Plan Spring Energy Evaluation for Best Results From Your A/C

Energy evaluations allow homeowners to avoid extreme summer energy bills by locating areas in your home that are energy drains. An energy evaluation determines where air leaks and other weaknesses are throughout your home, identifying cost-cutting improvements to reduce the losses. 

Before energy evaluations…

Find a reputable company to perform your energy evaluation. You need to be selective in finding a company with consistent consumer satisfaction. Check with the Better Business Bureau, as well as provided references. You should also ask if they use calibrated blower door testing and thermographic inspections—a couple of the most important energy evaluation tools.

Prepare for your evaluation. There are many steps you can take to make your evaluation more efficient, as well as give your auditor more insight on your particular energy needs.

• Start by making a list of problem areas in your home, such as drafts or certain rooms that don’t cool properly.
• Have copies of your yearly energy bills so the auditor can have an idea of when you use the most energy.
• Be prepared to answer questions relating to your average thermostat setting and consumption habits.

Prepare your home for testing. Auditors will use a variety of tests to assess your home’s energy efficiency. In order to perform these tests, you’ll need to take the following steps to prepare:

To prepare for the blower door test:

• Be sure to close all outside windows and open all interior doors.
• Remove all fireplace ashes or cover with a damp newspaper.
• Shut your fireplace damper and close fireplace doors.
• Turn down any heat-related thermostats that may interfere with the tests such as hot water heaters.

To prepare for a thermographic inspection, you may need to move furniture off of exterior walls and remove drapes on windows. Your HVAC technician can let you know when he or she arrives.

For more information on energy evaluations or other heating and cooling needs, contact the experts at Stack Heating, Cooling, Plumbing and Electric. We’ve provided Cleveland area homeowners with professional heating and cooling since 1976.

Our goal is to help educate our customers in Cleveland, Ohio about energy and home comfort issues (specific to HVAC systems).  For more information about energy evaluations and other HVAC topics, download our free Home Comfort Resource guide.

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