Air Tight - Austin's Point of Sale Energy Audit
Austin's Point of Sale Energy Audit seems anything but air tight. The more I hear the less I know. So, in an effort not to appear un-informed when this ordinance goes into effect on June 1, I decided to have a local company come to my home in Pflugerville and perform an Energy Audit. I wanted to follow them around, see what they actually do and then be able to explain the whole process to my buyers and sellers.
I choose Green Collar Operations, not because I did a massive amount of research, but because they happened to send me an email when I was thinking about it. I called Alison Scott (512-986-7045) and made an appointment. It all seemed so normal.
On the scheduled day three men arrived, on time, and politely introduced themselves. I should have known right then that there was something odd going on. I mean they looked like normal guys but when they started speaking to me about what they were going to do I was sure I was either in a science fiction movie or being punked. Seriously, they started pulling large pieces of equipment out of huge black bags. They sealed off my doors and taped off all my vents in the house. Then they started hooking huge hoses to things.
Maybe I watch a little too much 24 but I was getting a little concerned. I mean, I truly expected some kind of vapor to start coming out and affecting my nervous system or something. But then Rob Scott, their appointed leader, started to explain what they were doing.
Seems all this is part of the Energy Audit and not some strategic infiltration of a suburban home with the intent of taking over the world one Pflugerville Realtor at a time. In reality, they were conducting a Duct Blaster Test and a Blower Door Test. A Duct Blaster Test measures the air loss in your duct system which shows duct efficiency in cubic feet per minute of air. This shows any air loss in the duct system due to old duct work, bad register seals, etc. The Blower Door Test is a test that measures the air loss in your whole house through doors, windows, plumbing penetrations, furnace closets, light switches and outlets, etc. Well, why didn't they say so? It all makes perfect sense now. If you have any questions feel free to contact me at www.SherryHindmarsh.com or call me (512) 731-8316. I don't have the answers but I know people that do.
It was very interesting. They even gave me a Home Energy Audit/Assessment showing me where my systems rated and suggested ways I might make some improvements to reduce energy consumption. And while not air tight, my home didn't rank too badly. There are some things I could do to reduce energy consumption though like installing additional attic insulation, radiant barrier and installing solar shades. But most of these things require a lot of installation work. I don't see how that saves my energy. Of course you can choose to have Green Collar Operations make the energy improvements. Much of the costs of these improvements are covered, at least partially, through Austin Energy and City of Austin rebates. Wohoo! Now that is saving my energy. Too bad I don't live in the Austin City Limits and I don't use Austin Energy. But I have a solution - my husband likes to save energy, he can do the repairs...
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