer, otherwise known as a blower door. An Infiltrometer is a powerful fan that gets temporarily mounted into the frame of an exterior door. The Infiltrometer fan pulls air out of the house thus lowering the pressure inside relative to outside. The higher pressure outside air then flows through all the cracks and leaks in your home. Testing then involves going around the home identifying each location where air is leaking from.  

Typically, solutions can be prioritized based on the results. Several factors such as size of the leak, impact of the leak, accessibility for the repairs, and cost versus payback, determine the scope of work. It is not uncommon to break the repairs into two main categories; duct sealing and envelope repairs.  

Duct sealing is fairly clear-cut. The repair investment is based on the length of duct and the number of supplies and returns. Some portions of the ductwork may be inaccessible so you will either have to seal only the major exposed leaks or open chases to provide access. Infrared technology is often used to isolate the precise location and severity of the concealed leaks. See comments below. 

Envelope repairs are many times contracted for a block of time to implement as many envelope repair solutions as possible during that time frame in priority-order based on budget allowances. Sealing thermal bypasses, correcting missing insulation or adding additional insulation are some typical repairs. Additionally, things like gaskets or air-tight boxes for recessed lighting, specialized kits to seal attic doors and hatches, or exhaust fan replacement and control are also common. 

Despite the flood of marketing materials for replacement windows, they usually only represent less than twenty percent of a home’s air leaks. Also, the air leaks associated with windows are usually fresh air instead of contaminated "bad" air. Building scientists have recently discovered that over half of leaking air first passes through an attached garage, crawlspace, basement or attic for a typical home. Air pollutants such as mold spores, carbon monoxide, automobile exhaust, radon gas, crawlspace dampness, insulation fibers, and volatile organic compounds can contaminate this leaking air. This "bad" air, can negatively affect your family’s health and safety. 

Sometimes thermography or infrared scanning is used to detect thermal defects and air leaks in your home’s envelope. Thermography measures surface temperatures using infrared cameras. The images show up as color gradations allowing the technician performing the analysis to "see" the heat loss or gain. Infrared cameras are commonly used to scan exterior walls, ceilings, ductwork chases, and almost any other building assembly that could be losing heat or energy. Thermography is particularly effective when used with a Infiltrometer because of the exaggerated air leakage rates that are induced by the negative pressure in your home during the testing. 

A House Checkup will tell you if your house provides enough fresh air ventilation, how to make your house more comfortable and lower your utility bills, how to reduce respiratory allergy suffering, and how to keep outdoor dust and pollen out of your home.

House Checkup’s were developed by Department of Energy researchers. Checkup’s have been featured on CBS, ABC, NBC, and CNN news, as well as This Old House and National Geographic Magazine.

For more information you can call Climate Partners at 1-800-673-1196, or contact us online. Make sure to request your copy of the informative FREE report "24 Tips & Secrets To Make Your Home Cleaner, Healthier, & More Comfortable… and Also Save Money On Your Utility Bills." It’s yours just for the asking. No strings attached. Absolutely no obligations.