Blower door tests are a key component of a comprehensive home energy audit
Blower door tests are a key component of a comprehensive home energy audit.
By Brian Paterson, VP and CEO New Buffalo Impact
How air tight is your home? A blower door test conducted by a professional energy auditor will help you find out the answer to that question.
What is air tightness, and why should a home owner care?
Air tightness is a key component in determining whether a home is energy efficient or not. It is a major contributor to energy consumption and heating and cooling costs.
Having a professional conduct a blower door test as part of a high tech comprehensive home energy audit will go a long way to providing details on any energy saving measures a homeowner should take to improve a home's energy efficiency including insulation, doors, windows, air sealing, and energy efficient heating and cooling systems.
There are four key reasons to have a blower door test conducted to determine air tightness.
The test results will assist in efforts to reduce energy consumption due to air leakage. It will help avoid moisture condensation problems. It will also show what measures need to be taken to eliminate uncomfortable drafts caused by cold air leaking in from outdoors. The results will also indicated whether a home's air quality is contaminated by indoor air pollution.
Air leakage, or infiltration, occurs when outside air enters a house uncontrollably through cracks and openings. Properly air sealing such cracks and openings in your home can significantly reduce heating and cooling costs, improve building durability, and create a healthier indoor environment.
Blower door test equipment consists of a frame and flexible panel that fit in a doorway, a variable-speed fan, a pressure gauge to measure the pressure differences inside and outside the home, and an airflow manometer and hoses for measuring airflow.
The key component to a blower door test is the "blower door fan", a strong fan that fits into the frame of an exterior door. The fan pulls air out of the house, and as a result, lowers the air pressure inside. That action causes the higher outside air pressure to flow in through all unsealed cracks and openings. As a result, the blower door test determines the air infiltration rate.
The professional energy auditor will take several steps before the actual testing. These steps include: closing windows and open interior doors; turning the thermostats down on heaters and water heaters; and shutting fireplace dampers, doors and air intakes.
Paterson's company, New Buffalo Impact, conducts a comprehensive home energy audit, and performs the necessary home energy improvement work including installation and air sealing.
NBI works with home owners to identify, and use, various financial assistance programs. More information on New Buffalo Impact is available online at www.newbuffaloimpact.com , or by e-mailing inquiry@newbuffaloimpact.com .
By Brian Paterson, VP and CEO New Buffalo Impact
How air tight is your home? A blower door test conducted by a professional energy auditor will help you find out the answer to that question.
What is air tightness, and why should a home owner care?
Air tightness is a key component in determining whether a home is energy efficient or not. It is a major contributor to energy consumption and heating and cooling costs.
Having a professional conduct a blower door test as part of a high tech comprehensive home energy audit will go a long way to providing details on any energy saving measures a homeowner should take to improve a home's energy efficiency including insulation, doors, windows, air sealing, and energy efficient heating and cooling systems.
There are four key reasons to have a blower door test conducted to determine air tightness.
The test results will assist in efforts to reduce energy consumption due to air leakage. It will help avoid moisture condensation problems. It will also show what measures need to be taken to eliminate uncomfortable drafts caused by cold air leaking in from outdoors. The results will also indicated whether a home's air quality is contaminated by indoor air pollution.
Air leakage, or infiltration, occurs when outside air enters a house uncontrollably through cracks and openings. Properly air sealing such cracks and openings in your home can significantly reduce heating and cooling costs, improve building durability, and create a healthier indoor environment.
Blower door test equipment consists of a frame and flexible panel that fit in a doorway, a variable-speed fan, a pressure gauge to measure the pressure differences inside and outside the home, and an airflow manometer and hoses for measuring airflow.
The key component to a blower door test is the "blower door fan", a strong fan that fits into the frame of an exterior door. The fan pulls air out of the house, and as a result, lowers the air pressure inside. That action causes the higher outside air pressure to flow in through all unsealed cracks and openings. As a result, the blower door test determines the air infiltration rate.
The professional energy auditor will take several steps before the actual testing. These steps include: closing windows and open interior doors; turning the thermostats down on heaters and water heaters; and shutting fireplace dampers, doors and air intakes.
Paterson's company, New Buffalo Impact, conducts a comprehensive home energy audit, and performs the necessary home energy improvement work including installation and air sealing.
NBI works with home owners to identify, and use, various financial assistance programs. More information on New Buffalo Impact is available online at www.newbuffaloimpact.com , or by e-mailing inquiry@newbuffaloimpact.com .